Topic: Need Sketching Tips

Posted under Art Talk

References will be your best friend when learning. If you have a chance to study canines from life, be sure to take it, to get an idea of how they tend to move and emote. For wolves, a zoo would be great, but if you don't happen to have readily available access to one, finding detailed (and I mean detailed, not pictures scarcely the size of a business card) pictures of them is something I'd suggest.

Another common bit of advice is to try to break organic objects down into simpler geometric shapes, though some artists are not terribly fond of this approach and prefer quick gesture drawings instead.

Updated by anonymous

Tracing is a perfectly acceptable method for learning as well. Just don't call the traces your own work.

Take an image you like, and trace it - over, and over, and over. Every time you do so you will pick up a little bit more. Occasionally put the image to the side and try drawing it just looking at it, or from memory.

It take time and patience, but it honestly won't take too long till you can do at least a basic sketch without any sort of reference.

Once you get to point of basic sketching, there are tons of tutorials on the web that can point out how to improve accuracy of proportions and anatomy.

Updated by anonymous

Genjar

Former Staff

Misappropriated said:
Another common bit of advice is to try to break organic objects down into simpler geometric shapes

Yep. That is how most great artists got started.
For instance, Leonardo Da Vinci drew eggs from various angles.

Drawing basic objects such as eggs, rocks, etc is good practice. It gives you a better grasp of geometry and depth, and greatly helps when you're trying to draw more complex shapes.

Updated by anonymous

I think I'll go with tracing the canine body first, get a mental image of its anatomy.

Thx guys!

Updated by anonymous

I just got into sketching this month. I even went ahead and made myself both a Deviantart and Furaffinity account. I'm already into FanFiction writing (clicking my name proves that) and have been sketching at my own pace, drawing what I feel like drawing while simultaneously practicing.

I've only drawn three things of importance at the moment.

A Poke Ball (Pokémon).

A Millenium Puzzle (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

A Weighted Companion Cube (Portal (Series)).

I plan to draw living things, but I want to practice on inanimate objects first.

Updated by anonymous

I'm drawing guns now , can't seem to get the perfect wolf look(the face, legs) when doing full body sketches though.

And hey, the Millennium Puzzle! Haven't heard that name for like 2 years from now.

Updated by anonymous

TheGreatWolfgang said:
I'm drawing guns now , can't seem to get the perfect wolf look(the face, legs) when doing full body sketches though.

And hey, the Millennium Puzzle! Haven't heard that name for like 2 years from now.

That's actually pretty good for a sketch. Better than what I can do right now.

Then again... I haven't drawn a gun yet. When I do, the Gunblade (Final Fantasy VIII) is at the top of my list.

Also, I bet you haven't heard this theme song in a while.

Updated by anonymous

Tokaido said:
That's a very great way to start. Spheres are fun and easy, keep this in mind when you go to shade your pokeball :D

Yup. Did exactly that. It turned our marvelously. And when I get the chance to, I'll scan it and show you.

TheGreatWolfgang said:
Yeah, I haven't for a LOOONG time. But what caught my attention is the Blue-eyes White Dragon!

Such an iconic and vintage Yu-Gi-Oh! monster. Have you paid attention to how some of the newest dragon Yu-Gi-Oh! cards have "___-eyes ___ dragon" in their names?

Updated by anonymous

GameManiac said:

Such an iconic and vintage Yu-Gi-Oh! monster. Have you paid attention to how some of the newest dragon Yu-Gi-Oh! cards have "___-eyes ___ dragon" in their names?

Sadly no ever since I lost my prized collection(had a couple of vintage Blue-eyes White Dragons in there!) couple of years ago...

But taking about dragons made me remember one of my (rarest) most favorite cards, the limited-edition FGD Dragon .

Updated by anonymous

TheGreatWolfgang said:
Sadly no ever since I lost my prized collection(had a couple of vintage Blue-eyes White Dragons in there!) couple of years ago...

But taking about dragons made me remember one of my (rarest) most favorite cards, the limited-edition FGD Dragon .

I used to have a multitude of older to new Yu-Gi-Oh! cards. I collected them alongside my Pokémon cards. I used to have the five pieces of Exodia, the three Egyptian Gods and the three Sacred beasts, all of the "Iconic" monsters like Dark Magician, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Red-Eyes Black Dragon. I also had their variants, such as Dark Paladin, Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, and Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon.

I sold just about all of them on eBay, individually or in small sets, for equal or more of what I originally paid for them. And now I just focus on Pokémon cards. Although, I have purchased a Masked HERO deck (the "Hero's Strike structure deck) recently.

Don't even get me started on the 15,000+ Pokemon card collection I have. I'll just say that I have complete sets of the first several that came out, up to most from all of the other sets up to today.

Updated by anonymous

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