Jesus. Up on the Oliphant. Cuttin down muffuggahz

melting_doll · December 2010

Don't worry, Ninjai, I can't draw from life for crap because I'm impatient. Don't give up! 6 months from now you will have improved so much, and you'll look back and be glad you never did (:

ninjai · December 2010

Thanks Doll. (He he, sounds old timey) I hope I can look back and see improvement. Can't wait!

Was watching Hunt for the Red October on my DVD player doing some quick sketches yesterday. These were the results. (Music for your optimal viewing pleasure)Musical Accompaniment
(Spoilered for lots o pages)

Spoiler:

My favorites are Tupolev (cigarette guy) PG 2, Mr. Ambassador (fat tie guy) PG 3, and the aircraft carrier PG 4

ninjai · December 2010

Posted this in the doodle thread, but wanted some feedback, so I posted it here. The left dudes torso is jacked up, not digging the arms either.

Also, IGNORE THE THING IN THE BOTTOM LEFT!!! I couldn't crop it out in NERO

Never inked anything before. :_(

This made me lol. Also, I made it.

Iruka · December 2010

Your mouths seem to be placed on the face with no regard to an underlaying jaw structure.

ninjai · December 2010

You're right, but I don't even know where else I would put them... :I

any suggestions?

Toji Suzuhara · December 2010

You really need to adjust the levels of your blacks in your ink drawings. Image > Adjustment > Levels in Photoshop. Move the sliders around (mostly the left one under the curve) until you get a black instead of the dark, warm grey. Most of your scanning (of inks and pencil drawings) tends to be muddy. It's really easy to fix with some greyscaling and level adjustments, and it'll make the art you're showing look a lot better.

Ed: Not being able to post for Christmas? Lame.

Response to below: That's what I get for only reading the first page of the thread. Sorry about that Ninjai. I did some digging to find an online tool that you won't have to download, since you probably couldn't install an executable at your work anyway.

http://www.pixlr.com/editor/ This can fix all of your contrast woes. Adjustment > Levels, et cetera.

tynic · December 2010

ninjai wrote: »

You're right, but I don't even know where else I would put them... :I

any suggestions?

well, actually on the skull would be a good start.

ninjai · December 2010

thanks tynic.
Though not that I havn't been doing that, I just haven't been posting them, because they're embarrassing.

Toji, I've said several times in this thread, I have limited availability of such technology in the desert. I'm lucky to have a scanner, or that my boss lets me use it for personal internet postings. The image is as dark as the scanner allows.

Visti · December 2010

Iruka wrote: »

Your mouths seem to be placed on the face with no regard to an underlaying jaw structure.

This is not as much of a problem as the mouth tangents, though.

earthwormadam · December 2010

Visti wrote: »

Iruka wrote: »

Your mouths seem to be placed on the face with no regard to an underlaying jaw structure.

This is not as much of a problem as the mouth tangents, though.

Well kinda, except if you fix the underlying structure problem, you resolve the tangent issue. As opposed to just fixing the tangent thing, and still having facial features that look like they where placed in a blind game of pin the tail on the donkey.

A good tip for improving your faces might be to do some light sketches of cartoon skulls, and then build the facial features from there. As they are there is just no physical way that a skull could exist underneath those eyeballs, noses and mouths. No, not even in Toon Town.

Or probably even better doing some sketches of real skulls. Getting a good feel for how faces really work will improve your skill in simplifying them into cartoon form 10 fold! 10 FOLD!

Iruka · December 2010

earthwormadam wrote: »

Visti wrote: »

Iruka wrote: »

Your mouths seem to be placed on the face with no regard to an underlaying jaw structure.

This is not as much of a problem as the mouth tangents, though.

Well kinda, except if you fix the underlying structure problem, you resolve the tangent issue. As opposed to just fixing the tangent thing, and still having facial features that look like they where placed in a blind game of pin the tail on the donkey.

