Digital Cameras: Recording Progress on Drawing in One Day

[zoobyshoe]

PlantyThingy Revisited

To refresh your memory, here's "PlantyThingy" as originally presented in post #61:

Between then and now I've done more work on it:

This is common for me, to start a drawing, set it aside unfinished for a long time, then pick it up later and do a lot more work on it.

 

[Yonoz]

I had no idea either. What a talent!

 

[zoobyshoe]

Two New Portraits

I've been doing more realistic drawing the past month or so. I've had good luck in getting some interesting people to pose for me. Christine and Caleb are two 18 year olds who hang around a coffee house I frequent. I wanted to draw Christine 'cause she's just plain pretty, and Caleb cause he has a dramatic Elvis/Beat Poet thing going on with his well cultivated image.



Christine:

Caleb:

 

[Evo]

You're really very talented zoob, great drawings!

 

[Kurdt]

These are amazing Zoob! I really can't say any more for I'm speechless except i wish i found this thread earlier.

 

[zoobyshoe]

You're really very talented zoob, great drawings!

Thanks Evo. Your approbation is much appreciated.

These are amazing Zoob! I really can't say any more for I'm speechless except i wish i found this thread earlier.

I'm glad you like my stuff. Evo did me the honor of putting this thread in GD classics. I like to ressurect it now and then when I have new drawings to add.

 

[dontdisturbmycircles]

Wow zoobyshoe these are absolutely amazing. I would not have guessed that Christine's picture was a drawing at first glace, the face looks way too real! Amazing job on both the portraits, I like the abstract work as well.

edit: Just looked through the whole thread, wow, you have talent. Very nice artwork! This is coming from someone who is hard to impress, too.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Wow zoobyshoe these are absolutely amazing. I would not have guessed that Christine's picture was a drawing at first glace, the face looks way too real!

This is becoming an issue. I posted an unfinished drawing on an art forum and some people recomended I not finish it because it might become too photographic. I've been getting better at finer and finer shading with no apparent lines or hatching but it ends up being counterproductive if people can mistake them for photos. This is probably only a problem when they are reproduced and shrunk for the web though. In person the particular reflective quality of graphite distinguishes it instantly from a photo, if there's any doubt.

Amazing job on both the portraits, I like the abstract work as well.

edit: Just looked through the whole thread, wow, you have talent. Very nice artwork! This is coming from someone who is hard to impress, too.

Thank you very much.

 

[scorpa]

Wow this is the first time I've seen this thread. Those drawings are so amazing, you have incredible talent!

 

[radou]

Hey, they look great, almost like photographs! Blah, and I thought I knew how to draw..

 

[Ivan Seeking]

That is some great work, Zooby.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Wow this is the first time I've seen this thread. Those drawings are so amazing, you have incredible talent!

Thank you very much scorpa.

Hey, they look great, almost like photographs! Blah, and I thought I knew how to draw..

If you want to draw more realistically from photos look into the grid system:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=drawing+grid&btnG=Google+Search

That is some great work, Zooby.

Hey, I'm really glad you like it Ivan.

 

[hypatia]

You did a fantastic job capturing the personality of Caleb. Both are a great defining the freshness of their age.

 

[zoobyshoe]

You did a fantastic job capturing the personality of Caleb. Both are a great defining the freshness of their age.

Caleb doesn't like the drawing. The breeze messed his hair up a bit and he complained that I should have told him and let him recomb it before snapping the picture. His girlfriend loves it, though, and that's better tham him liking it.

Christine was camera shy and I took, literally, 103 shots of her waiting for her to relax. We both agreed this bold gaze was the best of them. She was nervous about how I'd draw her, but when she saw it she stared at it for about a minute and then pronounced, imperiously, "I approve!"

 

[zoobyshoe]

Two New Portraits

Two more denizens of the above mentioned cafe:

"je suis perdue": Portrait of Ariel

Portrait of Eric:

 

[zoobyshoe]

This one is an attempt at the device known as "repoussoir" : "a figure or object in the extreme foreground: used as a contrast and to increase the illusion of depth."

I titled it "The Ghost Horse" but someone who knows horses said the "horse" is probably actually a pony. That's OK, I was just experimenting. If I did it over I'd hunt up a good shot of an actual horse and probably retitle it "The Night Mare"

 

[zoobyshoe]

Closeup of a drawing I did of a young lady named Javaneh. I often spend a lot of extra time on the lips.

 

[Kurdt]

Master pieces as ever. I like the guys dreads and that mouth close up is stunning.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Master pieces as ever. I like the guys dreads and that mouth close up is stunning.

Thank you so much, Kurdt. Since you like her mouth, I'll show you her eye:

 

[Kurdt]

That is exceptional! I can't say more.

 

[Evo]

Zooby, I will never take up a pencil again, you've outdone me.

 

[morphism]

Thank you so much, Kurdt. Since you like her mouth, I'll show you her eye:

I don't know if it's my screen, but damn! That looks real!

 

[zoobyshoe]

That is exceptional! I can't say more.

Thank you very much, Kurdt, I appreciate it.

Zooby, I will never take up a pencil again, you've outdone me.

I'll have to take your word for it since you've never show us your stuff. (I'm very curious.) But thanks!

I don't know if it's my screen, but damn! That looks real!

Uncounted hours of work with a magnifying glass and a sharp pencil. Working from a reference photograph, of course. I spent more time on this drawing than I ever have on any other. This is a girl (woman, I suppose, she's 27) who comes into the cafe I frequent to study. She saw me working on another drawing (Christine) and stopped to compliment it. I took one look at her and said "You're next". She's very lovely. She was flattered and agreed to let me take a bunch of photos of her for the drawing.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Currently working on:

Tiffany, photograph.

Tiffany, drawing in progress:

 

[Moonbear]

Wow, Zooby, those drawings look so realistic, I thought they were black and white photographs at first! (Well, except the one with the horse, which is more obviously a drawing...I'd say from the way it's kicking up it's heels, it's a frisky colt, too young to say if it's a horse or pony. ) Your artistic ability is truly impressive.

 

[hypnagogue]

How do you shade the skin? Whatever technique you use, it appears as if the shading follows the fine sorts of wrinkles and crevices that you'd find in a real person's skin if you looked close enough. It's more apparent in the couple of close ups you posted.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Wow, Zooby, those drawings look so realistic, I thought they were black and white photographs at first! (Well, except the one with the horse, which is more obviously a drawing...I'd say from the way it's kicking up it's heels, it's a frisky colt, too young to say if it's a horse or pony. ) Your artistic ability is truly impressive.

Hey, thanks Moonbear.

How do you shade the skin? Whatever technique you use, it appears as if the shading follows the fine sorts of wrinkles and crevices that you'd find in a real person's skin if you looked close enough. It's more apparent in the couple of close ups you posted.

It's a lucky accident. I was attempting to follow the "grain" of skin as I laid down the skin tone. You never get it completely smooth or at the right value the first time and to adjust it I went over it a couple times with lines whose angle was a few degrees different. This spontaneously created an unplanned "pore" texture. It comes off as some kind of tedious work, but was a total accident. No such pore texture really shows in the reference photo:

Drawing

Photograph

 

[Astronuc]

WOW! Zooby. Those drawings are exceptional.

You need to do a showing.


"The Ghost Horse" has a great contrast.

 

[hypatia]

I really enjoy looking at your work. It just keeps getting better.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Awesome work Zooby!

You'll probably be worth a fortune when you're dead.