Sudden lapse in confidence (alt title: anatomy. fuck.)

[Ambat]

I'm really glad! I'm excited to see how you grow as an artist!! Keep working hard!!!

[AlkseeyaKC]

I looked up a tutorial on scatboarding to make sure things were right she just needs to be bending over more into it from what we have here. But he back leg needs to be off the ground and he foot would be virtical to the ground kind of like you have. the hands need to have a more natural flow to them.

[JKNNKL]

yess completely agree w/ the above person, ur art is pretty solid in all areas except for dynamicity, ie it looks kinda flat like a frieze. actually maybe this could work for ur comic which is kinda like a historical long mural artpiece kinda thing? but in general for comix u gotta make it flow better, currently the lack of movement is covered up by the pretty colorz and shading tho. i wouldnt say bad anatomy is the first thing i notice abt ur art, the first fhing i thought was ooh nice coloring/details, but if i saw it directly aftet seeing another more dynamic piece i think i wouldve noticed the flatness.

[Menbung]

I just want to point out a few things I noticed. As ambat said if you're not drawing realism or semi-realisim artist tend to consciously or subconsciously break the anatomy rules. Your style, to me at least, is niether of those, so the anatomy doesn't look that jarring, only in some instances where the poses would dislocate your arm/wrist if you'd try to do it (pic one, the purple colored).

The thing that "bothers me" the most is the proportions of the characters, some limbs are too long, some are too short, so if there's not a balance between style, anatomy and proportions the image will look "weird". Take for instance this, I could red line your drawings, but if I keep using the proportions you drew, even with a spot on anatomy, the image willl still look wonky. So, most of the drawings will need to be drawn alltogether.

Again, as ambat said, another problem I see is stiffness, ambat's example isn't anatomy accurate, it doesn't have realistic proportions (and I don't mean it in a bad way, I say this in the best way possible coz it's a perfect example to illustrate my point), but!, it has a balance between style, anatomy and proportions, and that's why it works.

Don't get me wrong I advice you to study anatomy and proportions (so you can break them if you're not drawing realism or semireal), proportions are so important, but that comes with time, drawing and drawing and drawing and drawing ad infinitum. I still see pros failing at proportions.

And to top it all, you can have perfect anatomy and proportions, but if your art looks stiff, well, bro, it will look bad, take for instance 3d comics, or drawings, they have perfect proportions and anatomy, but they look stiff as fuck, like a statue, it's really jarring.

Balance is important TT

[hades]

hello yes I have heard the call of drawing need.

cracks knuckles

Ok hun. Something to keep in mind is that form =/= anatomy. Form is the way we interpret an object and define it in our drawings. How we define this object is up for interpretation but in the case here I believe the teacher was referring to the idea that your drawings appear rather flat. I'm going to be a little harsh here [I apologize] but while the anatomy is decent it is clear that you have drawn from other artists' styles and learned that way instead of studying through life. Now. This is not inherently bad but it can create some pitfalls that you are encountering. I've been through them, trust me. It just takes a bit of effort to really analyze your shortcomings and discover what to work on. I'm proud of you for posting here to reach out for help! And I'm thrilled with the advice you've gotten so far.

But let's get to work.
First thing first, the study of form.
Matt Khor breaks this down very well in his very short video. I also recommend going through his free library. They helped me a lot when I was pushing to improve!

Form is going to be one of your best friends as a comic artist! It will be what helps push believability and the dynamics of your image.

I'm going to use my art for these breakdowns simply because I don't want to miss the message you are doing in your art. ;; Plus I feel more comfortable drawing over my images then a strangers!

Ok
So
This looks kinda intense as its final form, right?

Lots of folds, gestures, dynamics and shapes.
So
Let's break it down to its very basic forms.

Rather...blocky, no?

But here we can see the very very basic forms of the subjects. From here you refine and build, loosen up and make things more organic. This is where your knowledge of anatomy or how you stylize will come into play. After the basic construction of the form. Don't worry about if it is cartoony or realistic. Just make it believable and proportional and everything else will follow after.

By constructing the form properly you will have the dock to jump from and into the river of your art style.

I recommend this book. It's great and cheap and only 99 cents for kindle edition right now.

To continue on, something else that's been brought up is the use of gestures. [Thank you guys, gesture is underrated] By creating a line of action and a gesture you will be able to make MUCH MORE DYNAMIC poses and an even stronger basis for your form construction.

Gesture....is like the pan for your cake. Anatomy is topping, construction is your cake, and gesture is the pan. It is what holds everything together and your very first step in making the cake. Without a pan it is pretty hard, no?

As mentioned above probably, gestures are how you make your initial form.

