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TroyVSTheWorld
Jun '22

I've been thinking of doing a longer format comic lately. However, I've quickly found that I need to draw characters in poses (and, preferably, camera angles too) that I'm not exactly the most familiar with. And I would rather, in fact, have my drawings suck less for your viewing pleasure.

So I'm thinking over reference methods. I have literally no references so I might pick up one of those adjustable anatomy dolls, but the more I think it over, it really sounds like creating blank 3D models and posing them that way seems like its both easy AND effective, given you have the tools and assets to do it. Which, I probably don't, but I could download Blender or something, as long as I don't have to spend too much time learning a new program instead of actually getting panels drawn out.

So what methods do you guys use? What kind of apps do you recommend?

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    Jun '22

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    Jul '22
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BlairFujin
Jun '22

Whenever I'm dealing with a more difficult pose I use DesignDoll71
I find it more intuitive to use than Clip Studio Paint's built in 3D models + you can easily adjust models height/proportions

river121693
Jun '22
1

I used to just browse online for a similar pose and use a posable figure, but last month I bought a tripod attachment and bluetooth clicker to take my own reference using my phone.
10/10 would recommend. Takes me an hour to take all the photos I need based on thumbnail, but saves me ton of time googling. Made both my art and my workflow so much better.

Here's a before

Screen Shot 2022-06-28 at 7.17.04 AM.png697x697 618 KB

and after
Screen Shot 2022-06-28 at 7.16.33 AM.png849x704 681 KB

Scarlet_Cryptid
Jun '22

I use a combination of sources, and I try to use exclusively pictures of real humans if at all possible, because I know if a real human is doing it, especially candidly and not posed, it's a pose that will look natural and make sense.

One my big reference sources is Adorkastock, which is just... such a wealth of good action poses.

I also look up simple phrases on Google image search, like 'man aiming crossbow' or 'rearing horse', and scroll through until I find something that works.

crossbow 1.jpg1023x700 114 KB

I also take photos of myself or my friends in hard-to-find poses, and for really specific hand gestures.

Picture 049.jpg817x729 315 KB

And when all else fails, and I need a REALLY specific pose that I can't find or re-create myself, I have even gone so far as to build mannequins.

dummy 1.jpg540x720 39.6 KB

I'm also very picky about expressions references. I have a book full of different people of different ages, genders, and ethnicities making a range of faces from various angles ("Facial Expressions" by Mark Simon), and while it's incredibly useful in some ways (utterly amazing for nailing an angle, for example), I find the ... authenticity of the more extreme expressions to be lacking. Big smiles don't look genuine. The expressions of fear or anger or pain don't look real. In order to get real intense expressions, I look for things like news photos (for anger), birth photos (for pain), or haunted house candid shots (my favorite!) for fear.

Btw, the photo archive from the Nightmare Fear Factory haunted house is a gold mine if you want startled/scared reaction reference. Here are just a few gems:

fear16.jpg1200x856 131 KB

Fear21.jpg588x550 287 KB

On top of all of this, I keep a saved file of any interesting photos I might need for reference someday. I've been collecting reference photos for years, and that file is MASSIVE now. (Over 3.5 GB!) Everything from people (races, ages, poses, expressions, hair styles, hand gestures etc) to places, structures, color combinations I like, weapons and clothing and furniture and even food... and I still need more!

I can never have too many references. :grin:

Shanny8
Jun '22

Mainly mostly use Clip Studio's 3-D pose figure library, but occasionally I will google reference stuff to get more accurate poses for certain shots.

allenT
Jun '22

I seldom have references for poses unless the poses are challenging & uncommon. I use self-taken photos.

Chaz
Jun '22

I refer to the Pose Archives. Not for my webcomic, but for fan art of superheroes. It's mainly a guy and a girl doing random poses. It's on different socials.

BoomerZ
Jun '22

Here's the advice I give to all artist. If you need poses, go to any porn site. Go to their gallery section, select softcore. This will give you every pose pretty much. For male poses, change the preferences to gay. The bonus is most porn sites are categorized so you can search a specific look of the model you are looking for through filters. Have fun.

Legendofgenii
Jun '22
smokesalty

@smokesalty One day they’ll be making a book about your comic career and those photos will crop up. :joy:

Lol! I totally do the same though. Sometimes you just can’t find the pose or angle you need.

Lady_T_Musings
Jun '22

I made a post about this a while back so I'll share it as it has some neat resources and ideas others have used.

Another thing I like to do is a photoshoot with friends in poses I think I will need. Works better if you have a list of stuff you wanna hit so you all aren't out there standing around going what next lol. Catching angles is probably the most helpful thing I can think of when doing this over general poses though. Next time I get a group together for a photoshoot, imma be all up in they business and standing over them for perspective reasons lol.

