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Character concept deluge

Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished BovineThe sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
edited September 2007 in Artist's Corner
I haven't done much art recently, so I'm trying to correct that. Here are two that I finished yesterday.

The One-Armed Swordsman
1armed.gif

Meat the Butcher
butcher.gif

Update:

Demon Chorus
demonchorus.gif

H9f4bVe.png
Golden Yak on
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Posts

  • Highlander_77Highlander_77 Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    I like these...they're pretty cool. Are you planning on coloring these at all? Right now they look a little flat with no kind of shading whatsoever (and some of the busier parts of the one-armed swordsman picture are a little hard to read with the lack of shading and all the line weights being so similar), but if you were planning on coloring them at some point then I can understand why you drew them that way.

    You seem to have a knack for drawing bladed weapons...I have to admit I'm slightly jealous...that's something I've always struggled with.

    The drawings are very stylized, so it's a little difficult to comment on anatomy and such...but you seem to know more or less what you're doing on that front.

    Overall, pretty nice stuff. I'm sure some of the others on here will be able to offer some more in depth critiques.

    Highlander_77 on
    El_Pollo_Diablo.jpg"Madre de Dios! Es el Pollo Diablo!"
  • srsizzysrsizzy Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    The one-armed guy should have a sword attached to his stump, like there's a hole in the stone part that locks stuff in it.

    srsizzy on
    BRO LET ME GET REAL WITH YOU AND SAY THAT MY FINGERS ARE PREPPED AND HOT LIKE THE SURFACE OF THE SUN TO BRING RADICAL BEATS SO SMOOTH THE SHIT WILL BE MEDICINAL-GRADE TRIPNASTY MAKING ALL BRAINWAVES ROLL ON THE SURFACE OF A BALLS-FEISTY NEURAL RAINBOW CRACKA-LACKIN' YOUR PERCEPTION OF THE HERE-NOW SPACE-TIME SITUATION THAT ALL OF LIFE BE JAMMED UP IN THROUGH THE UNIVERSAL FLOW BEATS
  • normanthesquidnormanthesquid Registered User new member
    edited July 2007
    one thing on the swordsman: if he only has a right hand, then his plethora of blades would need to be attached to his left side. Currently, he has no way to draw or sheathe his weapons, or at least not a way that wouldnt be really awkward and silly looking :)

    normanthesquid on
  • BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    I agree with pretty much everything Highlander's said: with colour I can see these being very nice, however without it the lack of variation in line weights makes them a little hard to focus on, especially for stumpy the swordsman. If you're going to leave it black and white, at least give them some shadows so the eye isn't straining to find a light source.

    Brolo on
  • earthwormadamearthwormadam ancient crust Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Cool designs, but the one thing that jumps out at me initially is the feet. Especially in the first two. Something about the feet are off.

    earthwormadam on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    You seem to have a knack for drawing bladed weapons...I have to admit I'm slightly jealous...that's something I've always struggled with.

    Well, I'm glad you think they're good. I'm usually not happy with the swords I draw myself. Part of the reason I designed this guy, so that I could have an excuse to draw a ton of different blades.
    one thing on the swordsman: if he only has a right hand, then his plethora of blades would need to be attached to his left side. Currently, he has no way to draw or sheathe his weapons, or at least not a way that wouldnt be really awkward and silly looking :)

    Hmm, yes. This does look bad, doesn't it. He should really have an equal number of blades on both sides anyway. That's how it was supposed to be, but somewhere along the line I went 'pouch' instead.
    Rolo wrote: »
    I agree with pretty much everything Highlander's said: with colour I can see these being very nice, however without it the lack of variation in line weights makes them a little hard to focus on, especially for stumpy the swordsman. If you're going to leave it black and white, at least give them some shadows so the eye isn't straining to find a light source.

    I hadn't given much thought to coloring these particular pics. This week I wanted to try and come up with at least one drawing a day. If I do color them, then I'll probably just re-draw them based on what people have posted about them so far and color those. Maybe I'll try and do one this weekend.
    Cool designs, but the one thing that jumps out at me initially is the feet. Especially in the first two. Something about the feet are off.

    Bad feets, eh? Something to keep an eye on.

    Here's a couple I did today, this first one for the Transformers art topic:

    Tabletron
    tabletron.gif
    That's 'Tabletron,' all one word, that tablet transformer. Not Table-Tron.

