Friday 12 April 2013

Something Clicked

Around 3 in the morning last night something actually clicked!

I've been slaving away at this digital painting relentlessly, practicing, watching tutorials, practicing, watching tutorials, practicing, you get the idea...

But I have definitely had a 'eureka' moment, here are my personal findings

  1. Have faith and paint over the lines
  2. Make sure the sketch is fine in line weight and accommodated for a painting, not for a piece that will feature line work in the final illustration. I've found that if this isn't the case when you come to paint over the lines and eliminate them if they are too messy or too thick your proportions will be completely out.
  3. KEEP IT SIMPLE! Don't over render and make a clear simple statement with regards to the forms and shadows, especially cast shadows.
  4. Think about the strokes you are making and why they have a reason to the final statement.
  5. Blues, purples, greens, yellows and red hints within the skin tone in the right places and with regards to the lighting really bring your flesh tones to life.
  6. WORK FROM DARK TO LIGHT
  7. Colours are only registered with regards to the other surrounding colours.
  8. Encourage 'happy' accidents i.e. Don't be too precious with your painting, if you try to keep it perfect it looks plastic and fake. Keep some texture and brush strokes in there.
  9. Render only whats important to the final statement and leave other things less refined.
Well here is my latest portrait practice. No reference was used, I wanted to recognize what I was doing and why I was doing it. Why I chose to make certain hues cooler or warmer, positioning of cast and core shadows etc. I wanted it to register rather than just copying a photo which I have done enough of in the past.



Thanks once again for paying a visit!

Liam.

1 comment:

  1. Liam, your blog is looking really impressive, your work is looking truly sophisticated. I've been enjoying dropping in to see your progress, keep it up!

    ReplyDelete

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