Post
by Frank Stockton » Sun Apr 08, 2007 3:21 pm
your Adam West Batman is publishable. If you had a whole portfolio of similar images and if you put in the time and effort you could make a career of illustration.
Your drawings straight out of your head are lacking the confidence that comes with experience.
My advice: let go of what you think makes a "good" drawing and focus on your storytelling.
For example, your Cheshire Cat is just a "normal" looking cat in a tree, with a scary face. The line work looks over-done and doesn't really do anything for the mood, emotion, or storytelling of the piece (I'm using those terms as synonyms).
How could your shading, line work, angle and composition intensify what you're trying to say about this particular incarnation of the magical feline?
Also, it seems as though when you're coloring digitally that you're rushing through things.
Simple solution: slow down. Go away from your piece for a while, then come back and look at it later. What could make it a tad better?
Find someone who can teach you the principles of light and shade, someone you respect and who you know is a better artist than you are. Make friends with that person, be enthusiastic and open-minded to suggestion, and watch how they will eagerly take you under their wing to help you become a better artist.
Lastly, make sure you really believe that you're a great artist.
This final part is the most important and the most overlooked by people who decide to put in the time to become good at art (or anything, for that matter).
Most people tend to think they are AWESOME artists, but never put in time to really improve and move forward. He'll go through life thinking "my stuff is soooo bad-ass!" but the rest of us all know he's not really that good.
The other type of artist, who is in the minority, is a crit junkie that puts in countless hours in drawing workshops and reading books and learning from different teachers but in his heart doesn't believe he is a great artist. The ironic thing is he believes he's better than the cocky guys mentioned above, but will never really reach full potential because he refuses to believe that he is truly a great artist. His confidence dangles by a thread of compliments picked up here and there from folks who are working on the same things.
I hope that crit was helpful. Keep up the good work!
Frank