Wolf Fang's Fanart

[Redeemer]

You're getting better and better. Definately don't stop drawing!

[sjrathbun812]

This is definitely a lot more of an improvement! My main suggestion is if you're going to be working on adding values to your art, try not stopping at just a base mid tone. It's hard to really understand what or how to do it if you don't have a light reference, or simply know how light affects shapes and objects under light, but getting your Form Shadows, and Cast Shadows a lot darker would really help pop out your art more, and make it seem less 'flat'. Either way, awesome growth!

Hmmm... I see what you mean. Thanks for the criticism, I'll work on it!

I've decided before I try coloring things, I want to understand shading them first. Because otherwise... well, the coloring looks really bad on a flat picture with no shading, lol. Plus, for some reason, I like making traditional art more. I like colored art, but I think things in black and white have a particular beauty to them. So yeah, that's why I've been doing black and white pictures more often.

[sjrathbun812]

Wolf O'Donnell:

Welp, I was trying to work on my shading, but I think I made everything too dark. I'd like some criticism on this one.

[Fluxy]

Hmmm. I really like what you're trying to do with the values! It's definitely something good to start practicing.

Although, when working with this, it's easier if you go about it in a different way. You made the sketch/outline of Wolf and his clothing and what not; then what you wanna get down is a mid tone across the image. This means you're going to want to outline the drawing with a darker pencil type that'll stay on the paper. It's easier to do with Charcoal and charcoal paper to really keep hold of it, but it's still possible. Just gotta pick up a dark pencil type from a local art or craft supply store.

Now, let me explain the 'Dark' outline. It isn't meant to come out as -really- dark, but if you were to go to erase it, that it wouldn't erase very well. Really, you'll need absorbent paper for that, but then again, blah blah blah, you got the jist. Drawing in values is always a little difficult without the proper supplies.

BACK ON TRACK; Once you have your outline, and you set a mid tone, you're going to want to start with just getting two values in, using a Two-Value system. This basically means you darken where there is form and cast shadows on your image, and leave everywhere else white.

Once you have that, you have a much better base to start Shading the darker areas since you have some down already, and then you can go in and shade light areas properly because you know just how light they should be compared to the rest of the values because you started with a good base! This all, of course, requires some knowledge on how light hits parts of the body, shapes, and slight overall anatomy. A great way to get advice as to how dark an area is to be or how light it should be, is to get a reference picture of wolf, take that picture into some paint or digital program [Like Photoshop for example] and turn it into a grayscale picture, leaving you with no colors, and just the full heart values.

[Note: This is easier to practice in an environment with good lighting. What you're trying to get is the basis of Form, and bad lighting can make anything, even in real life, look flat. But still working on Value practice with this is never a bad thing!]

Overall, the picture is very dark, and there isn't enough of a contrast between light and dark to make any of it really stand out. The drawing its self I like, but really going and working on the values to define the parts of wolf will help very much. Parts of Wolf need to be darker, and even lighter in some areas, all depending on where the lighting is!

Very long post, and I really hoped it helped!

[sjrathbun812]

^ My brain is still trying to process everything in that post, lol! Thank you so much, Fluxy! I'll work hard on getting my drawings to stand out more.

But... the problem I usually have with shading things is, I can tell that pictures that are darker seem to pop out of the page more. So I try and make the picture darker, but then before I know it, everything is too dark, and I can't really tell what's what anymore. I've realized though that I have to pay a lot of attention to the lighting, too, and not just the shading.

I actually have lots of different pencils, (ranging from H to 8B,) and even charcoal pencils, too. But I don't know a whole lot about charcoal except for the fact that IT GETS EVERYWHERE. Well, if I'm not careful.

Also I admit that I really don't know much about form and shadow and light source and all that. (Even though I put A LOT of thought into this...) So I'm chewing on my pencil thinking, "Well... I want the light source coming from his left side... so..." and I went from there thinking, "Everything on his right side should be darker then his left side!" Or at least, that's what I figured. But I realize that because everything on his left side is just about the same tone as his right, then well... it didn't pop out very much, lol.

