A NUCLEAR WASTE OF SPACE

[Anisia Villamejor]

Hi everybody, I'm Anisia. Nice to meet you. My first impressions of Crimson Daggers have been fantastic!

I don't have a fantastic online presence but I'd really like to update here consistently. I'm currently pushing myself to paint and record 30 digital portraits in 30 days to improve my technique and speed. I think it would be best to start my sketchbook here with that.

I'm pretty slow when it comes to digital painting even though I've been doing it for a while and my technique's still me figuring things out as I go along. I decided to start doing warm-ups a week ago but I churned out trash like this:
1.5 hours.

I decided to get more serious with it:
4 Hours.

I started the challenge three days ago and so far I have this:

1. 3 Hours.

2. 3 Hours.

I definitely am embarrassed with the time it takes me to get things done so I think by publicly revealing the time it takes me to do each picture will push me to keep practicing.

I upload my process videos here but I gotta warn you, it's not pretty.

I get anxiety when I post things online too much but Crimson Daggers really feels like a safe space and I'm really trying to push myself so I think a community like this is just what I need.

[Amit Dutta]

Great start, and keep posting Anisia. CD is a very supportive place in general. Don't worry about the time it takes you. It takes what it takes. Speed comes with practice, that's all.

[Caisne]

You came to the right place. Agree with Amit, don't bother too much with speed, think more about doing the best job you can do, in a reasonable amount of time. Keep up the good work.

[Anisia Villamejor]

Thanks guys! I know speed comes with practice and that's really just a secondary focus but it is also important to me because if I'm not careful, I'll end up loosing daylight or sleep on constant corrections and things like that. So I know not to rush myself but I still have to mind the time? If that makes sense. But you guys are right, and I shouldn't let it get to me too much. :))

[crackedskull]

Welcome to daggers Anisia!
I can agree with the fact that youll get faster as time goes by(heck I spent 2.5h on a single apple study at the beginning).
No need to be embarrassed, every artist starts out crap and gets better as time goes by.
Its not a steady way forvard, sometimes stuff just doesnt work out and you do a piece that makes you feel like youve regressed backwards(which is not the case). Instead just dont worry about the result, focus on the process. Even if a painting turns out poorly you shouldnt fret, it still paves the way forvard.
If you put in the hours, enjoy yourself and focus then it will work out.

[Anisia Villamejor]

Thanks crackedskull! That does help me put things in perspective. I do forget to focus on the process sometimes (how is that even possible) so it really helps to hear that. :D

Here's today's portrait. I didn't focus on time and let myself take it slow. I think I took a bit under 3 hours. I usually record but I forgot to un-pause after two hours when I went to off to make tea.

It's getting easier now that I'm not so pressured (and that I actually know what I'm doing). I also switched from drawing lines first to blocking in the colours and it's a lot easier to gauge shapes!

[Anisia Villamejor]

Today's portrait:


The lighting on this one was challenging and I can see where I was a bit heavy handed with the dark tones. It was frustrating but I figured stuff out so hey, I feel accomplished. Approx. 3.5 hours in the noontime sun.