Style update

Aiken · Post by **Aiken** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:21 am

About a month ago I made the transiton to complete digital production, and since then i've been doing somewhat of an overhaul of my drawing style. Mainly shifting from manga style to including more western features. (I had a "what was I thinking" moment one day when going through my archives)

My question with this post is does it look better? and what can I improve?

My site is here:
sci.comicgenesis.com

And advice would be greatly appreciated

Sketch286 · Post by **Sketch286** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 10:36 pm

I like it better, but then again I've always preferred things that lean towards or have some influence from western, or atleast non-anime, styles.

Watch out for those faces, they look like they get a little flat every now and then, and keep trying to find your own style!

NakedElf · Post by **NakedElf** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 1:07 pm

Style wise, I'd concentrate more on posing and posture than really whether you're drawing 'anime' or 'western' noses, but then maybe that's just me. A lot of the poses in the early comics look rather stiff; this seems to improve over time but could still use a little work. Sometimes the characters' necks look awkward to me. You seem to have a little difficulty drawing eyes from the side--it looks kind of like you're drawing them the same whether from the front or the side. From the front, an eye should be roughly almond shaped (or a giant circle if that's what you feel like, :P) wheras from the side it should be more triangular shaped with the point towards the ear. <a href="http://sci.comicgenesis.com/d/20061211.html">here's</a> a page where the head is in profile but the eye is drawn straight-on.

Now, about noses... you seem to draw them very straight. Take <a href="http://sci.comicgenesis.com/d/20070226.html">This page</a>, for example, particularly the bottom panel. This is I guess more an anatomy thing than a style thing--noses just generally curve along their lengths.

Overall, things are looking pretty good--If I were you I wouldn't focus on trying to draw in any particular style, but just trying to draw the characters so that they looked good and I liked them.

VIIStar · Post by **VIIStar** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 1:42 pm

naked elf:
Style wise, I'd concentrate more on posing and posture than really whether you're drawing 'anime' or 'western' noses

Good advice. I guess I always thought of style as what just comes naturally.

The one thing I also noticed was that you seemed stuck in a front, 3/4th, side view face. Nothing helps compliment a pose better than a different facial angle. I found the book 'dynamic anatomy' to be helpful, it has good shape and structure (though slightly distorted/exaggerated), some that you can apply to whatever style you use.

sketch286:
I like it better, but then again I've always preferred things that lean towards or have some influence from western, or at least non-anime, styles

I always found that idea to be a little strange, considering when I was a wee one, just starting out; I drew from American comics, particularly x-men (Uncanny). I could draw Rogue and Gambit from dawn to dusk...

One of their artists started bringing in some quasi anime/manga styles, blending it with their own, and it sort of took off, for me.

Guyford · Post by **Guyford** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 6:27 pm

I like the new look. It still has a manga feel to it, but the western aspect it more apparent with the way you rendered the eyes and the nose. The pose is pretty dynamic and I really like the way you rendered the folds in the clothing. Your new style fits well with the comic too.

I agree with comments about the flat faces, but one thing I'd like to add is to watch your proportions. The proportions you use fit well with the characters' faces, but sometimes they become a little inconsistent. For example on http://sci.comicgenesis.com/d/20070402.html, the same characters are in all the panels, but their proportions change between them.

Nice stuff though--have fun finding your own style!

NakedElf · Post by **NakedElf** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 11:33 pm

Keeping proportions consistent can be so hard... :(

Aiken · Post by **Aiken** » Mon Jun 25, 2007 7:49 am

Thanks for you comments, sorry about the late reply. Kinda had my shedule thrown off this week when my cat came home with his tail missing.

Consistancy in my characters has been a bit of a bugbear so far and its one of the things im working on. As for manga v western style, im not switching because of any issues between the two styles, but rather because I think the more detailed noses look better. Same as with the eyes, which mainly started about the time I realised that i suck at drawing them.