DRawing small heads/faces

Think your comic can improve? Whether it's art or writing, composition or colouring, feel free to ask here! Critique and commentary welcome.

Post Reply
User avatar
Dburkhead
Cartoon Hero
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:59 am
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Contact:

DRawing small heads/faces

Post by Dburkhead »

One of the frustrating challenges when drawing my comic is drawing small heads/faces that look "right." When I work at a larger scale (say, covering most of one sheet of 9X12 sketch paper--see below) things look okay and even produces a reasonable likeness of my "model." But when I work smaller, like in the panels of my comics--unless I "cheat" and use the lightbox to trace a photo which only works if I have a photo from the correct angle--results look like crap.

I originally thought that smaller views, since they had so much less detail, would be easier. If anything the opposite is true.

Example of larger image that I think is okay:

Image
This is a pretty good rendition of what the nursing student in Cold Servings is supposed to look like.


Example of smaller images that I think look like crap: pretty much any random page of my comic.
David L. Burkhead
Mercenary Scientist
Image
Updates Wednesdays

User avatar
SamtheClam
Regular Poster
Posts: 86
Joined: Tue Jan 03, 2006 12:33 pm
Location: Michigan
Contact:

Post by SamtheClam »

Practice? otherwise you could cheat by shrinking it in photoshop, otherwise there is plently of tutorials for drawing faces on the net. But by far the best thing you can do is just practice and make sure you don't get down on yourself that the faces don't look perfect the very first time you try.
Do the faster horses make better glue?

http://samtheclam.comicgenesis.com

User avatar
Jackhass
Cartoon Hero
Posts: 3243
Joined: Wed Jun 23, 2004 3:34 am
Location: Starring in your latest sex dream.

Post by Jackhass »

Draw the character over and over again in a sketchbook until you get it right...reducing people to a simplified cartoon likeness that still resembles them isn't always easy. Work at it and refine it down to a set model until you actually start drawing the comic with them. It's basically a trial and error thing...
Image

A zoo full of cute yet uproariously funny animals...how can you go wrong?

My Keenspace Forum!

User avatar
Dburkhead
Cartoon Hero
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:59 am
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Contact:

Post by Dburkhead »

You seem to be missing something between steps 4 and 5. ;)
David L. Burkhead
Mercenary Scientist
Image
Updates Wednesdays

User avatar
Dburkhead
Cartoon Hero
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:59 am
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Contact:

Post by Dburkhead »

Still not there. I was referring to going from the drawing a face to drawing a profit. ;)
David L. Burkhead
Mercenary Scientist
Image
Updates Wednesdays

User avatar
TheBladeRoden2
Regular Poster
Posts: 609
Joined: Sun Sep 21, 2003 10:40 am
Location: Kirby Asgard
Contact:

Post by TheBladeRoden2 »

Where's the ??? step?
"i just want to get back to life, but for that i just need to get dead" -boby
Image
JR Productions Risen: The Forum

Post Reply