Still, I should start studying this. It should help me improve a lot. Thanks again for the criticism!

[Gestalt]

Wolf O'Donnell:

This will be my new future avatar....ummm...if thats okay with you....

as for voting on your art...if there was a getting better button...i'd click it...

[Fluxy]

^ My brain is still trying to process everything in that post, lol! Thank you so much, Fluxy! I'll work hard on getting my drawings to stand out more.

But... the problem I usually have with shading things is, I can tell that pictures that are darker seem to pop out of the page more. So I try and make the picture darker, but then before I know it, everything is too dark, and I can't really tell what's what anymore. I've realized though that I have to pay a lot of attention to the lighting, too, and not just the shading.

I actually have lots of different pencils, (ranging from H to 8B,) and even charcoal pencils, too. But I don't know a whole lot about charcoal except for the fact that IT GETS EVERYWHERE. Well, if I'm not careful.

Also I admit that I really don't know much about form and shadow and light source and all that. (Even though I put A LOT of thought into this...) So I'm chewing on my pencil thinking, "Well... I want the light source coming from his left side... so..." and I went from there thinking, "Everything on his right side should be darker then his left side!" Or at least, that's what I figured. But I realize that because everything on his left side is just about the same tone as his right, then well... it didn't pop out very much, lol.

Still, I should start studying this. It should help me improve a lot. Thanks again for the criticism!

Sorry I didn't see this, but no problem! I'm personally not the greatest with my application of traditional charcoal realism, but I know the general basics and all so I don't mind helping if you ever want it.

[sjrathbun812]

^Thanks again Fluxy. I always encourage constructive criticism, so I don't mind it at all.

Wolf O'Donnell:

This will be my new future avatar....ummm...if thats okay with you....

as for voting on your art...if there was a getting better button...i'd click it...

Whoa dude, that's fine with me! It would be an honor if you do. And thanks a lot for the compliment! ^_^

[Gestalt]

thanks again when I is done here i'll rotate it out at other places i like to hang out at :biggrin:

[sjrathbun812]

thanks again when I is done here i'll rotate it out at other places i like to hang out at

No prob. If anyone asks, I'd appreciate it if you'd say I made it.

[Salem]

oh hey, helpful tip; when shading a background like that lightly shade it and then smudge it with you finger it's also great for shadows.

[sjrathbun812]

Yup. Finger smudging is a common technique, I just don't do it often because if you blend something, it gets rid of some of the texture. Not only that, but when you use your finger, it has body oils on it which gets on the paper, and can make the quality bad. Thanks, though. :D

[Geo Stelar]

Nice works, never seen this 'till now!!!

what's your name on image shack, btw?

[Salem]

Yup. Finger smudging is a common technique, I just don't do it often because if you blend something, it gets rid of some of the texture. Not only that, but when you use your finger, it has body oils on it which gets on the paper, and can make the quality bad. Thanks, though.

that's true that's why I mainly use it for shadowing, oh and if it takes away texture just trace back over the main drawing :friends:

[sjrathbun812]

Despite the fact that I normally try and draw things realistically, last night I was sketching up some stuff, and I started drawing my characters with more emotion, trying to make them look overall more cartoon-like. The shading in this is very simplistic. I didn't think much about it, and so Fox came out looking really flat. When I was drawing him I was thinking that since I wasn't really going for realism, I thought that I'd just sort of "tone" it, but this, I think, was a mistake. Anyhow, this was just an experiment, and I kind of like the style, so I might try drawing him in a similar style sometime later... just with better detail and shading.

Nice works, never seen this 'till now!!!

what's your name on image shack, btw?

Thank you. My name is WolfFang129. I mainly only use image shack to get the direct links to my drawings, though. I never really bother to put anything else up. I mainly put my photography up on Deviant Art.