Here is one of my favorite and more dynamic sketches.

Let's break it down to its core

That is our line of action. It is what dictates our pose and where we will place the gesture and even how we draw the gesture. From here we can start building up the form loosely and check the balance and rhythm of the pose.

From here we can then start to check over the anatomy and proportions.

But something to keep in mind and one of my favorite quotes regarding the study of anatomy...
"Draw a man fishing, not an anatomy chart of a fisherman."
aka DRAW THE MOTION AND LIFE OF THE ACTION NOT JUST EVERY MUSCLE. <3

I think if you really start studying the use of form and gesture, you'll become a rockstar and blow us all away.

Here are some resources too. Use them wisely.
Everything you want to learn and more is pretty much here...
Schoolism is pretty legit
Also legit stuff

Good luck and I hope you continue on. <3 Don't let opinions bog you down. Something else to remember.

You are drawing for YOU and you should only push yourself in the direction that YOU want to go in.

[punkarsenic]

oh wow, this is so comprehensive and encouraging - thank you so much!

[hades]

We've all been in your footsteps. :] Hang in there and you'll go far.

[DMBrigman]

Great responses from everybody.

I would also like to add for form, it is important to study how clothes act on the body. If you add wrinkles, drapes, and contours in the right places it can help to define the underlying shape of the character's body.

For example on the skateboarder, if you would put a curve on the edge of her shorts it will help the viewer know one leg positioned towards them, and the other away from them. You do a good job on the wrinkles of her shirt, this helps define that she is bent forward and gives her torso volume. Since the shorts don't behave the same way they flatten out her legs.

I personally always draw my characters naked first, then add the clothes after. This helps me pinpoint where there should be wrinkles and this helps define the volumes they take up in space.

[NickRowler]

I don't know what kind of art foundation you are trying to get into but when it comes to my experience with college portfolios, I tend to recommend that the majority of the pieces be realism/semi-realism pieces (be them drawings of still-life or actual people). It gives them a better understanding that you understand the basic principals of drawing.

It is OK to maybe include one or two more cartoony/illustrated pieces just to tell them that you have an interest in that stuff too.

[Ambat]

Depends on the art school and the program!

I was accepted and attended Laguna College of Art and Design's animation program for one year and was recently accepted into Art Center's animation program with the intent to transfer starting this fall. In both of my portfolios for these programs, my portfolio was predominantly cartoony/illustrated pieces. Here is my LCAD accepted portfolio with an 8k per year scholarship which turned into a half-ride scholarship (2014) and here is my recent Art Center accepted portfolio (not including my animation reel video)--scholarship still pending on AC, pray for me haha!

As you can see, even my figure drawings are really heavily stylized, and take up less than 25% of my portfolio in both cases. Both LCAD and AC were predominantly interested in your sense of artistic vision and potential---artistic foundations can be taught to anyone who will sit down and learn them, but being able to interpret the world around you and craft illustrations/stories/characters in unique and appealing ways is at least partially something innate.

Even CalArts, the most high-demand animation school in the nation, tends to prefer extremely hyperstylized figure drawings and gestures. CalArts of all animation programs I've seen requires the most life-drawing work, but when I attended a portfolio review with my sketchbook, the CalArts representative told me that the sketchbook portion of the portfolio (which is apparently the most important aspect of the portfolio being accepted) should emphasize vision and creativity above all else. Take a look at accepted CalArts sketchbooks and portfolios--you'll see what I mean!

Now because I'm an animation major, I'm speaking obviously predominantly of what's expected from an animation program's portfolio. I'm also speaking from the PoV of the more top-end/desirable animation schools--smaller schools or universities may be more interested in the semi-realism and realism aspect. Illustration programs, fine arts programs, etc. will DEFINITELY be more interested in the realism/semi-realism stuff. The reason I'm bringing up these examples though is because OP seems to be heading in a more cartoon-y style, which leads me to believe they are interested either in animation, comics or entertainment design in general in their future (correct me if I'm wrong), so I wanted to point this out from my firsthand experience. No disrespect intended!

[hades]

@Ambat is right. It'll heavily depend on the school you want to attend and their content guidelines. As well as the type of program.

To show a portfolio for a sequential art graduate program at SCAD Atlanta here is the one I used to get in. As you can see there is pretty much no life drawing or realism-based art in it. This is due to tailoring to the program itself. You need to be able to represent yourself and the program that you want to get into. Animation will have demo reels. Sequential art will have comics or storyboards.

Not every school wants only life art. ;]

[NickRowler]

I don't look at anything CalArts because it depresses me. I really want to attend the animation program but I could never afford it, so it just makes me really sad.