    WoW Fanart - Gruul
    gruul.gif

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • Captain HeavysteinCaptain Heavystein Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    The second bestial thing looks fantastic. It's kind of scary, but you almost also pity the guy. The exaggeration has the perfect bursting hulk feel.

    The first one, "Tabletron" looks like he's got the hand-on-the-hip sassy thing going. Posed somewhat like a Charlie's Angel. I don't know if you intended that.

    Captain Heavystein on
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
  • hijinksensuehijinksensue Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Very cool. Colors please?

    hijinksensue on
    HijiNKS Ensue
    geek comic
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  • core tacticcore tactic Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    The nipples on the armless guy are like a magnet to my eyes.

    core tactic on
    6700ab2ed7bb6f9876150c388a78a011.png
  • Captain HeavysteinCaptain Heavystein Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    The nipples on the armless guy are like a magnet to my eyes.

    I think that's just a personal problem.

    Captain Heavystein on
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    The first one, "Tabletron" looks like he's got the hand-on-the-hip sassy thing going. Posed somewhat like a Charlie's Angel. I don't know if you intended that.

    No, but you know what? I like it. In fact, Tabletron is a chick. She'll have a high-pitched, synthesized female voice. Yes, it's all coming together now.
    The nipples on the armless guy are like a magnet to my eyes.

    Careful, they're as sharp as his many swords. They'll put your eyes right out.

    More stuff:

    Space Ninja
    spaceninja.gif
    Been watching a lot of Firefly recently, and I like how China apparently took over the future and forced everyone to learn chinese. I tried to give this guy an asian appearance.

    Throll
    throll.gif
    In the crazy fantasy universe most of my characters live in, Throll's are the big dumb monster types. They're part turtle. Expect more of them, I have designs for spell-casters, warlords, and a couple demon-fungus infested versions too.

    I'll try and color some of these this weekend.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • KorthuranKorthuran Registered User new member
    edited July 2007
    As mentioned, vary your line weights. Consider not only what shapes are closer but also the weight and force of the object (a static pose still has a force, even if it's just gravity).

    One Arm - The legs seem akward to me and I'm not entirely sure why. The baggy pants have made it difficult to interpret the anatomy on the right leg. I think the akwardness I'm seeing is the angle of the upper leg maybe doesn't quite match the bottom half of the leg.

    Lets assume we could see through the pants. Because of the angle of the pants and the way I interpret it if I could see the leg inside I would expect to see the inner thigh. This is akward because not only is the foot facing the viewer directly but because of the characters 3/4 angle to the viewers left I would expect to see the front of the leg and the outter thigh instead.

    The drawing may be anatomically correct. You can probably get in that pose. But the lines of the pants make it seem slightly off.


    Butcher - The feet definately need something done. I'd try putting them on a flat plane as if they were at eye level. This may not be correct perspective but with no background it always looks a little funny to see the feet in perspective unless you've absolutely nailed it. It makes them seem akward and dangling and that's not just your drawings. A lot of people have akward feet. I've seen a lot of drawings that look amazing but the feet always seem like they were done last and given up on out of frustration.

    The arms are a little akward to me to but it may just be that the forearms are intended to be so large and it's confusing me a bit. I'd say they work from an anatomy standpoint. Though if you were going for a more relaxed pose I would set the elbows back a bit more and turn the forearms in a little bit. Right now it looks like he's holding his arms out away from him like he's flexing. It's easier to see on the arm holding the cleaver. Considering the 3/4 angle, even with the massive muscles, were seeing too much of the back arm if he's standing at rest. If he's not standing at rest then just ignore all that.

    Demon Kid - I'd turn the near foot in a little bit. You've got both the top and bottom half of the leg facing the same direction but the foot is slightly off and since it's dangling I'd put it in line with the rest of the leg. Again, it's not necessarly wrong or impossible but uncomfortable (dangle your leg & foot and twist just your foot outward, the range of motion is very limited and to hold it on an angle like that actually gets tiring very quickly, or maybe I'm just out of shape) Cool drawing overall.


    Overall it's a lot of nitpicking stuff I think. But when there's nothing major it's down to polishing up the little things.