A good tip for improving your faces might be to do some light sketches of cartoon skulls, and then build the facial features from there. As they are there is just no physical way that a skull could exist underneath those eyeballs, noses and mouths. No, not even in Toon Town.

visual.

ninjai · December 2010

Iruka wrote: »

visual.

Iruka, I am SO. SORRY.

That you had to look at my hideous pictures long enough to draw over them, you really are a saint.
I'm being serious, because I love the way your draw over came out much better than mine. Thanks, the visual really helps show me where I'm going wrong.

P.S. If you threw up a little in your mouth while you were drawing over them, I'll pay for your medical bills

And thanks for the othe comments.

Ewa: I'll have to try doing that, I've never thought of cartoons really having anatomy. Thats really the only part I DONT like about sitting around and drawing is worrying about structure. I wish I could just sit down and put my thoughts on paper...

Visti: Who are these "Tan Gents you speak of?

melting_doll · December 2010

Even the simplest of characters maintain some sort of structure - it's the best way to keep a recurring character consistent! It will also make positioning them easier (:

ninjai · December 2010

Thanks for all the feedback!

I've been doing some cartoon skulls like EWA suggested, and like iruka has there. I'll try to get them uploaded when I have an opportunity.

earthwormadam · December 2010

Yup the good thing is once you get the hang of it, you wont be bogged down by having to think about the underlying structure, your brain will do it automatically so you can concentrate on the creative side of things.

ninjai · January 2011

earthwormadam wrote: »

... so you can concentrate on the creative side of things.

YAY!:rotate:

I can't wait. I did some more last night watching coraline and venture brothers. I think a few of them came out like phantom limb

ninjai · January 2011

Some of the sketches I did the other day watching venture brothers.

Was trying to implement some of you guys' recommendations, feedback?

ninjai · January 2011

Need some help on this one. Haven't gotten the lighting in yet. The hands aren't quite right, the legs are too short below the knees, and I need to referense some hydrolic hinges to fix the top right, anything else blaringly obvious that I can fix?

wakkawa · January 2011

That is going to be a fairly complex illustration but it looks like you are just jumping into it.

Have you done any other thumbnails, color studies, or value studies? If you do these ahead of time you will have to ask less questions while working on the finished piece.

Keep that composition but now start thinking about the lighting. You are probably going to want a bunch of glowing shit in the picture so its going to have to be dark. The window is probably going to have to go. After that, make a list of all the things a cyber punk surfer is going to have around him. To do this, you have to think about the kind of character he is. Is he neat and tighty, or a sloth? Rich or poor?

After you do a couple value studies post them. Then you can start thinking about color.

ninjai · January 2011

wakkawa wrote: »

Have you done any other thumbnails, color studies, or value studies?

I've never done any of these, I'm gonna have to google that and learn. Love to learn

K, watched a few videos on thumbnails. Made about 20 of them and wound up at the conclusion that I had 5 archetypes that I just did over and over. I did one of each, and I think I wound up at a favorite 2.

Spoiler:

The bottom 2 are my favorite. Multiple monitors, more robotronic style support arms, and more cables. I thought a few patch panels on the floor might do the trick for the stuff he would have laying around, as well as a few empty beer bottles and cartons of cigarettes on the floor, trash, and some food.

Probably going to go with the bottom left. 1 less monitor means 1 less big light source and the image can be darker overall, wanted to go with a super HARD SHADOW look on the guy, and really heavy background like this

I did a quick erase of the original, turns out the first monitor is fucked up. I'm going to have to do some perspective studies to fix it. And the robotronic arm on the top right is just placeholder, I'm having a hard time finding detailed robot arms online. I keep finding those japanese ones that always fall over.

So here's the quick edit to see what it would look like.

did a quick change to the feet, the length was bugging me, didn't like what the hands were doing, instead gave him a keyboard, and need to change the manitor... FUCK perspective is hard. and either the middle monitor needs to be bigger or taken out.

