12-24-2015, 07:20 AM
Keep up the hard work guys.
I've been having slight crit withdrawals since my course ended, so here is one for ya as a gift for tomorrow....hope it helps a bit. I am no portrait master at ALL, but this most boiled down process (sort of the Reilly method) as far as I can tell from watching others do it. It definitely helps to split out the stages at the beginning...to build up that knowledge. Later you can wing it a bit more.
Artistebot, the ref you chose was very direct lit, so there was much less nuance to the shadow areas, but still the same thing applies.
Get your structure, proportion and feature placement correct and accurate first with a construction sketch. Easier said than done!
Then map all main core shadow shapes where light meets dark, accuracy being vital at this stage, taking into account planes of the form. The core shadows are the biggest and most important definer of the forms, so if you get these wrong, it will all fall apart. Draw with line to get these in. Fill the shadow areas using your guides with a single tone, then you have a basic notan structure of the face.
Then it's just going in and refining with midtone values, detailing and edgework etc. The more accurate you are with the first two steps, the better the final will be. Takes a while up front, but it's worth it for the amount of noodling it saves, and much better than trying to wing it by painting from the get go.
I'd also recommend that if you are going to study heads and faces...definitely work on being crazy accurate on structure and proportion and placement every time. Working sloppy will only teach you sloppy habits.
Hope it's clear?
I've been having slight crit withdrawals since my course ended, so here is one for ya as a gift for tomorrow....hope it helps a bit. I am no portrait master at ALL, but this most boiled down process (sort of the Reilly method) as far as I can tell from watching others do it. It definitely helps to split out the stages at the beginning...to build up that knowledge. Later you can wing it a bit more.
Artistebot, the ref you chose was very direct lit, so there was much less nuance to the shadow areas, but still the same thing applies.
Get your structure, proportion and feature placement correct and accurate first with a construction sketch. Easier said than done!
Then map all main core shadow shapes where light meets dark, accuracy being vital at this stage, taking into account planes of the form. The core shadows are the biggest and most important definer of the forms, so if you get these wrong, it will all fall apart. Draw with line to get these in. Fill the shadow areas using your guides with a single tone, then you have a basic notan structure of the face.
Then it's just going in and refining with midtone values, detailing and edgework etc. The more accurate you are with the first two steps, the better the final will be. Takes a while up front, but it's worth it for the amount of noodling it saves, and much better than trying to wing it by painting from the get go.
I'd also recommend that if you are going to study heads and faces...definitely work on being crazy accurate on structure and proportion and placement every time. Working sloppy will only teach you sloppy habits.
Hope it's clear?