[Synapsepilot]

I like the style, possess a sense of realism yet has that cartoon-likeness you described .

Overall I'm very impressed, looking forward to more...

[Fluxy]

Despite the fact that I normally try and draw things realistically, last night I was sketching up some stuff, and I started drawing my characters with more emotion, trying to make them look overall more cartoon-like. The shading in this is very simplistic. I didn't think much about it, and so Fox came out looking really flat. When I was drawing him I was thinking that since I wasn't really going for realism, I thought that I'd just sort of "tone" it, but this, I think, was a mistake. Anyhow, this was just an experiment, and I kind of like the style, so I might try drawing him in a similar style sometime later... just with better detail and shading.

Overall improvement! This is more so an example of Gray Scale coloring more so than shading... Per se. But still always a good thing to do since line art drawing is cool, but doesn't give much in the idea of item/body distinction sometimes. Mostly with animals, or more complex beings. AKA: Not humans XD.

The muzzle is pretty good, though the head is a little large for the body. I like how you added posture and all, making the picture more interesting. That's always good to practice! *Doesn't do it himself a lot*

Then the last little, minor, thing I could say, is add some form of line separation or distinction between the head and the right ear. Other than that, really liking the improvement, Fang!

[Gestalt]

The muzzle is down right, spot on...i myself have a hard time drawing accurate muzzles.

The only detractor i can point out is the eyes...i would have opened them up a bit inorder to retian the cartoon-esque feel of starfox...but thats just me i like big 0_0 anime eyes

But in all, its always good to experiment with pose :yes:

[Geo Stelar]

nice! Definitely improving! Keeeep iiiittttt uuuup!!

[sjrathbun812]

I like the style, possess a sense of realism yet has that cartoon-likeness you described .

Overall I'm very impressed, looking forward to more...

Thank you for your kind words. I will do my best to improve my work.

Overall improvement! This is more so an example of Gray Scale coloring more so than shading... Per se. But still always a good thing to do since line art drawing is cool, but doesn't give much in the idea of item/body distinction sometimes. Mostly with animals, or more complex beings. AKA: Not humans XD.

The muzzle is pretty good, though the head is a little large for the body. I like how you added posture and all, making the picture more interesting. That's always good to practice! *Doesn't do it himself a lot*

Then the last little, minor, thing I could say, is add some form of line separation or distinction between the head and the right ear. Other than that, really liking the improvement, Fang!

I will take all this into note. Actually, I do remember seeing that when I started drawing his head, when I looked at it, it was a little bigger than it probably should have been. I also didn't think much about any line separation/distinction between the head and the right ear, but I think I see how that could make it look less flat, if that's what you mean. And yes, I wanted Fox to have more spunk and attitude in this one, hehe. I still think there's something wrong about his right arm crossing his left... I don't know.

As always, your criticism is much appreciated, Fluxy!

The muzzle is down right, spot on...i myself have a hard time drawing accurate muzzles.

The only detractor i can point out is the eyes...i would have opened them up a bit inorder to retian the cartoon-esque feel of starfox...but thats just me i like big 0_0 anime eyes

But in all, its always good to experiment with pose

I suppose his eyes could be enlarged to an extent. They are rather small compared to the rest of his head. I could make them larger then that, though, which would probably be a good idea, as it offers more character and cartooniness when the eyes are exaggerated.

nice! Definitely improving! Keeeep iiiittttt uuuup!!

Thank you, Geo, for your encouragement.

Lord willing, my art will progress and get better over time. I would like to thank SF-O for welcoming my art at the beginning, even though it could hardly be considered art at the time. :lol:

[sjrathbun812]

This was supposed to be a practice in foreshortening... and also shading, expression, and pose. I'm a bit if-y about the results, but it was good practice, at least.

