Charcoal Disaster :)

Hey everyone, this is my first post of my work on Art & Photography and I'd thought I'd mark it as something special, by having my first ever bash at a CHARCOAL portrait.

There's two major reasons why this is a disaster:
1_ I took a photo of this picture using a cheap, and fairly rubbish, webcam. SO I apologise for any lighting difficulties and the fact it's split into two.

2_ The proportions are horrid. Unlike my pencil drawings, I just went bam-straight into this and it shows with the weirdly thing and wide eyes and some of the odd ear shapes I've managed to conjure up lol. Anyway Enjoy it xD

"Middle Age"
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I think its fine. The proportions are off, but realism with carcoal isnt easy work. XD Realism in general isn't easy, but you are doing well for a first carcoal drawing. It's hard because if you mess up, it stays. So, good job for a first try!

Why thankyou. & I know right! I've been refining my illustrations for ages to get them where they are now with feature shading and toning etc. Just this charcoal thing went a bit tits up, lol.

Hey, don't feel bad about charcoals. I use them myself, and I know: they are a total pain in the ass. But some tips!

Rather than make the same mistake I myself have made - and you demonstrate - sketch it out with pencil. That way, you have guidelines. Don't get me wrong; this is a great piece, but predrawing could maybe help get things in better alignment and proportion.

Secondly, charcoals are meant to shadow and contrast. Don't be afraid to shade in some more and use a little white in the mix. The soft gray is nice, but you could use a little more darks in the shirt shoulder and collar, his neck, and definately on his face. As for his hair, throw some white in there, streaking it; it will make his hair seem to be shiny, rather than flat and dull.

Other than that, keep practicing! Nice job!

I know where your coming from, I have recently scrutinised this with layers of charcoal and it's got some nice heavy features, except my webcam doesn't seem to pick it up

Hey Ben!

Well you've done the major mitpicking yourself. But it is a very good effort for your first charcoal.
Just a few suggestions.
Charcoal will help in shadin, undertoning and giving good contrasts. Use charcoal to elevate a sense of contrast and shading.
The wrinkles looks offish. I would suggest giving it less pressure, and sort of gradually shading it to show the folds.
The nose area needs work. You'll need to focus on shading around the nose to give the right effect of a nose.

Anyway, good work.
Keep drawing!
Cheers,
~Lava

Thanks for the tips and feedback.

Hey Ben!

I don't draw with charcoal too often. It's a medium that really doesn't work well for me. However, I think you've done a pretty good job here.

You said it yourself, really, about the proportions. It looks off, and not very realistic. However, that's not so bad if you were aiming for a more cartoony effect with this! If you wanted to go for more realistic, then I would recommend starting out as you would when drawing with a pencil; that is, sketch out where the features should be, pencil them in lightly, and then go over them in the charcoal before adding in detail. If you're not sure about proportions then look at this:



So, in general, eyes should be around halfway down the head and ... well, I'm pretty sure you can work out the rest!

Another thing. What I really like about charcoal is the fact that it can add some really sophisticated detail to pictures. So, to get this effect, you might want to vary your line thickness and shading. The more detail the better, really!

Hope this helps. I look forward to seeing more!

~Amy

Thanks for the feedback

What's a charcoal? The cooking stuff?

Ugh, working with charcoal is TORTURE. It's messy and difficult, not to mention it really can't be erased or overlooked because it's so bold. But actually you did a pretty good job. My advice though is to work more on basic detailing and proportions of the human face; master those before getting into the detail. Practice will make perfect, and really help with your drawings.

Characol is a pain in the ass, yes. Yet, personally, I love to use it.

This is a really good picture, and I love the t-shirt!

Yet there's a few things you could improve on, with the guys face.
The eyes are lacking detail. They are just ovals, with circles in them. Add shading, reflection and light. Eye's on a picture of someone is the best thing you can draw, because if their good... It kinda distracts away from the bad features you cant draw!
Also the nose is not a nose. :/ Sorry. When drawing a nose you have to a slight wisp down in the middle, not connect to the eye, nor connected to the bottom. You had to do them seperate with the nostrils only showing slightly on each side. Also, when comes on the side of the face thats more away, you do NOT draw that nose part too darkly. Your drawing of the nose is just one line, which also distracts from the rest of the picture.

Apart from this, It's a really good picture. I also love the guys hair as well as his shirt.

Your ever-warm reviewer, Nova.

Thank you for the extra reviews you two! :] I'm going to lock this though, because it's an old thread.