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Vinnie J · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 6:58 pm

Hey.. yall will probably be seeing a lot of me here since I'm still pretty amateurish, I just started getting into this stuff but I think I'm decent. Anyways, I'm trying to fix up this picture of me and a friend. The main thing that's bothering me is the contrast between my lips and my skin, they're both kinda the same color. Otherwise it's coming along fine, but I wouldn't mind any other suggestions or revisions. So if anyone can try fixing it up for me I'd appreciate it.

oh and don't worry about the lighting differences between me and her. These are just 2 separate images I put together cause I liked how they looked.

[This message has been edited by Vinnie J (edited February 14, 2001).]

Vinnie J · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 7:05 pm

nevermind this reply.. i just fixed the other thing that was bothering me

[This message has been edited by Vinnie J (edited February 14, 2001).]

SporQ · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 8:13 pm

mmm, filtery

SporQ

Socar MYLES · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 8:14 pm

Let's see the originals, then.... I'm curious: Are these paintovers, or copies? At the moment, they seem half-done, and a little bland. You need some more interesting colours in there. Your flesh tones are realistic, yes, but also rather flat. Add some blues and mauves to the shadows, some pale yellows to the highlights, a bit of red to the noses--you get the idea.

It's a good start, though. Do post again when you're done.

------------------
My old man's a dustman
'E wears a dustman's 'at
'E wears gorblimey trousers...
AAAAAAAAND....
'E lives in a council flat!

Vinnie J · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 8:33 pm

Well I reek of newbieness right now.. I use the Cutout filter to get a general shape, and then I just go crazy with the airbrush and the blur tool to get all the details and highlights done. I really am new at this though so I don't expect this to be too good.. I've only taken 1 lame art class in 7th grade and that was it, so I'm still learning.

Okay, enough excuses, here's the original photos. http://www.geocities.com/nanaki63/temp/jenn.jpg http://www.geocities.com/nanaki63/temp/vince.jpg
both photos are a little awkward and goofy looking though so that's another thing I tried to fix.

ZenDrag0n · Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2001 10:11 pm

Its probably not best to do paintovers of photos, especially using filters. Not much will be learnt by it, and it's very obvious. Yes you pointed it out after, but you'd really learn much more by building the shapes, colors, and lights yourself, using photos as a reference, rather than painting over filtered photos.

Vinnie J · Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2001 12:31 am

Yeah I just don't have any freehand drawing skills yet, and I'm not taking any art classes until September. So I'm just trying to learn a step at a time right now, so that's why I did it how I did.

So with that said.. can I just get some suggestions and examples based on what I have already?

Socar MYLES · Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2001 12:52 am

Yeah...I -thought- that's what you were doing, there.... The best way to acquire freehand drawing skills is to DRAW, not to take art classes. I'm in my fourth year of art school this year, and all my profs have told me...is to draw. Now, I realize this is difficult at first, so.... If you must do paintovers, don't do them this way. Just trace the outlines of the major areas of colour (eyes, nose, shadows under cheekbones, et cetera), then experiment with colour, shading, and composition....) But I really wouldn't suggest working this way, especially in the beginning. It's -always- obvious, and isn't often taken very seriously.

While you wait for your drawing classes, spend some time drawing from life. Wait for your pet to fall asleep, then draw it. (I do that a lot....) Make someone sit still for you. Hell, draw fruit, if you can't get anything else to stay put. Start with two-minute sketches, then longer ones as you get more confident. Experiment. Have fun. But don't do this. It'll just seem cheesy, and you won't get much out of it.

------------------
My old man's a dustman
'E wears a dustman's 'at
'E wears gorblimey trousers...
AAAAAAAAND....
'E lives in a council flat!

Vinnie J · Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2001 5:26 pm

Thanks for the tips.. everyone else tells me to keep drawing too. I just figure I'm not going to know enough about technique until I start taking the real classes, so that's why I said that.

But I'm just doing this picture for personal enjoyment, so it'll be alright if it isn't taken seriously. I don't wanna throw it away just because I used a few shortcuts. And If I get some tips on this one and get a final version of it I'm happy with, I promise to never use this method again

So here's my latest revision, there's a bunch of minor changes. I decided it looked cool as a single picture so I moved the two of us closer together: http://www.geocities.com/nanaki63/temp/vj4.jpg