7 / 19
Aug 2019

I can do it if I put more detail into my faces, but in the simpler style I'm using for my comic with the two lines and a dot for eyes I just can't seem to get it to look right.

See, in the second panel here I tried but it just looks like he's looking off to the side.

What am I doing wrong?
Does anyone have any tips? Or better yet- examples? Of your own work or of other comics you've seen? I tried looking for some myself but my google fu needs some polishing.

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    Aug '19
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    Aug '19
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YOU MAKE A GIF! HAHAHAHA

edit: Tapas forums still gating me from making short posts. This is why I hangout in Discord servers.

Since you don't have two similar panels to show the eyes in one position and then the other, it's best to exaggerate. Have their entire head to to the back and side following the direction of the eyes, maybe even a sigh but that might overdo it. In other styles, using a reference to see any other subtle cues in the facial expression or body language helps, but it might not translate well with this one so it's key to work on the silhouette.

In this iconic example, you can see the mouth slighly open and the eyes looking in the sky, like he is silently pleading to God to end the world if this is what humanity has become.

Making the eyes aim at an upwards diagonal angle can convey the movement. A sligtly open mouth like that or a frowning mouth will complement the gesture.

Body language also adds a lot to the expression. Crossing arms is a classic, but one hand touching the head like the eyerolling person is having a headache can work too.

It's not an expression I've really drawn yet so i don't have any tips from a technical standpoint, but looking at your 2nd panel there I think what feels "off" / like the character is just looking away is that you turn their head all the way in the direction of their pupils? When i think of eye rolling, I tend to think more of them still facing who they're talking to but just the eyes moving up and away. Dawg's sketch kind of shows what i mean ^

or save your self stress and do this eye roll as a sound effect right not to the character :joy::joy::joy:

I honestly try to avoid unsound effects if I can help it(I've seen some comics use open or turn with plenty of frames before and after to show things being opened or changing positions), but if nothing else works, yeah there's no harm in using it for subtle movements like this, OP.

8 days later

Oh shit, "fan bai yan", you're right. Somehow I never noticed that- you opened my eyes (lol).

I really like the expression in your character- I think it conveys the exasperation quite well, but somehow I can't quite see it as rolling eyes. To me he looks like he's annoyed at someone above him. I think maybe I'd be able to see it if there was another character in front of him that he's looking away from though, maybe?

Okay so this reference image was actually the one that helped me "get" it:
I think it's the eyebrow wrinkle and the slightly open-mouthed frown that sells it.

Though it almost looks too good, haha. I ended up not changing the actual page because it looked like too strong an expression for that character.

Thanks DiegoPalacios (and RDJ) !

It looks like an eye roll in that page but not when I try.
Whyyy


I think I got better results from the RDJ reference photo.

Damn that artist has very expressive art though.

Come on guys, why'd you flag this. I mean, it's not completely on topic, but it's just a depiction of strenuous exercise, what's wrong with that?

See, the problem with that is if I draw an eye roll badly and write "eye roll" next to it people think "hm. that doesn't look quite right. What a bad artist." But if I draw an eye roll badly and don't write anything people go "oh, he's looking to the side" and don't think twice haha.

You have to make the eye more rounded, almost as if the eyes are shocked wide open. Your eye is too slanted. And the pupil has to be at the very top of the eye lid, basically half hidden and in the corner, almost as if the pupil is trying to reach for the ceiling.

lol then thats their problem. dont be scared to be called a bad artist. heck, i had someone who wrote a whole article on how "BAD" my work was and how my guys are left, and i quote "undesirable", that shit didn't stop me from making comics and this happened 10 years ago.

Yes i was upset but i had to remember something. i'm doing this for myself, and i had to start somewhere because every artist started somewhere. so yes, i was in the attitude of "they can go eat a d*ck" because after all. my work was free and i worked very hard on it. it's one thing to give constructive criticism and another thing to just complain.

Just know that you aren't perfect and yes your "eye roll" may not look like one but with time it will. you just have to keep practicing thats all.

So with all that being said, do what works for you, if it does not look like an eye roll thats okay. just keep working on it eventually it will.

lol you should see this chinese comic i'm currently reading, the artistis like writing out all the onomatopoeia like for example ( looking to the side) LMAO and GUESS WHAT? lol she has so many views. no one cared, there were few ppl that complained but it did not stop her so yes, give yourself a break.