Pogo learns to paint thread. Update - vegtables

pogo mudder

So i recently decided to take up painting and i'm actually really enjoying it, which is cool!

Anyway i thought i'd get some crits early on so i don't make too many bad habits from the get go. So literally any advice here would be brilliant, anything from colour choices and brush stroke techniques to keeping my brushes nice and clean, i'm really kind of out of my depth here.

These are the first 3 pictures i've done (only 147 to go!)









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thanks for taking a look!

Aurora Borealis

What are you painting with/on? Acrylic? Oil? Canvas? Cardboard?

pogo mudder

Oh, Acrylic on Canvas

NightDragon

Looks like acrylic on canvas board...? [ edit - Ah, close enough. :P ]

I think one of your main problems right now is in laying out your values more effectively. Your value ranges in each of these is really limited, and as a result, a lot of areas are blending in to one another, rather than being distinct from one another (Like your Bulbasaur's leaves, and the background). Some color theory could also help you - you might want to look up "color theory" on Google and read what you can about it...you can make your subjects "pop" more by using colors for your background that are on the opposite side of the color wheel, from body color of your Pokemon.

Also you may want to read this:

http://www.itchstudios.com/psg/art_tut.htm

It has some good overall tips...which may not help you out very much in painting Pokemon (which have few, if any, shadows...bright, unrealistic colors, etc)...but will absolutely help you become a better painter overall as you absorb more and more of what he's talking about. He even goes into how to use different brush sizes effectively, when painting a digital picture (though it's also relatable to real-life painting, especially with acrylic, which allows for easy layering, as the paint dries quickly).

pogo mudder

Okay, thanks for the links. I'll give them a read before i go to bed and try and work in some of this colour theory in my painting tomorrow.

EWom

I think that you should put an apple on a table under a light and paint the apple on the table and show it to us. Its hard to tell since the source material of your pictures are so simple.

I think also you should work on your blending techniques, specifically in the backgrounds of your paintings.

pogo mudder

I couldn't find an apple so this pepper will have to do, I hope this piece is easier for you guys to critique.
Thanks for linking that tutorial ND there's a lot of cool stuff in there, i'm going to give it another read tonight, i'm not all that great at absorbing information first time around.



EDIT: Here's a picture of the pepper, so you know what i was going for

EWom wrote: »

I think also you should work on your blending techniques, specifically in the backgrounds of your paintings.

I can see that there are issues with my backgrounds atm, but what exactly are blending techniques and what's the process for them?

thejazzman

The pepper looks significantly better than the pokemon

pogo mudder

Okay, here's another pepper from a different angle, i really need to go food shopping. I tried to pick an angle which made the object have harsher shadows. I think it came out okay but i'm still struggling with lighting quite a lot.

Paradise

Draw what's there: add the surfaces and shadows that are underneath your objects. It'll help. Stuff looks weird if you pretend it's in a vacuum (especially when working with harsh light/shadows).