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Published: 2014-03-01 20:18:22 +0000 UTC; Views: 63420; Favourites: 3798; Downloads: 613
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Description
I came up with the idea for this tutorial a while ago, when I was giving drawing workshops on another convention.I noticed that a lot of beginning artists that I met actually made the same type of mistakes.
The mistakes listed here are the ones that I used to make as well, when I was younger.
Things that took me quite the time to learn, because these are the things people often don't tell you.
I can still remember having an Eureka moment when I discovered these simple things. I hope you will have the same.
(PS: this tutorial is aimed towards beginners in art. If you're advanced, you might know this already)
Just to rule out a few things:
This tutorial is based on the workshops I've given at conventions over the last 2 years. It's a quick how-to (will fit in an 1 hour workshop), rather than an effort to explain EVERYTHING.
Most of those workshops were given at conventions, to kids. The average target group is amateur artists between 8 and 20 years old.
I realize that some mistakes are manga-style-issues. Yet I think it doesn't hurt to know how things should be done.
To the bunch of angry (aspiring) pro-artists that got to me: It's NOT aimed towards professional artists (or aspiring pro's). It's aimed towards amateur artists (mostly kids) that need motivation, rather than someone telling them "this is how it should be done. Copy it". I know it works this way in art school. It doesn't work that way in elementary school, and that's for a reason. It's is a teaching-thing.
I used my own art in this tutorial, not because I do EVERYTHING right. But because I wanted to show much difference small things can make.
The book mentioned about color theory is "Color & light" by James Gurney. It's a long read, but interesting, though.
Many people told me the model was Keira Knightly. I know now. I just got her by googling 'random model picture', though XD
I know there are mistakes. I'm not a native English person, and I usually teach in Dutch.
Related content
Comments: 583
KuromiDarklord In reply to ??? [2014-03-09 21:10:41 +0000 UTC]
Even do i read this there'll be a lot of years before i start shadowing. It's just so hard to do it, and i dont have money for buying books about it, and my art teacher is busy making us do retarded projects instead of teaching us this. I prefer waiting that doing it wrong.
👍: 0 ⏩: 3
emu-strutsi In reply to KuromiDarklord [2014-03-11 20:39:39 +0000 UTC]
"Don't leave for tomorrow the things you can do today!" Trust me sweetie, if you start practicing shading now you'll soon be great! There are tons of free tutorials here in dA and I'm sure your local library has some basic drawing books? And doing mistakes and learning from them is the best way to learn like VioletRosePetals down there said, so don't be afraid! Shading isn't easy but it get's easier when you get into it and it's easier the earlier your start. I know learning to draw is hard work and you're never ready with that but if you want to be good you just have to do that and learn the basic stuff. One of my favorite exercises is to draw still lifes - cups or stones or flowers or what ever Just start from the simple, geometric shapes, draw what you really see and not what you think you see. Don't wait, do it
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VioletRosePetals In reply to KuromiDarklord [2014-03-10 16:02:27 +0000 UTC]
I heard it said once (don't remember who said it though) "We all have 10,000 lousy drawings in us, and the sooner we get them out, the better." Everyone does it wrong once in a while. The important part isn't whether you do it wrong or right, but that when you do it wrong, you learn from it. Nothing comes without practice, that's what cheap, disposable sketch pads are for. So you can practice away where no one will ever see it, and then use what you learned on something wonderful that you will be proud to show everyone.
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DamaiMikaz In reply to KuromiDarklord [2014-03-10 08:29:45 +0000 UTC]
Don't be afraid to fail.
If you are, you will never get any further.
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KingGigabyte In reply to ??? [2014-03-09 10:24:21 +0000 UTC]
Thank you for making this, It's really useful to know some of these. I see a lot of these being done around on deviantart and it tends to look..awkward.
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FelFortune In reply to ??? [2014-03-09 01:48:10 +0000 UTC]
looks good! you explain a lot of common mistakes and how to fix them. I especially appreciated you pointing out the difference of a photo (especially for studies) with poor values and one with greate values. It makes it easier to see the planes on the face.
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Quinnbee-s [2014-03-09 01:41:42 +0000 UTC]
*sees this, attempts, and ends up with a stick figure.* y u so good?
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Quinnbee-s In reply to DamaiMikaz [2014-03-09 17:59:00 +0000 UTC]
Just as I though XD I can't afford a tablet so I draw more cartoon-ish
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TsukiLunaray [2014-03-08 19:06:46 +0000 UTC]
Wow very helpful! Now I relize, that I too made these mistakes. But I have been changing things. Before realizing they were mistakes to begin with. I thought to myself. Hmm lets try drawig this like this instead. XD But thank you for sharing this. ^^
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sketcherjak In reply to ??? [2014-03-08 14:44:55 +0000 UTC]
Great tips! And I love the "Awesome ironing Mom". Tee he he he
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HiddenWorlds In reply to ??? [2014-03-08 09:28:01 +0000 UTC]
I will only say here that I prefer when people try to add text and explain instead of just posting pictures in steps...Won't say which ones I've seen but they were popular and I just don't get why.
