10-30-2016, 09:07 PM
Hey, nice stuff in here
I know how you feel about wanting to zoom in when doing eyes, that's because they pack a lot more detail and you gotta learn how to simplify all that.
I see you're using a lot of curves and soft edges, those might describe the organic quality of the face, but it doesn't really allow you to think in terms of planes. Look at the Asaro head, start from there, chisel the features, block them in with hard edges and then, once you got the planes figured out, start thinking about the shadows and the roundness of forms.
The beauty of portrait painting is in the subtlety of how forms transition between being quite sharp edged (the nose for example) to being very soft, like the corners of the mouth. A beautiful example of that transition is the lower lip, while it usually has a very sharp edge on the middle, it softens a lot on the sides and sometimes you can't even distinguish the plane difference, where the lips ends and where the upper chin portion begins, if it wasn't for the reddish color.
So a helpful method I find works pretty well for me is stick to a big brush. Not too big so you can't draw any details, but not 1px either so you'll have to go put in every detail. Using a big brush forces you to simplify. A lot. For example, if you aren't able to paint an eye properly because you can't zoom in and get those tiny details, then think of it as a sphere and just draw a ball that's lit accordingly.
Try to get references where the planes are visible, where there's a clear difference between light and shadow, that way you'll spot those planes a lot easier.
I can suggest this tumblr: http://veraxvoltus.tumblr.com/ though some have more subtle shadows, so you gotta know a lot more about planes of the head.
Let's say this image is a pretty decent one: http://veraxvoltus.tumblr.com/image/112343280309
So think about the shadow shapes that the brow ridge creates over the sphere of the eye, the angle of the brows and so on. When you see a complex shape and you're not sure how to put in down on canvas, just try finding corners, simplify. The more corners you have, the more structured it is.
I can also recommend watching as many videos you can about head drawing, like maybe this Steve Huston 3h video if you haven't already: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T7cDY7YDsg
Maybe also check Proko's portrait videos and of course, look at old masters like Sargent, you can learn a ton just by seeing how they simplified it.
Hope this helps you, cheers!
I know how you feel about wanting to zoom in when doing eyes, that's because they pack a lot more detail and you gotta learn how to simplify all that.
I see you're using a lot of curves and soft edges, those might describe the organic quality of the face, but it doesn't really allow you to think in terms of planes. Look at the Asaro head, start from there, chisel the features, block them in with hard edges and then, once you got the planes figured out, start thinking about the shadows and the roundness of forms.
The beauty of portrait painting is in the subtlety of how forms transition between being quite sharp edged (the nose for example) to being very soft, like the corners of the mouth. A beautiful example of that transition is the lower lip, while it usually has a very sharp edge on the middle, it softens a lot on the sides and sometimes you can't even distinguish the plane difference, where the lips ends and where the upper chin portion begins, if it wasn't for the reddish color.
So a helpful method I find works pretty well for me is stick to a big brush. Not too big so you can't draw any details, but not 1px either so you'll have to go put in every detail. Using a big brush forces you to simplify. A lot. For example, if you aren't able to paint an eye properly because you can't zoom in and get those tiny details, then think of it as a sphere and just draw a ball that's lit accordingly.
Try to get references where the planes are visible, where there's a clear difference between light and shadow, that way you'll spot those planes a lot easier.
I can suggest this tumblr: http://veraxvoltus.tumblr.com/ though some have more subtle shadows, so you gotta know a lot more about planes of the head.
Let's say this image is a pretty decent one: http://veraxvoltus.tumblr.com/image/112343280309
So think about the shadow shapes that the brow ridge creates over the sphere of the eye, the angle of the brows and so on. When you see a complex shape and you're not sure how to put in down on canvas, just try finding corners, simplify. The more corners you have, the more structured it is.
I can also recommend watching as many videos you can about head drawing, like maybe this Steve Huston 3h video if you haven't already: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T7cDY7YDsg
Maybe also check Proko's portrait videos and of course, look at old masters like Sargent, you can learn a ton just by seeing how they simplified it.
Hope this helps you, cheers!