    Korthuran on
  • BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Those last two do a much better job of standing on their own, I like them both. With the varied line weights giving them a greater sense of form, you now have some very nice looking inks going on.

    Brolo on
  • Highlander_77Highlander_77 Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Rolo wrote: »
    Those last two do a much better job of standing on their own, I like them both. With the varied line weights giving them a greater sense of form, you now have some very nice looking inks going on.

    I have to agree here...the last 3 (starting with the WoW fanart one) are looking much better in terms of the inking job. What did you do diferently on those, out of curiosity (I'm wonder partly because I'm currently struggling with the inking thing myself).

    The varying line weights make a big difference...would still be nice to see some actual shadows...get some solid blacks in there to kind of fill things out. But overall, this stuff is looking really nice now. Keep up the good work!

    Highlander_77 on
    El_Pollo_Diablo.jpg"Madre de Dios! Es el Pollo Diablo!"
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Wow Korthuran, thank you. That's everything I could've hoped for in a comment. I'll be sure to keep everything in mind for future works. I'll be revisiting the first 3 pieces again with special attention to the points you've mentioned. Thanks again.
    I have to agree here...the last 3 (starting with the WoW fanart one) are looking much better in terms of the inking job. What did you do diferently on those, out of curiosity (I'm wonder partly because I'm currently struggling with the inking thing myself).

    I hauled out a bunch of comics to take a look at the lineart. I also went through the galleries of some of the more cartoony-style comic artists that I've got book-marked, and paid close attention to how they used line width to bring out parts of their characters.

    I've re-done Gruul, because I wasn't happy with his legs. I like this one better:

    gruul02.gif

    Sorry that I've got nothing original. I'll try and color something tomorrow and post what I've got at the end of the day.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • KorthuranKorthuran Registered User new member
    edited July 2007
    The Throll and the Ninja are inked much better than the first three. More line variation, easier to interpret in busy areas. I think this latest one is better than those two as well. I would keep pushing the various line weights. Be mindful of outlines (unless theres a good intentional reason to have them). The Throll and the Ninja have some outlining going on. Don't be affraid to experiment and leave some of the outer lines light and thin and don't be affraid to make some of the inner lines dark and heavy. Which ones you leave light and which you make heavier of course is all up to you. As a guide just remember the force and weight of the object, what it's made of etc, as well as whats nearer to the viewer. Unfortunately theres no set way do it. It's all personal preference but when you find something that works and you really like it then it will make your drawings clearer and all the more impressive.

    Korthuran on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Sage advice. I'll try some of it out on my next couple of black and whites.

    Here's some color stuff:

    Space Nazi
    spacenazi.jpg

    Here's the lineart I started with:
    spacenazi.gif

    I tried coloring this one overtop of the pencils rather than inking it first. I was trying to achieve a more painted look to it, but my pencils didn't scan very well - too messy. I was going for something similar to what this guy managed to do with his stuff:

    http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs7/i/2005/248/8/d/ice_demon_by_david_grier.jpg
    http://fc04.deviantart.com/fs7/i/2005/248/a/7/ice_demon_colored_by_david_grier.jpg

    Of course, he drew his lineart right into photoshop with a tablet instead of penciling it first, so that might be something worth trying.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • ProjeckProjeck Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    I personally feel that your lines would be better complimented by more flat, less rendered color.

    Either way, good stuff!

    Projeck on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2007
    Quick one tonight, another Throll:

    throllwarrior.gif

    He's wearing a loincloth, although they don't really have anything to hide. Or maybe they do, and we humans just can't appreciate nude Throll beauty.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • EntrYEntrY Registered User regular
    edited July 2007
    I'd say the space-nazi's left shoulder (our right) seems disconnected. You know, too far from the torso.

    That jumped to my mind - but besides from that it's pretty neat. However, he doesn't look very nazish (Yes, I just made up that word).

    EDIT: Shoulder, not arm.

    EntrY on
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  • lilchingch0nglilchingch0ng Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    i dig your style man. only got two real crits for you. first, try to avoid the bold black outline, it flattens out the image. second, on the first gruul drawing and the throll picture, your pecks look a bit odd. for instance on the first gruul image it seems like his chest is ripping apart, mostly because of the sheer number of lines inbetween his chesticles.

    you should post more colored stuffs, its one area i think you could stand some improvement in, as its definetly not up to the quality of your lineart.

    anyhoo, nice stuff, i really enjoyed browsing through this thread.

    lilchingch0ng on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    EntrY wrote: »
    I'd say the space-nazi's left shoulder (our right) seems disconnected. You know, too far from the torso.