Feedback?

Edit: Thanks so much Wakka. I don't know much about planning an illustration. This is really the 2nd time I've ever tried. The first being the punk one on the previous page.
Re Edit: I forgot to change the contrast, sorry its so washed out

ninjai · January 2011

I worked on this yesterday. Probably 1:30 total time worked on it, looking for some feedback, I still am adding stuff below his feet, and i think the perspective is still off on the front monitor.

Still not done, this is going to be an inking project once i get my pens in the mail.
Feedback?

Did this yesterday. Its for the drawing a day, but it hasn't started yet. I've been drawing every day anyway. And before you say "Hey, you stole that line from wak..." its the first line from a song, wanted to draw something for it

wakkawa · January 2011

Your process is starting to come around nicely. Now, your next step is to collect resources. You need some high res pictures of technological equipment, monitors, wires, and the like. Even better if you take your own pictures.

Which is what you need to do. Collect some lights and start your own little setup. Put on a jacket, a helmet, and sit in a chair with the lighting as close as you can get it. The closer you get your reference pictures to the final illustration the easier its going to be for you to finish it (and have it look good)

Watch this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OVU7tKxki8

He gave some talks at my school last year showing his process. Almost every artist does this type of process work. Also take note at how large the final image is. The biggest mistake a lot of beginners make is that they just don't work large enough. Working 11x14 for an illustration is too small. Most of them are done 16x20 or bigger.

ninjai · January 2011

Wow, thanks wa(2k), your insight is invaluable. Another step I never would have thought of, I really appreciate the feedback, and I'm going to have to get right on that. Need some tubing, hose, cables and cable ends, the back end of a wall mount unit for a television, the backside of a television, some metal materials to sell the used/homemade look I'm going for, and a close up of a pleather jacket and some canvas for the pants (denim?-ish)

And of course circuitry, need to find some more high tech shit to throw around on the ground there. (O and CD cases) And a better robot arm for chrissakes

Amazing video. Really sells the benefits of references. Thanks for the link!

And it looks like I'm SOL on the size bit, I'm working on 11 x 8 1/2 :cry: (largest I have, and they don't sell sketch pads in theater... I'll have to order some bigger ones)

ninjai · January 2011

Spoiler:

Spoilered for hideousness

ninjai · January 2011

Lost Perfection a. Coulrophobia
Part 2
"I'm just staring at this wall, wondering when its going to take all of our lives"

Keeping up with my daily drawing.
(I know nothing about anatomy!!! I need to buy a book :cry: )
Crits?

Haven't abandoned the cyberpunk one, just got my references yesterday, a friend is puting them on a thumb drive for me, so I can use them. Then getting back to work on it.

ninjai · January 2011

Progress, added the server in th background. Let me know if it works or not, it looks a little cluttered, idk... Did the jacket and a couple other things. need a reference for blue jeans. Did about 45 minutes

Continuing my daily series with this one. Mouth is too far to the right, and the jaw isn't jutting out far enough to make it meet with the top if it were closed.

In case you're wondering where I'm getting it from:

Spoiler:

I'll add to the lyrics as I draw for them. (or you can just google it, if you're really curious)

Edit:
Anyone know a shading with ink tutorial? I have no idea what I'm doing with pens

Phthano · January 2011

The cyberpunk piece is coming along nicely, but the arm attached to the monitor seems to not line up correctly with the position it's in. It might just be me, but it seems flattened.

earthwormadam · January 2011

The whole proportion of his arm seems very short and stubby. Also the main monitor is really clogging everything up by being too close to his legs. It gives the composition a very cramped look, there's a ton of wasted space on the right so why not pull the screen away from the figure more to give everything more breathing room.

Composition type things should always be sorted out before getting into the nitty gritty. Now your spending all this time rendering things on a flawed composition. A few more minutes of thumbnails would have done wonders.

melting_doll · January 2011

I'm with Adam, there's a lot of negative space on the right, making the left look reeeeaaally cluttered..

ninjai · January 2011

Well, I'm not quite done with the right side. I just didn't feel like drawing trash there, so I'm trying to find more stuff to add.

