something quick for doofusy coz she wanted a tutorial i did but it was from like 2007 and i would die
anyway;
fluorescent lights - fluorescent lights are made so they don’t cast shadows. the light is generally cool, so shadows are soft and almost grayish, and there aren’t many of them. they barely create any cast shadows, so they’re soft light, or form shadows. they’re made specifically for this, since they’re usually used in schools where it’s a pain in the butt to have shadows cast on your hand for writing and other stuff. since the initial shading is soft, anything in the background is even softer; there’s not a lot of contrast going on in a room with flurorescents.as a note, form shadows are created by light slowly not being able to shine on something. for example, your arm would have a cast shadow on it because it is curved, and light is gradually unable to hit it
cast shadows are created because something is in the way of the light. if you put your hand in front of lamp and made shadow puppets, that would be a cast shadow.tungsten/non-fluorescent lights - give off warmer light than fluorescents. they create cast shadows, which is why they’re usually used in life drawing classes. in this picture there’s just one light source, to keep it simple.
non-fluorescent lights have a shorter range than fluorescents, so there are more shadows, and they’re sharper. things like the side of kolya’s face, under his legs, and behind him are all blocked from the light by his body, so the shadows are noticable. in contrast, the shadows in the background are already in the dark, so they continue to be form shadows (as the remaining light from the lamp is not strong enough to reach them)
glowy stuff - in the case of glowy stuff, in this case, a clock radio or something, the type of shadow is generally form. glowy things generally have a limited range that they can reach, so most shadows will be created because the light is no longer able to reach it. it’s more of a case of highlights than anything else!
the most important part of working with different light sources is knowing the difference between cast and form shadows, and how and why they’re created. in all three examples, regardless of whether the shadows are cast or form, places like the side of kolya’s face and under his legs are in shadow. this is because the light cannot reach them, due do them being 3D shape that curve. it helps to remember that the majority of organic shapes are rounded and curved, while a lot of manmade things have sharp, straight edges and faces
(i am sorta braindead rn so i hope this is a bit helpful lol)
(via artutorials)
mollywog asked: I’ve been wanting to improve my art and achieve a better grasp on color theory, so I was wondering if you still have/remember that tutorial you made to explain some color theory and if you could maybe post it? ;-; I used to reference it all the time. Or if you know if any great websites that cover it, that would be great!
Sure, here you go! Sorry it’s so… old…
(via artutorials)
Toerning has posted a couple of really great quick tutorials over on DeviantArt:
- Clothed Characters In Perspective
- Using Blue Reflected Light
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130 Tips & Helpful Hints
During my lengthy career, I’ve made tons of mistakes and learned from them. With necessity being the mother of invention, I’ve also discovered numerous easier and more efficient methods of working. These tips and helpful hints are designed to make your drawing experiences more pleasurable and less frustrating!
To help you find what you need more quickly, this article is divided into the following sections:
- Generally Speaking
- Working from Photos
- Values and Shading
- Blending Shading
- Composition
- Drawing with a Grid
- Drawing Portraits and People
- Perspective
- Figure Drawing from Life
- Protecting your Drawings
- Keeping the Enjoyment
- Signing Your Name
- Beyond the Sketchbook
- Warm Fuzzies
(Source: drawspace.com)
Sullivan’s fur tutorials, brush packs, and texture resources.
See the original devART post here: LINK
Download custom Photoshop brushes here: LINK
Sullivan’s Fur/Feathers/Scales wildlife texture brushes: LINK
The eyedropper blending tutorial mentioned in the Q&A: http://youtu.be/XMM3Z7lXPwA
Sullivan says:
The Brushes (Tutorial Part 2)
Hard Round 25 Fading
Take your normal hard brush, make it 25px large. Now go to the Brushes menu and click “Other Dynamics”, and set the Flow jitter to Pen Pressure in the drop down menu.Hard Round 5 pixels
This is your basic, default hard brush when you load up Photoshop with the regular brushes it should be right at the top… no need to change it!Airbrush Detail
Load up default Photoshop brushes and scroll down til you see the soft brushes—- pick one that is at least 60px large. Open the Brushes menu and click “Shape Dynamics” and set it to Pen Pressure, then click “Other Dynamics” and have the Opacity and Flow jitters set to Pen Pressure as well.Tips For Custom Sullivan Fur Brushes
- these are easiest to use when highlighting, try picking a color that is lighter than the area you are drawing on.
- the brushes are pressure sensitive, so you’ll want to use these with a tablet. try drawing lightly for softer fur, and push harder for more tufty fur.
- just scribbling one of these over your drawing will make it look dumb, trust me. try layering the different brushes, or going over with your own brushes to add in your own details for a more realistic look.
- try playing around in the Brushes menu… color effects can look really neat with these, see what works for you :]
Rules
- you may NOT attempt to resell or redistribute these brushes; if you want to share these brushes with others just link back to the original deviantART post.
- please give credit when you use these! i’m not normally fussy about giving credit, but i worked hard on these so it would be appreciated.
(via artutorials)
DRAWING: Hair
Define the Hairline
Define the strands
Define the body
Create the highlights
Hair In Action
Step 1: Define the Hairline
The hairline is located on a line that extends from ear to ear at a 45 degree angle up from the eyeline. Or..bisects the forehead horizontally between the eyes and the crown of the head. This characters hair parts down the middle so I add another guidline to represent the partition from front to back.
Step 2: Define the strands
Hair grows up and out of the head like spikes on a sea-urchin. (Uni anyone? hah, sushi joke). Except hair isn’t rigid like a spike. It’s soft so it falls back downward because of gravity. Draw the hair in smooth sweeps from the hairline and part. Remember..hair is individual strands.. It’s not a helmet made of play dough. Obviously you aren’t going to draw a million strands but do draw enough the give body and depth to the hair.
Step 3: Define the body
After you have your strands figured out. Define the outline of the hair. Trim away stray lines you aren’t using and add shading where the hair is farther away from the viewer or deeper toward the scalp. Notice the darker shade of I used and how it rounds out the hair? (Granted this is a very simplified piece).
Step 4: Create the highlights
Highlites give hair that healthy Anime Pantene glow. The anime highlite is usually like a halo sitting on the upper 1/3 if the hair. This all depends on the available light you’re using and whether or not this person would have Shiny hair.
Look in fashion magazines and comics for more style ideas!
Hair In Action
Hair can be a very useful visual cue for describing motion and adding a dynamic element to your art. The trick is to show how the hair follows the direction of the head. If the character is falling..the flow of the hair is the opposite direction. if the character is blown backward, the hair shoots forward…see?
(p.s. forgive the high quality cocktail napkin art over here..I just wanted to use this to make a point)
(Source: polykarbon.com)
