11-23-2014, 05:44 AM
In my opinion photos are a good supplement to your knowledge of how light and form works in the real world. Studying from life is objectively more accurate than studying from photography. It will be more consistent, you have more options as to how you will study it (angles, lighting, specific locations etc), you don't have to worry about whether or not it's properly exposed or whether it's blurry, you can see shadow detail and much easier and more accurately. You have no reason NOT to try at the very least doing a still life. I understand if you can't go out to figure classes or do plein airs, but there is literally no reason you cant toss a bunch of stuff on a desk, shine a light on it and work from that. None. You will get better at it, as you will with every thing else you currently suck at. When Kim Jung Gi studies from life, he doesn't copy the subject directly, but rather translates it using the fundamentals of art to actually learn its shapes and forms in 3D. That's really the goal. it's not to reproduce it to within a millimeter, but to learn about the fundamentals of art
Studying from photographs is better for things that move a lot, things that are at unreasonable angles or locations, things that are inaccessible etc etc.
So think tiger, shifting daylight, foreign/historical fashion, weird angles of the body etc.
But like Gliger said, its really up to you what studies work and what don't. I personally don't see a benefit in doing master portrait studies, but I know they work well for lots of other people. I personally don't like studying directly from my illustration and concept art peers, though I like using them as reference for certain things and though I know that many other people like doing so.
Studying from photographs is better for things that move a lot, things that are at unreasonable angles or locations, things that are inaccessible etc etc.
So think tiger, shifting daylight, foreign/historical fashion, weird angles of the body etc.
But like Gliger said, its really up to you what studies work and what don't. I personally don't see a benefit in doing master portrait studies, but I know they work well for lots of other people. I personally don't like studying directly from my illustration and concept art peers, though I like using them as reference for certain things and though I know that many other people like doing so.