Sneak Peek 27: My Fight

Working on the project picture for "Sokka's Master" and coming to the realization that I won't finish it today... again

I'm fooling around with my coloring style, using the dry media brush (that I usually use for my backgrounds) to soften the cell shading on characters. Seen in this Sneak Peek:

(I also describe a little of my coloring style there... but, it's constantly evolving.)

Why? Because one of my more recent critiques was that my characters seem removed from the backgrounds I put them in. Like they don't belong... a "Roger Rabbit"-like effect.

In the past, I've softened and lowered the opacity on the default hard brush to this effect. But, I'm lazy with it... and I don't always take my time to finish it the way I should... leaving the characters with a more cartoony cell-shade appearance in the midst of backgrounds that I spend much more time putting details into. Also, I might start coloring the lines to make the border from "characters" to "backgrounds" less defined.

Obviously, even this small portion of the picture is unfinished. I'll spend some more time detailing the cells and fixing the lines. (like, just now I noticed the pupil on the screen's left eye is a little left... etc). The lines in the background (as messy as they seem this close up) will not be present in the finished product... they are more like guidelines for my rendering.

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If you guys notice anything in one of my pictures that seems off... or bugs you, please tell me. I won't be offended, I know I'm not the best artist... and probably never will be

As much as I enjoy the praise I receive (there's nothing more satisfying for an artist than hearing that someone genuinely enjoyed his or her work), I really need the "constructive" criticism so that I can grow and learn as an artist. And often, although an artist might recognize that there is an issue in the picture, it is hard to see what exactly the problem is because we work on the picture and are engrossed in it. It is you, the viewer, that can more easily point out an issue.

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As it is the time of year that we express what we are thankful for, I'd like to take this time to thank you... the people who watch me.

I'm not an amazing artist. I fumble with simple things like perspective, anatomy and general structural design. The colors in my picture often clash... and I have the strangest ideas, like making an entire group focused on Mako's scarf, or putting a strawberry in each of my pictures.

So, it's a definite confidence boost that anyone favorites my stuff... even more that anyone decides it's good enough that they want to see more in the future (and watch me). For a minute, I can delude myself into thinking that I actually have something cool... a talent. Even though I know it'll be a long road cultivating that into something real.

That's why I always finish my artist's comments with a "Thanks for looking," and my journals with a "Thanks for reading." I'm genuinely thankful... and I never want to forget that.

...

Finished picture:


Avatar belongs to Mike, Bryan and Nick. Art belongs to me.

See More of my Avatar Fanart here: [link]

Thanks for looking
-Matt