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New sketches page 2
Leggraphics
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Hey guys. I couldn't find my old thread. I think it was inactive for to long but it was all crap I guess anyway.. 
Anyway.. I have changed this quite a bit. I have all the progress pics on my Devient art but this is where I am at...
What do people think? I look forward to your critique guys. Thanks
Im really trying to use some colour principles here and I have used minimal reference photos. I will go off and find a few similar reference photo's if I can to check things like waves etc to make them better.
Anyway.. I have changed this quite a bit. I have all the progress pics on my Devient art but this is where I am at...
What do people think? I look forward to your critique guys. Thanks
Im really trying to use some colour principles here and I have used minimal reference photos. I will go off and find a few similar reference photo's if I can to check things like waves etc to make them better. Leggraphics on
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The shape of the body just seems off, it looks more eelish. I don't think it matters though because from the above the water angle that you have, I don't think you'd see anything below the surface anyway. Maybe a little bit but nowhere near those levels of transparencies. I think a reflection would be more convincing.
The light source isn't too convincing either. The moon looks like it's super close and super bright, yet it's only casting a really soft glow upon the subject.
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The perspective on what you've painted doesn't make a whole lot of sense, unless she's a gigantic mermaid way off in the horizon. At the kind of downward angle you have it's likely that if you were showing the mermaid, you wouldn't be able to see the horizon at all. Take a look at how people look from the same angle:
See how far up and off the picture you'd need to place the horizon for this perspective to make sense? See what happens to their bodies from the water? Your mermaid girl is drawn as if she's on the same vertical plane as the viewer.
The moon has the same problem... it's not a spotlight, so the strange light you have coming away from it towards her robs the moon of any sort of depth. It looks more like a lamp positioned slightly behind her than anything else. This is about as big as you'll see the moon:
Finally, while the anatomy is probably doing a little better than the rest of the picture, overall she's still in a pretty stiff pose - when I think of mermaids I think of a lot of motion, they'd almost always be moving in order to stay afloat. Re-posing her in a more dynamic position like this:
Or something similar to it can really help re-enforce your visual concept. You want to use every tool you have to make your artwork, well work.
I'm sure you're going to get lots of good crits from everyone else here, I'd really love to see you take a second try at this with what you'll learn.
I shall try a re-draw tomorrow and see what I come up with. Ill post the progress so you can look at it and tell me whats right and wrong at the start. I have to say I really like the way I have drawn the water around her body. I see that the underwater view is just crap but I didnt want to just delete what I have drawn as I would of had a cry. So I will draw another from scratch and leave this one. I dont not like this one even though it is wrong.
Once again thanks
Edit. I spent 10 or so minutes mocking up what I might want the second version to look like. I guess its a bit cliché having a mermaid on a rock. I would really prefer to have something unique I guess.. If anyone comes up with sugestions let me know I guess but how is the layout looking at the moment ? Paint-overs always welcome of course
that mermaid looks a lot better than the first, nice update.
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Doesnt project light? is this picture photoshoped lol.. thats what i based the moonlight stuff on haha mm
2. Even if you are using that photograph as a reference, that moon is emitting light radially. Yours is emitting a cone of light, like you have a lampshade on it and tilted 45 degrees.
3. Don't argue. Outside of yourself there are what, 5 people in this conversation? Four of us have told you the same damn thing. Listen.
Dude relax. I'm not arguing I was just showing you guys why and how I made that mistake. I agree with all of you. I Just wanted to show you the reference photo I was basing it on. I am going to remove the moon from there anyway because the light looks like it is coming more from the front.
Also. Good point as to not used stylized photographs as reference. Im still learning and I need advice and I am sorry if I gave the impression that I don't listen to it because I certainly do. The improvements I have made since joining this forum have been huge thanks to feedback from you guys/girls. Sometimes I miss things I know but once again I did get the point that the moon doesn't give streams of light (only after you guys stated it). I just really liked that look and was trying to find a way to incorporate it into my drawing.