I'm actually getting to the point where it's getting more exciting, have the characters express themselves with more definition, and slowly having the perspective turning into something a bit more interesting.

I worked hard on this, but as usual, feel free to critique it. I want to learn from my mistakes. I often imagine my pictures in my head to have smooth, dark shading, but I still can't quite capture that on paper.

[Fluxy]

I like your improvement, as well as trying out a new angle! Foreshortening is definitely something that requires practice. I honestly suck at it, so I can't offer too much advice on it either, haha.

As for the shading and all, I can definitely see improvements on how you're giving things form! I can easily tell it in the legs, arms and feet really well! I see a little definition right on the stomach, and think it could be increased a bit, but that's alright. I think the main thing I could help by saying is the fingers could be shown to be a little less flat, and that Reflected light should be shown. It helps with defining parts of the body and gives a more realistic effect. Even if you're just doing Line art with colors, and not actually painting, reflected light plays a huge role in giving art that last push to making a picture pop out.

[sjrathbun812]

Thanks for the criticism! I'm a little confused on how the hand should look, actually. He's not exactly supposed to be reaching out toward the viewer, but you're kind of looking at him from an up down perspective... sorta. But yeah, reflected light does have a lot to do with it. But I'm rather confused on where the reflected light should be. (I chose the light source to be in front of him.)

I'm still experimenting with values and all that, too. I've noticed you can build up a lot of texture if you're careful, but if you erase any of it or blend it, it makes it that much harder to fix. But when I was drawing this picture, I noticed that when I didn't blend it, it looked kind of grainy. So, I blended it some after I added texture, and I guess it came out all right.

[sjrathbun812]

It's been a long time since I tried my hand at the animated series look. I haven't messed with it mainly because I thought I could never do it justice.

Yeah, it doesn't look quite right. The snout isn't as narrow as it should be. The nose isn't right. I purposefully didn't do his fur the way Fred does, mainly because I never get it right, lol.

No references used.

Edit:

It looks better then this, anyway.

[Fluxy]

Thanks for the criticism! I'm a little confused on how the hand should look, actually. He's not exactly supposed to be reaching out toward the viewer, but you're kind of looking at him from an up down perspective... sorta. But yeah, reflected light does have a lot to do with it. But I'm rather confused on where the reflected light should be. (I chose the light source to be in front of him.)

I'm still experimenting with values and all that, too. I've noticed you can build up a lot of texture if you're careful, but if you erase any of it or blend it, it makes it that much harder to fix. But when I was drawing this picture, I noticed that when I didn't blend it, it looked kind of grainy. So, I blended it some after I added texture, and I guess it came out all right.

I am so sorry, I didn't see this post. Reflected light, in a really simple way to put it, is at the edge of a place that light is reflected back onto it, typically seen in the shadow areas. It's hard to explain really without showing you, so I guess to really understand, take something round. The lighter color to see the shadows and values the better. Take a light and put it under the light -at an angle-, it makes it easier to see. You'll see the form and cast shadow, like usual, but you'll also see a the base of that ball, right along the curve where it's all dark from the light not hitting it directly, you'll see that it is actually lighter. This is caused from the light bouncing and reflecting onto the ball. Once you see it and understand it, it makes knowledge of how to apply it easier, but putting it to work on the human body properly takes a lot of study in anatomy to know how the body is really formed, how light hit muscles depending on angle and the like. Sort of a long responding post, but I'll end it with a picture on basic Analysis of Form study; one that covers the ball that I mentioned.

[As you can see, at the bottom it is brighter on the ball than some of the shadowy areas due to the light reflecting]

---

As for your Animated Series interpretation, Not only is it a much better attempt than your previous one and shows improvement, I'd say it gives that cartoony feel to it either way. Even if it isn't perfect. You made me realize it was based off Fred's work before I even read the text, so I'd say that was a good job! And you pretty much know what the issues are, so no point in really commenting on them; Especially seeing as you're growing really fast and well.