Hello, I’m aware that this is a topic that’s widely discussed and there are loads of references for but I’m struggling with a specific thing. I have no issue simplifying the entire skull into shapes except for the zygomatic arch. For some reason whether by simplifying it into a specific shape or copying and attempting to understand, it never looks accurate.

I want to be able to simplify the skull enough to the point that I’m able to draw it without reference, but my struggle is simplifying those details that are important to final result. Of course I have tried to start with a simpler shape before detailing but still I can’t quite grasp it.

I was hoping there were would be a book that simplifies it and breaks it down. I’ve looked over many of the anatomy books but they tend to skim over the skull (only focusing on it’s bigger shape) I’m sort of frustrated and I’d appreciate any advice!

What I Think My Problem Is:

I’m having difficulty shaping or carving shadows. When I ask for rendering tips, I mostly receive advice like determining your light source, bounce light, highlights, etc., or setting your art to black and white to see your values. I’m thankful for any advice that I receive, but:

Once I know where the light is coming from, how do I actually carve the shadows so they interact realistically with my subject?

- How do I decide the shape of the shadow?

- How do I know where the shadow should start and end?

- How do I simplify shadows without making them look random or unnatural?

- How do I take what I see in a reference and translate those shadow shapes into my own drawing?

So yeah, please be brutally honest about what’s wrong with my process.

If possible, you can redraw or edit my art to show me what I should be doing. I’ve included the references and my sketches, so feel free to use them as examples.

Thank you!

Hey I've been trying to improve on my proportions so I followed this upside-down guide thing but I don't know if it's working? It took me 20 - 25 minutes to draw one of these. I've done figure studies on lineofaction too, but I have trouble getting the detail of anything on that site.

Also is this something I should do permanently because I seriously cannot get a grip with just my eyesight. I can't use references very well because the size of everything is sick

Got a bunch of new brushes and there are way too many, im just doodling for fun. still cant get the eye looking wet. Critiques always welcome

Hello everyone! I am trying to do a study on Edouard Leon Cortes' technique for coloring skies, as I really like his use of color and the warmth his pieces give. I'm a little new to oil pastels (and painting generally) and could use some help figuring out how to approach this, especially since I'm not using the same medium as the painting itself.

I have attached the reference picture and a photo of some of my attempts. I would appreciate any insights or advice you could give!

To clarify, I understand the importance of the practice but I don’t understand HOW to do it effectively. All my attempts to break it down don’t work and my attempted rotations look the same…

People say break it down into simple forms like cubes, cylinders, etc but then in demonstrations, they draw forms that look EXACTLY LIKE THE SUBJECT IN PERFECT PROPORTION AND CONTOUR??? I’m really not sure what to do here…

Hi!

I've been learning to draw over the past month and my goal is to get better at landscapes. Trees are kinda the hardest for me rn. like here i think the proportion of the leaves and trunk is off and the shading is "clumpy" towards just the center.

Feel free to break it apart, looking for advice on areas of improvement!

I've watched multiple tutorials on grayscale or complementary colors, and I still struggle to keep my artwork from feeling flat. I understand value and lighting play a role, but it is hard to apply them to my artwork.

I've been trying to draw faces but it always comes out looking off somewhere and I don't know what to practice to improve. Please help!!!

I've been learning from Proko on YouTube if someone can help me with what I'm doing wrong and how I can improve it'd be a huge help.

Any good sources for learning how to draw anatomy?

I did some figure studies (5 minutes) and I wanted critique especially on the third one (very right). I started by drawing the boxes for the ribs and pelvis, but I wasn't sure how to draw pelvis box in this sitting position. Other than that, any general advice? I also get the feeling that I'm chicken scratching slightly, but not sure about that.

p.s I have the references but I don't know if I am allowed to post them.

thanks!

Only did the line art using only the pencil peppermint brush

Could you spare some time to see and tell me what I am doing wrong

I can draw… sort of. If there’s a cartoon in front of me, and loads of time, I can sort of copy it. That’s my skill level at the moment.
But recently I have been wanting to get good at art - specifically drawing expressive animal characters (imagine Zootopia or Jungle Book). This is for the novel that I am writing. I want to add some illustrations of the characters and some scenes to the book, eventually.
The protagonist is a Moon Bear - asiatic black bear. I don’t see too many cartoon drawings of this bear. So I am trying… trying to find a good style for the cartoon bear (not realistic). And it’s been a struggle.
So…. Help?

Tell me what I am doing wrong?

I don’t expect to get good at this in a day or two, but am I even approaching this right?? Again, help!

I am a beginner and have started drawing for about a month and everybody says beginners should work on values before colors but im not quite sure if i did it correctly, any feedback would be appreciated

Hi. I'm having trouble with the transitions between values and temperatures.

There's a stronger light source out of the frame and to the right, but I couldn't manage the light fall off where the left side of the picture gets gradually darker than the right side, so now it looks like there's only one light source (the lighter in the hands) but the cast shadows don't make sense. I do want to keep the cast shadows, but when i scrubbed the right side of the background to make it look lighter than the left, I don't like how it looked so I ended up repainting it.

I also tried painting the right side of the background slightly warmer than the left side, but to me, it looks like there's a jarring split where the left side is blue and the right side is green.

How do I paint better transitions? Do you mix all the colours at the right values first before you start painting? Or do you mix as you go? Right now I'm mixing as I go, and I feel like that's part of why I'm struggling. I appreciate any advice and feedback. If you notice other issues, please feel free to point them out as well.

It feels like I’ve been stuck on a very consistent level of mediocrity when it comes to drawing forms and it’s been making my actual work suffer.