How do you guys go about finding reference photos? you subscribe to things? I find it hard sometimes if i am looking for something in particular in google like 'underwater' or something. I find it hard to find rough angles that I need. Rolo where did you find that great example of swimming. Just google?
For something like a moon, I would just go outside. Anything that you can observe in real life instead of from a photograph is much better.
As for photos Google Image Search and Google's new Picasa Image Search are both great.
Like Adam said, if you want bands of light, you can break it up with clouds. That's a motif used often in paintings of Christ.
hahha mermaid on a cross? lolsss
Ill give that picasa thing ago when i got home. I noticed it is quite a coincidence that it is for mac to:D
mmm im kind of thinking your right. I have each element like the skin tone, hair and sky on different layers so I guess I will draw the skin tone and then adjust that layers colours entirely and then touchup. I guess I'm kind of scared to attempt to draw skin in the moonlight. Ill give it a a shot
I am not happy with that. I think I need a second light source .. I think Im going to put it down and mull over it over the weekend.
Here is an example of a pencil sketch. I did this sketch at work yesturday. Took about an hour
haha i can count 4 fingers and a thumb but I think you are refuring to the webbing I was putting in between them that I havnt made clear yet. Ahh also... I think the thumb looks like a finger at the moment
the way her hand is positioned, the thumb would be out of view, and the finger you're counting as her thumb would be an index finger. Looks much more like she has 5 fingers and a thumb you can't see.
And yeah, that "thumb" could be a thumb if it looked like a thumb
Thanks guys Ill be working on it again mondayz night after work. How do you guys feel about the twister thingy in the background... I drew it in so I could explain some of the lighting a bit I guess. I plan on keeping her fairly bright.. looking all innocent and such while the devastation in the background.
The tail is too long and too straight. the subject is very still. you should put some life and a little motion on the subject.
nice color combination though.
custom tailored shirts?
I feel it still looks a little blury.. I am trying to fix that up but finding it hard.. I know this is one of my better drawings and I really want to reach that next step on this. Please suggestions, help. Thanks so far guys.
which one do people prefer?
A few things I kind of see is the nose looks a bit off and the breast needs a bit more definition I think
Those issues aside, the second picture is looking a little stronger, but you still have a lot of work to do to get this working well for you. Her anatomy, particularly for her left breast, is quite off. It doesn't look like it's properly connected to the rest of her torso.
You need to look up fish tails/scales if you want her bottom half to look like it's really an organic part of her body. Right now the texture you have on the scales makes it look flat, and it seems to be largely dry (there's no shine of wetness on it), despite her being a mermaid that seems to have recently emerged from the sea. There's also some weirdness with what's going on with her fingers and the shadows they cast on her tail area, the shadows themselves seem too defined and dark compared to the shadows on the rest of her body.
Finally, her face is looking good, but really watch how you design lips, and make sure that's the expression you actually want on her. This is one of those areas where even an errant brush stroke can change what your painting will be saying, so you really have to take care with the way you're painting. Right now her lips are flat, while human lips bulge out and recess. Even very simple changes like that can make a big difference in expression. With that being said, I'm not sure what kind of expression you're going for here. The overall colour choices here are very cold, and that will reflect on the overall mood of what you're painting.
You pointed out allot of stuff. Cheers mate. Great critique
what's her story? is she causing that tornado in the background? is she a trouble maker? is she upset because of the weather? i can't tell right now! she also looks quite dry for being next to a tornado that is likely spewing water everywhere...
also, the red light wouldn't reach from behind that rock all the way to the very beginning of her hip, because other parts of her body would block the light...
things to think about!
Hahha. Thanks mate. Funny enough the face and nails/hands didn't even come from the reference photo. I didn't use to much of one except for a 3D model in maya. I gave her long nails because she is going to be eating fish so they need to look shinny and sharp (hadn't finished them) and the face was from my imagination.
I think this means I have a dirty porn-like imagination hahha .. oh well.. I am young and a boy so its expected.