I'm not seeing the monitor so close to his legs, maybe I've just been looking at it too long, but Its supposed to be huge, so i guess maybe it would appear close to his legs, I'm not very perceptive on drawing scale... Suggestions?

I'd have to agree with the stubby arm bit, thats been nagging me for a while, but every time I try to rerender it, it turns out more funky. idk... Also I'm not quite sure what a good composition of this would have looked like. Its what I had in mind when I did the thumbnail, it just isn't turning out the way I thought it would.

The bit with the robotic arm, I noticed that too a while ago, I got it all turned around, I'm going to have to fix that...

Thanks so much for the feedback. This is the most time I've ever spent on a single illustration. Live and learn!

Stuff I did 2 days ago:
Continuing the lyric thing. Not happy with this one (didn't have any references), but oh well. didn't waste too much time on it.

This accidentally became a venture bros fan page

HOW IN THE HELL do you make a mullet NOT look gay?
Also, all of these are original, except for Hank and Dean.

Stuff I did yesterday:
More lyrics

Doodles; speaking of stubby arms...

Spoiler:

edit: I'm already seeing crazy improvement on my lines, as evidenced by "my eyes are slowly closing" and the venture bros page. I'm pretty proud of Doc's mouth... and the Monarch

ninjai · January 2011

farbekrieg · January 2011

non gay mullet you say?

http://stephendestefano.blogspot.com/2008/02/how-to-draw-venture-brothers-part-two.html

ninjai · January 2011

OH NOES, I did 2 of the fatal flaws of Brock. o_O (mullet/straight jaw)

keeping up with my daily stuff, next line in the lyrics.
I decided to stop pretending like I know how cloth folds over itself.

Spoiler:

Just an off day I guess. Gonna do a cloth study later. Suggestions on how/what?

Also, left foot broken, and anatomy = hard

ninjai · January 2011

Spoilered for shit.

Spoiler:

Did a cloth study. Crits?

ninjai · January 2011

Doodles, I was playing with a .5 mechanical pencil and learned that I can draw really tiny

spoilered for terrible.

Spoiler:

I couldn't get the perspective right...

The_Glad_Hatter · January 2011

The perspective-one isnt half bad, bit with a TINY alteration in your prep work i would've looked a million times better.
if you know the "rules" (they're more, like, guidelines, savvy?) you can use those as a really reliable start for your drawings. There's tons of tutorials on youtube about it.
This is the first thing google came up with:

When drawing a cube like this it's easiets to start with the front point of the box.
And for starters just keep your vertical lines vertical. And then it's a matter of just connecting the dots.

Once you master this you can apply it on the fly while drawing, without the pesky horizon line etc. (altough the horizon etc is very handy when doing complex drawings)

ninjai · January 2011

thanks GH. I was drawing it right up next to me, and no matter how many times I erased the guidlines and started over it always looked like ass. nd the vanishing points were off the page so I couldn't quite figure out where the converged

I'll do some horizon practice tonight.

ninjai · January 2011

This is a real person, and there is a funny story behind who he is, why its significant, and why I drew the picture. But too long to type.

It makes everyone who knows him laugh when I show it.

farbekrieg · January 2011

just wanted to add im really enjoying your thread, so good job and such

ninjai · January 2011

farbekrieg wrote: »

just wanted to add im really enjoying your thread, so good job and such

Ha ha, thanks

That put a smile on my face.

Song lyrics dump. I've been getting super lazy with these, kinda been looking foreward to the 3rd song. Going to start thumnail storyboarding that one tonight.

Spoiler:

This party of four includes three grown adults and myself picture can go fuck itself. I need to draw more hands

Penny Arcade

Jesus. Up on the Oliphant. Cuttin down muffuggahz

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