    I do see what you mean.
    EntrY wrote: »
    However, he doesn't look very nazish (Yes, I just made up that word).

    That's how they get you. In the future.

    i dig your style man. only got two real crits for you. first, try to avoid the bold black outline, it flattens out the image. second, on the first gruul drawing and the throll picture, your pecks look a bit odd. for instance on the first gruul image it seems like his chest is ripping apart, mostly because of the sheer number of lines inbetween his chesticles.

    you should post more colored stuffs, its one area i think you could stand some improvement in, as its definetly not up to the quality of your lineart.

    Thanks for the comments, I really liked the stuff in your thread too. I'll try and color some more stuff, it's just hard for me to get enough time. I'll put some more up this weekend. As for the chest stuff, I found that too on the first Gruul one, so I toned it down on the second. For the Throlls, they're supposed to have irregular armor plates over their chest rather than bare muscles, hence the segmented look. That's what I'm going for, at any rate.

    A wrinkly old Throll. I tried to tone down the boldness of the outlines in this one:
    throll_elder.gif

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • lilchingch0nglilchingch0ng Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    wow, thats really cool

    check the calf muscle on his right leg tho, seems a bit odd the way it curves into the theigh

    likewise on his left arm, the bicep mucles is curving around the outside of his forearm, looks a bit strange

    lilchingch0ng on
  • Creambun 007Creambun 007 Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    The space ninja would be cooler if he were wearing those split toe boots. Y'know the ones I'm talking about.

    Creambun 007 on
    Diggity.
  • BenGPTBenGPT Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    wow, thats really cool

    check the calf muscle on his right leg tho, seems a bit odd the way it curves into the theigh

    likewise on his left arm, the bicep mucles is curving around the outside of his forearm, looks a bit strange

    I think the one on his leg is a scar/wrinkle. Gotta watch out for those tangents. . .
    And my input on the bold outline is, it's okay to keep it if you change your coloring style to something *without* soft brushes, and it's okay to keep your coloring style if you make your outlines not so harsh. That example you posted a while back worked pretty well because it didn't have invasive inking, see?

    I like your stuff.

    BenGPT on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Here's something I was working on during the long weekend (happy BC day, or whatever they call it in your corner of the world). I tried to take into account some of the advice that BenGPT gave me.

    Megazombie
    megazombie_lc.jpg

    I colored this one in a more comic-book style than my Space Nazi. Here was the inked lineart I used:

    megazombie_inks.gif

    I also made a scan of the original pencils I made before inking it. I was thinking of trying to color the pencil version with softer brushes to get more of a painted appearance. Cuz hey, no law says I can't do both. Here's the pencils:

    megazombie_pencils.gif

    ...

    Also, is there anyway to edit the name of your topic? I can't figure it out, but I've kinda moved beyond choppy peoples and into dead peoples here.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • CrowlestonCrowleston Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    The extra hands coming out of the arms become unrecognizable with your color. Perhaps coloring the nails on the other hands may help? Also, his right thumb is very detached and at a very awkward angle. His right leg is at an awkward angle too.

    PLUS: Double intestine penis?!

    Crowleston on
    useless but necessary objects of society.
  • Highlander_77Highlander_77 Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Crowleston wrote: »
    The extra hands coming out of the arms become unrecognizable with your color. Perhaps coloring the nails on the other hands may help? Also, his right thumb is very detached and at a very awkward angle. His right leg is at an awkward angle too.

    PLUS: Double intestine penis?!

    I didn't even notice the extra hands until I went back and looked for them after reading this post...so yeah, they probably need....something to make them stand out a bit more.

    Highlander_77 on
    El_Pollo_Diablo.jpg"Madre de Dios! Es el Pollo Diablo!"
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Tangent change! Aigh!

    I've gotten ahold of a copy of ZBrush 3. After a few hours of learning the basics, the following were produced from simple spheres, about 1 hour each:

    Protoss Head Man
    protossman.jpg
    This was me going nuts with making squiggly lines and veins, just mucking around with the program. Mouthless alien, kinda wound up looking like a Protoss. Hence, the name.