(I attended a local school for animation due to it being cheaper but the program was so awful (like really really bad) that it broke my spirit and I had to spend the remaining time at the school changing my focus to video editing and media. That is all I am going to say about that.)

[Ambat]

I understand--I mean, if it makes you feel any better, I was rejected from CalArts too--remember that that school is literally the most competitive animation program in the entire nation, gets thousands of applicants, is more expensive than a lot of medical and law programs... It's a pipe dream for many and honestly a lot of people who DO attend end up dropping out or transferring because of finances.

I understand the latter, that is actually why I made the decision to stop attending LCAD and pursue an education at Art Center instead--I didn't feel like the courses at LCAD were preparing me for the career I wanted. I hope that one day you will find the energy in yourself to pursue your goals again--you can do it, don't let one school being out of reach break you when there are so many other options!

[NickRowler]

I know this is off topic but this animation program I was in really pisses me off. It didn't teach technicals or storyboarding or voice overs or tweens or anything. All it did was teach people how to use Aftereffects...and that's it. There was a one basic beginners 3D class but I am more interested in 2D and television animation, I have zero interest for Pixar or any of the 3D stuff.

Maybe if I get better at video production and editing, I could apply as an editor for an animation studio, I dunno. The animation side of the animation industry is so cut-throat, and I am just very shy and passive.

[Ambat]

Unfortunately that tends to be the reality for a lot of smaller universities--the very first school I attended was my local state university that had a program called "IFDM" which was basically the catch-all entertainment design major. They advertised to live action film, animation, game art, etc. It was never my intention to stay at this university as I only intended to do my core classes and transfer out to a private art school, but I knew a lot of friends there who legitimately expected to be taught the skills they'd need in a legitimate career in animation--and it was very depressing because the major literally had TWO, OPTIONAL animation courses--for all four years of the program!

It's not always necessary to attend a school to pursue a career in entertainment based art, but I figure if you are going to bother doing so, looking into and trying to make the more established schools work is a better, safer bet than attending a smaller university. There are a lot of variable factors in this, including money, location, current skill level, intended career goals, etc. In my case specifically, I have very big career ambitions and due to the nature of my personality, I don't think I could get to the career that I want with a low-effort school or being self taught (I get very easily distracted when I'm not in school but in school/work places I'm competitive and try hard to be the best can be) Again, going to a top notch expensive animation program isn't the only way to become a professional animator, but people attend these schools, reccomend these schools and hire out of these schools for a reason. It will all vary based on your own circumstances and drive, however.

I don't mean to derail the thread, haha! Again, I just wanted to give my perspective on this topic specifically as an animation major with experience with some of the more desirable/well known private animation programs.

[NickRowler]

The school I attend was not a small university, if anything, it was quite large (which might go into why the program was bad, it wasn't just an art school, it was a large university). I think the animation program was designed to benefit the Gaming department which was more in depth. I was told that I should minor in gaming (because that is what a lot of people in that animation oriented major usually do). However I wasn't really into gaming and focused more on film and stuff. (Which actually helped me land a small internship after I graduated)

Sorry for being off topic OP...this is a topic I sometimes go full vent on because it effects me emotionally.

[punkarsenic]

i already got in mate. its not uni its a pre-uni vocational course

[KSlinger]

Nothing to contribute here, my suggestions have already been covered! Just wanted to say keep your chin up and keep going. You're doing great. We all have moments like this and it does you credit that you can take this kind of crit and continue moving forward. Just remember that you needed to go through this to achieve the best results possible, so you're totally on the right track!

Also really impressed by the level of legitimately great advice you've received here-- this forum really is full of amazing people. Nice job guys!

[punkarsenic]

so ive been focusing on gesture from life a lot this week, and still definitely have a long way to go but i tried taking what i learnt into drawing digitally...

hows this?
i dunno if i captured the gesture i put down right, but when i did it seemed like her hip'd pop out

EDIT:
i tried again, just drawing right into the gesture drawing

which i think is better but if a second opinion's not too much trouble, id really value it.

[Ambat]

I think definitely you're heading in the right track!! This feels a lot more fluid and interesting compared to your first posted drawings and it's definitely a very noticeable improvement. I prefer the head in the first pass of this drawing, where it's more downward/facing towards the right, it looks a little more natural. In this pose specifically, be aware that your character is leaning on this stick and their weight is being put onto this stick--you can exaggerate the post a lot and have the character leaning WAY more to the left because the stick is supporting them. Keep practicing with your gestures and volumes, like I said this is already leagues of improvement from what you've originally posted and you've just started--do your gestures every day and always strive to be better!!!