I also like using https://www.pexels.com/6 for when I need some background inspo or drawing exercise. They have all kinds of reference materials too.

scottlincoln689
Jun '22

Mannequins (both solid and digital) are great for help with dynamic camera angles but regardless of articulation, they usually have stiff hip and shoulder posturing. Quick photos with a cellphone or looking in a mirror (if your old like me) offer more natural detail. The mirror has the added benefit of bringing out your inner actor and helping you to feel what you want to draw as well as see it. The downside is you must make sure all your characters don't look like you (Jack Kirby). Also, if you'd like to avoid porn, might I suggest Pinterest.

Caro
Jun '22

I just use myself or my husband and take pictures or use a mirror. I’ve put my phone through some wild stuff to get specific angles.

I honestly don’t know that I would recommend porn for reference because there are uhhh definitely artists that you can TELL use porn for refs.

TedGravesArt
Jun '22

Most of the time I use either google or myself. My phone has taken hundreds of pictures of me making dumb faces. I also have a webcam setup with an obs scene specifically for recording reference videos. I've got a few anatomy dolls that I use in a pinch too, and they're useful, but nothing is better than just doing the thing and getting it on camera. Particularly action or expressions. There's a lot of subtlety that dolls or 3d posers just can't capture, like weight distribution, or momentum, or lines of action, and expressions carry a heap of slight variations depending on the situation.
Having proper expression references is super important, and you learn a ton from drawing what you see, rather than correcting expressions to look "right", or more like an iconic expression. "Eyebrows down and a frown = angry" is a terrible way to approach them. There are so many versions of angry, like is the person angry because they're sad? Angry because they're scared or tense? Are they on the verge of tears or are they seeing red? Are they being stubborn? Are they play acting? Are they breathing hard? Usually if I act into a camera there will be a plethora of subtleties for the expressions that come out of that. I highly recommend it!

XiuLyn_12
Jun '22

For poses, I usually start looking for references from google. If I can't find the exact poses and angles, I make the poses myself using "MagicPoser" app. It might take time to get used to it, but it didn't take me too long.
For hand references, I take pictures of my own hand or my siblings'. :smile:

Aleksei
Jun '22

Poses? I have you covered. I have walked this road thousand of times xD
For quick 'I need a reference for the thing I have in my mind', its very useful one of this 'Body Kun' or Body Chan'. The originals are expensive, but in AliExpress there are a lot of other options that are also very useful:

Sin tĂ­tulo2.jpg1000x999 106 KB

For muscles I use the TBLeague models. I still have to get a female one:

Sin tĂ­tulo.jpg999x1470 243 KB

Furthermore, you can take a picture of the pose, and use the jpg as reference in your favorite drawing program!
But If you want to model a character in a 3D program, you can use the models from CSP. Sometimes is difficult to pose them, so try to download some premade poses in the assets and move them a bit. Other solution is https://justsketch.me/9 page. An online 3D poser. Yet another solution is DesigDoll. This program was created for referecing, so its your best 3D bet. If you pay the license you can save your model, otherwise you will have to design it everytime you need a model, but once you have ready a pose you can save a jpg of the reference, or export the 3D as obj, that can be read in CSP as any other native 3D, and you can use the 3D camera from CSP to further adjust your pose details! The best thing in DesignDoll imo? You can upload another 3D objects there, an use them for your pose, as swords, guns, cars, etc. You can download a free 3D model, upload it in DesignDoll, create your model pose, export the obj, throw it into CSP, draw you character -and here is the best- hide in the options the model, and leave the object to extract the lines! Try it!


But you need reference images because your poses lacks certain je ne sais quoi? Of course Google Images is your friend. For a more random practice you can check https://quickposes.com/en/gestures/random7, or you can personalize a Pinterest account. But if you REALLY need something extra, go deep and buy poses magazines like 'BL Manga Pose Book Collection', 'Dara tto shita Pose Catalog 1', or others. There are tons in sites like https://www.cdjapan.co.jp/8

2

Finally, if you want to only see an image on your PC without much problem changing your view, opening tabs, or whatever, try PureRef. Its a free program that opens a window that its always open above other programs, and you can throw, or open, different images from the internet for you to use as reference, without opening other annoying programs or tabs! Below there is an example of how PureRef works.

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Hope this little tutorial had helped you in your ways around the poses world =D

TheLemmaLlama
Jun '22
Lady_T_Musings

I've heard you mentioning drawing plenty of plus-size characters - do you have any go-tos for references for heavier characters? These days I feel pretty comfortable posing thin characters, but using those same procedures when drawing heavier characters makes them look kinda weird :'D For instance, I don't think a heavier person can really curl up on themself as tightly as a thin person could. The weight really adds a new dimension I have to consider :sweat_02: