Spellbee's Sketches

**spellbee2** · 06-25-2016 05:58 AM

I've sucked at drawing for a long time. And of course, I suck because I don't try to draw. And I don't try to draw because I suck at drawing. And I suck because I don't try...

In an attempt to break this vicious cycle, and after some encouragement from JadeGreen in IRC yesterday, I've decided to start working at it now. Eventually I want to start a webcomic of some sort, but first I have to get to a decent enough skill-level, develop my "signature style", and all that jazz. So this thread is to keep me motivated to regularly practice and stuff - hopefully I'll be able to put up one or two things each week. Plus, once I feel like I'm making progress, I might put down some money on a drawing tablet.

So for my first post, here's my 30-minute sketch inspired by a conversation with Mismagius in chat.

[00:04:41] <@spellbee2^> half of me wants to try and draw something. since i have to start sometime if i want to be good someday
[00:04:55] <@spellbee2^> but the other half of me is already half-asleep
[00:05:15] <@Mismagius^^> Haha
[00:05:21] <@Mismagius^^> Draw you half-asleep
[00:06:00] <@spellbee2^> haha, i totally should
[00:06:15] <@spellbee2^> alright, brb, gonna attempt to draw me half asleep
[00:06:35] <@Mismagius^^> Half lidded eyes, drool on chin, russeled hair
[00:06:39] <@Mismagius^^> Haha kay

Spoiler for The Result:

Any feedback (and possibly starter-tablet recommendations) is appreciated.

**Tataglia** · 06-25-2016 02:24 PM

Hi SpellBee,

A sufficient skill-set and a signature style shouldn't be really your end goal. They will all come in time. The most important thing to remember is to have fun in your journey to becoming a better artist. In a webcomic you are telling a story. Your sketch described the situation described by Mismagnius perfectly. Doesn't matter if proportions and perspective are a little off. These things won't improve overnight. For learning fundamentels, I suggest you look up resources to learn to draw/paint from. To name a few: Youtube: Proko, Books: Andrew Loomis, Painting: CtrlPaint, sites: conceptart.org, quickpose etc.

As for feedback? Don't worry that it took 30 minutes, you need to have patience in drawing, the more time you put in it, the better the end result. That's always a guarantee. Also try to use references, especially when trying to draw ambitious poses. Develop gesture drawing, don't look at the edges only, look at the flow, motion, form, etc as well. And lastly don't press too hard on the pencil

For a starter-tablet I'd recommend an Intuos tablet (Wacom). I for instance use an Intuos 5 for my digital paintings and I wouldn't want anything else.

Hope this helps

**Lang** · 06-26-2016 09:20 PM

I've pictured you asleep at your computer.

This is a good start! You try storyboarding it!

And Tataglia is right! Drawing is like a fine wine, it better with time.

**spellbee2** · 07-11-2016 04:19 AM

Thanks for the support, guys. Been a bit busy the past few weeks. Here's my first attempt at storyboarding a comic. It was inspired by another moment in chat, though I don't have access to the exact quote, since the logs are on my laptop which is being repaired (also why I don't have access to a scanner). Pencil wasn't quite as sharp as I would've liked it, and some things came out kinda weird, but overall it's not too bad.

Spoiler for Frog Comedy:

**Linkzelda** · 07-14-2016 06:33 AM

If you want another alternative starter tablet, you could try the Wacom Bamboo Create. I think at the time, I bought it for about 100-120 bucks, but the price reduced significantly over the years. Still have it to this day. I have the medium version, I think, can't remember, but yeah. It gets the job done, but I haven't done much digital painting lately, though. I think I was convinced with this video:

I think they patched some problems with syncing issues, and what have you, but if anything I can e-mail my own preferences that sorts that out. But, if you end up with the tablet, and I give you the file, I'm left-handed, so you may end up just selecting for right-handed individuals instead. I invested in a screen protector, and haven't bought one in years now. There are some scratches on said protector, but that's my fault for going crazy with my wrists. You could go for the small, as I read anecdotes of small being better on the wrists, but again, I know the size I have is a little bit bigger than small, because if not, woah.

It might feel weird transitioning from having eyes in a tunnel vision on a piece of paper vs. looking at the screen while not really looking at the tablet at all, but trust me, you will develop muscle memory for it.

Also, the pen tips. THE PEN TIPS. It's like spending more money on ink rather than the printer itself. Those screen protectors, for any tablet you'll be getting, will make them last a LONG time. I ordered one bag for the Bammboo create that came with like 4-5 (?), and I'm down to like three. That order was made maybe 2 years ago before buying my first set. I predict that they'll last me 7 years if I'm careful about it. Trust me, those pen tips will dissipate REALLY quick. The original feel for tablets try to emulate sensations of drawing on paper, but it's more of using those pen tips to draw on granite; the protectors will make things a bit more slippery, but it's doable. Not saying I'm the fastest stroker with a tablet, but man, it cringed me hearing those screech sounds without the protector because I'm thinking it'll be a money sink.

**spellbee2** · 10-03-2016 04:14 AM

Did some drawing from references today. Probably the first time in forever I've been super proud of the results.

Spoiler for Bulba-bulbasaur! (It's huge!):

Also, to motivate me to practice drawing more, I ordered a Wacom Intuos tablet, should get here Tuesday. So (hopefully) the quality of pictures in the future will improve.

**JadeGreen** · 10-03-2016 01:49 PM

Your bulbasaur is really well done! I was wondering if you were going to pick this thread back up, I'm glad you did.

**DawnEye11** · 10-03-2016 03:16 PM

How did I never see this thread?

Bulbasaur looks great! Look foward to seeing your drawings after your tablet arrives too.

**spellbee2** · 10-05-2016 04:32 AM

Tablet came in today, and boy does it take some getting used to.

Also, my plan for learning to draw is to spend the next 151 days drawing all of the 1st gen Pokemon in order. I probably won't be posting here every day, but that's the plan I have. So for day 2 (technically), here's Ivysaur.

Spoiler for #2 Ivysaur:

Seeing as how I have no tablet-drawing experience, I'd say this wasn't too bad. I definitely learned a looooot about what to do next time to make it easier (like using Illustrator instead of the Photoshop Brush tool). Plus, drawing with the tablet definitely started to feel a little more natural, even just after the hour or two it took to make this.

**DawnEye11** · 10-05-2016 05:45 AM

Wow! You recently got it and you draw waaaay better than when I started out. The posture and sketchy look it has makes it look 3d too. Great job!

**JadeGreen** · 10-05-2016 11:41 AM

Also, my plan for learning to draw is to spend the next 151 days drawing all of the 1st gen Pokemon in order. I probably won't be posting here every day, but that's the plan I have. So for day 2 (technically), here's Ivysaur.

Sounds like a good plan, but don't burn yourself out. Give yourself a break every once in awhile. Your drawing is really good too.

**spellbee2** · 12-31-2016 02:22 AM

Haven't updated this in a while. Sort of a cross-post from here: http://www.dreamviews.com/artists-co...ml#post2209760

Spoiler for Full image (apparently 3000x2000 is too big for the forum to handle, so right click>View Image):

I've been meaning to get around to drawing this dream for a while now. Tried a lot of new things with this one - for one, I was using my 54" 4K TV as my monitor, which seemed to help and hurt at different times. I think this was also the first time I've drawn a full scene instead of just focusing on one object (and I think I'm better at that anyway). Added a lot of interesting effects via Photoshop (motion blur on the train in the background, glow and lighting effects of the screens, etc.). My lines are still pretty shaky, but I'm very pleased with how the shading and lighting turned out.