Woodmouse's portraits (Dwarf Scout wip)

[woodmouse]

So, I made a portrait for Ruffian. Comments or advice, critic or something?

[Longbow]

It doesn't really fit the 'noth style, but it is well done

[woodmouse]

It doesn't really fit the 'noth style

I know... It's too anime/manga-ish, right?

but it is well done

Thanks!

Oh, and the original image is 76 cm long and 91 wide, so I didn't upload it.

[Espreon]

The standards for portraits are loftier than the used to be... This portrait conforms to the older standards...

That is a fine start though...

[Akkarin345]

I am no artist and i don't haev much experiance in portraits. However i have had a little mess around with your portrait and got this.

What i have changed:


Changed the sleeve so it looks more 3d because you can't see the other half of the sleeve opening.

Changed the nose

Changed the neck - taken out the lines

Also changed the ear a bit



As i said its not brillaint but instead of just saying what i thought might look better i thought doing it would help you more and help me a bit with drawring, though mine probobly looks worse!

EDIT : okay the nose looks a bit wierd i don't like it lol

[woodmouse]

Nose time!
Which nose is the best?


Oh, and I edit sleeve after we find the chosen nose.

[thespaceinvader]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but you have a LONG way to go before your portraits will make it into the mainline of the game. You've got an eye for some parts, particularly the hair, but the overall shapes are simply not correct. The proportions are way off, particularly in the size of the head in relation to the body, and in the size and positioning of the facial features. You're adding folds in a pretty much random pattern as far as i can see - there's little or no structure to the clothing, and it doesn't seem to succumb to the force of gravity. The line work is uniformly thick throughout, with no variation due to light and dark. Similarly, the shading is very flat, making it look more like a frieze than a 3D structure.

I don't want to discourage you. You clearly have potential, and I would hate to see it wasted. But I would suggest that at your current stage of artistic development, you will not get portraits into mainline. If you are serious about improving your skills, I suggest you go away and practice. Practice offline, on paper. Fill page after page, book after book of sketch paper with figure drawings, still lives and simple shapes. Draw from reference images, trying to copy them as exactly as you can. Practice for yourself, not with the aim of submitting to the game - though using characters from the game for inspiration can be useful, if, like myself, you struggle for your own inspiration. Get hold of some books (probably from the library, since they're a bit on the dear side). Burne Hogarth is a good name to look out for.

But be aware that this process will TAKE TIME. LOTS and lots of time. A figure Jetryl likes to quote is that it takes about 5 years to go from zero artistic skill to a decent level of the same. This is not an overnight process.

Again, I'm not trying to discourage you from developing your artwork . It's a very worthwhile pursuit, and you will improve with practice. But you're not ready for mainline.

Espreon: no, it doesn't conform to the older portrait standards, neither in anatomy, lineart quality or shading.

[woodmouse]

Hmmm...
I ask my mother about the anatomy things (she draws a lot). And hmmm... I feel discouraged... lol Well, I haven't drawn much humans; my big brother always says I draw goodly some sorta monsters, maybe I upload something (well they're not so Wesnoth-ish so maybe not... )

[Akkarin345]

To be honest i like everything but the nose. To me it just doesn't look mainline type. Have a look at something like the thug portrait and see how that is done by blowing the image up. Still i really like the top/robe whatever thing.


On one i have changed the nose a bit.
On the other i had another go at the nose and edited the eyes to see the difference, i think they will be too small.

[Divine Crusader]

I personally think your portrait is not good enough.You have a far way to go to make this portrait look awesome and into the game.

[Mica]

But, you have much potential. You will be great - just not today. Keep practicing, please! I would hate to see what could be an amazing artist quit because he wasn't good from the start.

[woodmouse]

Ok, I keep pratcicing. Oh, and does someone know that what is the... umm... ööö... I don't exactly know what it's named, but in the portrait tutorial, there is nothing about how fat outlines should be. How fat should they be?

[Girgistian]

They vary. They're supposed to be thicker on shadowed areas and thinner on illuminated areas, but they shouldn't differ too much

[Akkarin345]

I personally think your portrait is not good enough.You have a far way to go to make this portrait look awesome and into the game.

It is nice not to just damn the drawer. Try to say how he can make it better. He has got far to go but he has also got a lot of potential. He can draw way better than me! However i think if you had a look at forming the nose more like wesnoth portraits that just lines it will look really good !

[Thrawn]

They vary. They're supposed to be thicker on shadowed areas and thinner on illuminated areas, but they shouldn't differ too much

actually, it depends on how you want your lighting....don't ever limit yourself to "I need to keep them between x and y pixels.