Blocking out means taking something and deconstructing it into a super rough thing then building it layer upon layer
this is a really shitty ass, poorly blocked out face but
its an example
basically you start out with simple shapes such as circles and triangles and then you slowly build onto them to create consistency
its basically super basic skeletal structure
this isnt mine but its another example of blocking things out
the more you block things out the better and easier it is for you to create a consistent and nice piece
Realism is the best foundation of anything
learning realism opens pretty much every door in the art world for you i am not even kidding. If you have a good grasp of realism you have the power to make legit, amazing, styled, unique pieces that stand out. Learning realism is like starting on a blank sheet of paper; what you draw and what you become is limitless. By drawing in a style (such as anime) you limit yourself to that style and it becomes x100 harder to become better as an artist. What happens is that you start progressing just like everyone else trying to do that style (im using anime here). Your work becomes generic and its hard for you to stand out of the crowd because you are doing the same thing 10000 other people are doing. Even if you get good at the particular style, it becomes harder for you to skew things because you are already in a skewed style. It is extremely easy to tell when someone has learned a foundation based on anime even when attempting more realistic art; ultimately it destroys any type of diversity that you might have. One of the most key things about being an artist is
standing out and being unique and original! Style is just as important as technical merit and creativity. Creativity dictates what you draw, technical ability dictates how you draw it, and style dictates how your art is different from the crowd and how well you stand out (which doesnt sound huge but it is super huge especially if you become good!!!!!!!!)
Not only that, as you progress as a better artist, you start to learn what things sort of annoy people like me and other artists trying to learn basic art. Things such as side eyes (which make no sense people are not flounders!!!!) and eyes that pop out of hair are just not very appealing things to look at. You also understand how to skew things to make them look correct. Skewing is basically compromising. You compromise certain features to compliment feature changes in order to make them look like the artist intentionally drew it this way instead of it looking like a mistake (which happens more often when you dont study basic realism and anatomy and proportion)
All Im saying is just do some basic realism even if it doesnt sound fun it increases your technical ability by 100% and with a super solid foundation you will start to explore different realms of art and eventually come up with a unique style that you make up all by yourself! When people think of realism based things they go bleh. You dont have to draw realism 24/7 because that would be silly; im just saying use that as your foundation instead of things such as anime! Just learn some basic realistic proportion and anatomy. It will make your life 1000% easier in the short term and long term. Your style may eventually turn up to be anime based (which is fine because you will most likely draw it correctly and it will stand out from the million other anime people draw). The whole point is style and standing out and by basing your art and proportions on what a million other people are doing, you are setting yourself up for disappointment and a lot of headaches. Trust me~
As for tablet, you wont ever get that paper-pencil feel. That just doesnt exist. Starting out with a tablet is one of the most tedious things ever because you have to reteach yourself how to draw in a different way. You cant see what your pencil is drawing and there is that disconnect and it always exists. That isn't always a bad thing though. Using a tablet has taught me so much about gesture and line confidence and minimizing strokes. It also is a great way to practice painting and understanding basics. Is a tablet hard to use when starting off? Hell yes it is. Will it make you a better artist in the long run? Absolutely. That is why I recommend the bamboo. It has just enough features and stuff like that to get you started with the basics. With added features and stuff like that there is a significantly larger learning curve. The bamboo has pressure sensitivity and all of the basic and mid-level features of a tablet for a good deal.
i also recommend getting the pen and touch not the craft or anything like that because the smaller the canvas the easier the learning curve is and the more it teaches you about line strokes and gesture~
Start out with the basic Bamboo Pen and Touch it will teach you a lot
and never stop drawing on paper
do your realism on paper and then explore with the tablet
but study and be studious
read some realistic tutorials, learn how to block and form correct faces and bodies, practice certain features, etc
also I made drawing with a tablet sound terrible but I absolutely love it because it gives me some super creative freedom but when I began i hated it so much. Now I like to draw on my tablet whenever I can but that took me about 6-8 months to develop this certain relationship with it. Just stick with it and it will become second nature
This rant was brought to you by bacon.
This post has been edited by bacon: Sep 29 2011, 11:31 PM
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