    ZBrush Head Man
    zbrushheadman.jpg
    This was me calming down and trying for something more human. I think it's gettin' there.

    I'm looking forwards to doing more ThreeDee stuff.


    In regards to Megazombie comments:

    Hard to see arms, eh? That's no good. I'll go back and revise my coloring to make them more apparent.

    And yes, Crowleston. Double intestine penis. For when one isn't enough.

    (totally not a penis)

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Back to the 2D stuff. Here's some quick ones:

    Standard Fantasy Skeleton Warrior
    bonenoggin.gif

    Giant Zombie
    giantzombie.gif

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • BelieveBelieve Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    The nipples on the armless guy are like a magnet to my eyes.

    I think that's just a personal problem.
    No, I agree. They almost reminded me of breasts, except a bit more square.

    I like that giant zombie/zombie giant with the long arms and huge hands most, so far. *nod*

    Believe on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Ack, been too long. Here's a quick creature feature:

    Orc
    orc.gif

    I seem to draw a lot of big muscley beasties. I should try and branch out.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Golden Yak wrote: »

    Also, is there anyway to edit the name of your topic? I can't figure it out, but I've kinda moved beyond choppy peoples and into dead peoples here.

    Single click on the text in the topic title on the AC forum index, it should let you edit it. You might also have to go back one page, since sometimes that click is registered as you wanting to read the thread instead.

    Brolo on
  • srsizzysrsizzy Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    I double-click and then hit "stop".

    Anyways, I noticed your coloring is still severely lacking in contrast. Darker shadows, brighter highlights, etc, are needed.

    srsizzy on
    BRO LET ME GET REAL WITH YOU AND SAY THAT MY FINGERS ARE PREPPED AND HOT LIKE THE SURFACE OF THE SUN TO BRING RADICAL BEATS SO SMOOTH THE SHIT WILL BE MEDICINAL-GRADE TRIPNASTY MAKING ALL BRAINWAVES ROLL ON THE SURFACE OF A BALLS-FEISTY NEURAL RAINBOW CRACKA-LACKIN' YOUR PERCEPTION OF THE HERE-NOW SPACE-TIME SITUATION THAT ALL OF LIFE BE JAMMED UP IN THROUGH THE UNIVERSAL FLOW BEATS
  • BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Giant Zombie reminds me of the imp from doom 3.

    Brolo on
  • ShiboeShiboe Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Golden Yak wrote: »
    I seem to draw a lot of big muscley beasties. I should try and branch out.

    Was just gonna say that. They're all relatively the same, and all front or 3/4ths portraits. I don't think you're really gonna advance much by this repetition. Try something that's not a burly monster. Try drawing it not posing for the camera. Try switching up the angles, and adding backgrounds. Portraits are fun and easy (I do the same thing too often) but can get uninteresting quickly. Also might wanna try some realistic proportions, as exaggeration can quickly become a cop-out. =D

    Shiboe on
  • TonkkaTonkka Some one in the club tonight Has stolen my ideas.Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Shiboe wrote: »
    Golden Yak wrote: »
    I seem to draw a lot of big muscley beasties. I should try and branch out.

    Was just gonna say that. They're all relatively the same, and all front or 3/4ths portraits. I don't think you're really gonna advance much by this repetition. Try something that's not a burly monster. Try drawing it not posing for the camera. Try switching up the angles, and adding backgrounds. Portraits are fun and easy (I do the same thing too often) but can get uninteresting quickly. Also might wanna try some realistic proportions, as exaggeration can quickly become a cop-out. =D

    You can keep drawing the beasties... how about a couple of them LOCKED IN COMBAT?!

    That would be, dare I say... rad.

    Tonkka on
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  • lilchingch0nglilchingch0ng Registered User regular
    edited August 2007
    no, draw hot chix, this forum needs more titties

    lilchingch0ng on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Okay, one more.

    Rune-Wracked Orc
    runeorc.jpg

    Edit - Man, only now just realizing how weird his legs look. His feet are supposed to be turned towards each other slightly, as if he's staggering. I should really stop sketching stuff at 11 o'clock at night.

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited August 2007
    Character concept for a clan of people with a fire motif. I think I'll try and color this one this weekend.

    pyros.gif

    Golden Yak on
    H9f4bVe.png
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