The Mighty Cap'n Jack Sparrow (Harsh Critiques Needed)

Hello all.
I haven't been drawing in a while, so this is actually lagging compared to some of my older works. I am working with realism at the moment, which is very tricky indeed, so any help given would be appreciated. And also, my scanner kind of sucks but oh well. It makes my shading look so blotchy and unblended. Guuuuh. Again, c'est la vie.

This also might be going into a contest, Flower-Childs to be exact.

Here it is:


Tell me what you think, and any input would be loved.
~Incognito

Hi!

I must say, this is an amazing piece of art. It looks very authentic and the shading is really nice. From this drawing, I can tell that this is very polished, that you have a good grasp of drawing the human figure and that you know what you're doing. The eyes, beard, and scarf over his head are amazing and look very authentic. This really looks like Johnny Depp, and when you compare pictures, it is hard, for the most part, to tell the difference! I just had two things that I wanted to comment on.

The first is the nose. While I can get that you tried to add depth, it does not really come across in the drawing very well. As opposed to actually seeming like a representation of depth, it seems like a drawing of depth, if this makes sense. In addition, it doesn't really feel like it lines up with the mustache.

The second is the texture and general composition of the drawing. Unlike in the nose, there is a lot of the depth, but it doesn't feel like there is really any texture; that is whole body is just composed of solid tubes. Take the dreadlocks in his hair. We can see the variation in the hair color, but it all seems like lines behind something else. Come on, he's a pirate; he has messy hair! You can use that to your advantage. I can tell you shaded in most parts, but I'm not just getting the depth that his body has.

Hope this helps! If you have any questions feel free to PM me. This really was a wonderful drawing, and I hope that you do well in the contest!

~ Elinor

Hello!

This is brilliant work. Really wow. I try to draw humans.

Anyway, quick comments:
1. The bad string that falls on his head band : I like the last bead. Good shine and depth. The start however could do with some tweaks to make it looks more like it's pushed out from under the headband.

2.Nose: What Li said about it.

3.Sword: Good shading, but maybe you could do it in such a way that it shows some shine? Also, the uppermost part of the blade has banana-like shape. Make it more rigid.

4.Hair strand: Yes, messy, grimy hair. But this strand just sticks out way too much because of it's blunt end. Maybe end it in slight light shading to avoid that?

5.Belt Buckle: The illusion of the overlapping belts is lost. It seems like one flat band. Work around with shading and highlighting.

6: The neck portion: It seems disproportionate there.I'm not sure what, but there's something that needs to be fixed there.

I've circled them in red:

Spoiler

Incog_art.jpg (109.96 KiB) Viewed 283 times

Still, good work. I salute you.
~Lava

Wow, this is amazing!
You will so win the competition thing
The only thing i can say, is that the nose is not extremely like johnny depp's-his isnt as long...
But still WOW!
You are extremely talented!
X

I am not artist and I was just browsing, but the one problem (that hasn't been mentioned) that pops out at me is the eyes. They are not the same size....

A. S.

Okay, I am not an artist, but I am a lover of Captain Jack Sparrow, so I shall try to help.

1. The nose. This is the first off thing I noticed. Yes, the shading/depth is off, but that's not what got me. He's not turned straight at us, but his nose is tilted more (my) right than the rest of his face. Like he's not looking at us.

2. The sword. It looks more like a curved staff than a sword. It needs shine, because it is metal (or whatever swords are made of...), and it's too curved. Make it stand more erect. Also, while Jack can look a bit more whispy and undefined because he is human, I think that the sword needs more fine lines, more definition around it, because it is a solid piece, something that doesn't blow in the wind and isn't mold-able.

3. The eyes. Not because they're not the exact same size. Most people's aren't (I know mine aren't) but because of their lack of definition. Jack Sparrow always wears thick eyeliner, and at this point he is un-makeup-ed.

4. His little bead things coming off of his beard. One looks like it just stuck-together hair, while the other looks like he beaded beads into it. Make the one on (my) left look for realistic and defined.

5. The hair. It just looks like you took a lot of product and sort of glued it together, not like dreadlocks. Give it a dark texture that's not just straight, but something different from everything else. I'd suggest just googling images of Jack Sparrow (or anyone with dreadlocks) and paying really close attention to the texture of them.

6. His (my) right sleeve. It doesn't really look like a sleeve, because the fabric just goes off in lines by his body. Like it really bunched. It doesn't have a natural curve and doesn't look like a billowy sleeve.

Finally, this is a really good piece with excellent shading. It's obvious who it is, and you capture his apparel and the air about him well. His stance is good, as well as the look in his eyes, because we don't know what he's going to do next and that's so Jack Sparrow. I suppose my best advice would just be to keep drawing, taking in critiques as you go, and apply them to each new piece. Before you know it, you'll be even better than you are now, which is really good.

loveness, ultraviolet <3

Thanks for the reviews guys.
They are all really helpful, and I certainly see the nose problem now.

And I certainly see the lack of texture with the dreadlocks. I actually figured that out when drawing it and didn't quite know what to do without just doing mad scribbles and it wouldn't have looked so established. It is different then drawing free flowing hair because then you can have shading and shine, and draw the individual pieces. But I will work on what all you guys said.

Oh, and the sword I kind of was thinking of was that one he used in the first movie when fighting Will. It was really rusted and black and didn't really look like a good sword. Yah, I understand how it can kind of look like a staff or a banana. Lol.

Thanks again!
~Incognito

The one thing that no one else has directly mentioned yet is the sameness of all your pencil strokes. Having strokes of the same kind and in the same direction makes your drawing feel flat, even when you do have proper values. Try varying the types and directions of strokes you use; it will give your work more texture.

In the case of cloth, subtle cross-hatching is generally good as crosshatching mimics the pattern of threads in a weave. For the dreadlocks, carefully layered circular or crosshatched rounded strokes would work better than straight lines. In the case of leather, dippling is an option combined with light crosshatching as leather is not completely smooth. As for metal, more solid lines and contrast are needed as the values in a metal are more clearly defined.

Otherwise, this was really good. Drawing people recognizably is a pain, and Sparrow was immediately recognizable.