To me this is much better even though not perfect...You at least tried to put it together with text and several images so kudos to you and I like the content for the most part kinda agree with Electrical-socket on some things.
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Unetsu In reply to slycoopr [2014-03-08 06:00:06 +0000 UTC]
She wasn't insulting the style at all. She primarily draws in that style, for fucks sake. Why would she bash it?
Maybe you should re-read the tutorial.
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slycoopr In reply to Unetsu [2014-03-08 06:21:56 +0000 UTC]
yeah ok, i just saw bits and pieces my bad
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flehhh In reply to slycoopr [2014-03-08 01:51:22 +0000 UTC]
She wasn't insulting the anime STYLE, she was pointing out things that have nothing to do with anime, just undereducated artists who don't understand proper anatomy or physics. =/ You're being rude and ignorant to think that, because she's trying to explain that cheeks EXIST, noses have an actual shape that does NOT look like the bad examples unless you're a mutant, light tends to fall on places where it's not blocked and NOT fall in places where it IS blocked, and clothing tends to not be titanium and therefore folds sometimes that she's insulting stylistic choices. Style is style, not completely changing how the world freaking works.
And anyway, this tutorial isn't to put anyone down, which is obviously what your intent was (mine as well), it was to show people who struggle with common issues how to fix it. If they see this and think 'NAHHHHH~ I like what I do better' THEY CAN CLICK A-FUCKING-WAY. She's not saying 'You suck at art unless you do what I do', she's saying that if you want to draw a human the way they actually appear in the world or anatomically correct pictures, then here are some pointers. Obviously.
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Zopto In reply to ??? [2014-03-07 19:59:03 +0000 UTC]
this tut helped me alot with shadows and my art ! tnx agen damaimikaz!
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Cacatuoidea In reply to ??? [2014-03-07 04:43:12 +0000 UTC]
I am so happy that you pointed out the way that model pictures are made to be shapeless. When I went from drawing from live subjects to using reference pictures I became so frustrated, I will look for less smothered and smoothed references. Thank you so much!
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DamaiMikaz In reply to Cacatuoidea [2014-03-07 08:42:31 +0000 UTC]
Heh... you'll learn soon enough when you work in advertising.
You'd be surprised to know how much information they actually filter away ^^
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fluffykitten44 [2014-03-07 02:37:45 +0000 UTC]
hopefully this will help me in fixing some of the many screw ups i do on a daily basis, thank you so much!
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0AnakinSkywalkerGo0 [2014-03-07 00:32:35 +0000 UTC]
8D
*clears throat* ehem
See, I'm a pretty terrible artist, so when I found this, I was really thrilled. Thx for making it, I'm sure gonna try doing some sketch dumps later
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
NezumixTanoshii [2014-03-06 23:17:57 +0000 UTC]
I love this tutorial. It really helped me and I could use this to make my art better. I also read the journal and I disagree with all those hater taters out there! They probably don't know how much this little tutorial can teach you
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acidarteries In reply to ??? [2014-03-06 22:44:48 +0000 UTC]
idk why people are being so friggin mean to you?? this is a really good tutorial imo and i wish i'd known this a LONG time ago. i still learned something and i don't think i'd even consider myself a beginner, ehehe//
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MarkushAvalone In reply to ??? [2014-03-06 19:40:49 +0000 UTC]
this is totally helpful and awesome....especially in fold hahaha i love with "awesome ironing skill"......
well was when i ask about learning anime style....most people said "learn anatomy, light source, color wheel/theory or whatever, and learn from actual photo" then your tutor should be most helpful for people which want to draw anime style....too bad some people looses their minds....LOL
even now i ever see anime artist which their awesome art isn't like what most people said about anatomy and blah blah blah....that's make me thinkink until now what's big different between anime and cartoon???....and make me not give a fuck if i am anime artist or cartoonist
i think people which draw anime style must be realize if draw anime style need learn anatomy, light source, color wheel/theory and learn from actual photo, their shouldn't hate this tutor and it's must be recommended as basic tutor unless they want to accept if they are actually cartoonist XD
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tenshichan In reply to ??? [2014-03-06 19:28:16 +0000 UTC]
This is probably one of the most helpful tutorials I have read to date, thank you so much!
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Rise-of-the-Republic In reply to ??? [2014-03-06 17:29:56 +0000 UTC]
I love this tutorial! I do! I think that the people who hate on you either can't be mature enough to be critiqued on their own styles, or they are just jealous of how wonderful you draw! Usually I would give credit to DAs usually mature audience, and that they aren't "too" picky about the way someone critiques their art, unless it's just flat out there that it is obviously hate mail, but you can never know if something (no matter how innocent) rubs someone the wrong way enough it makes them post those hateful things!
Hope this makes you feel better because this really is nice!
Regards, your new fan
~Temper28
illustrator, account manager and co-author of ROTR Comics.
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underhell20 [2014-03-06 10:10:18 +0000 UTC]
Omg thank you for this really, really great tutorial! I'm still an amateur artist... I think. Even after five years of trying to do manga, I still can't do it properly. Hehe. I really deprive myself of tutorials. But thank you so much for this. I shall take it into consideration and use it for future drawings! Yeah!..... Though I still don't know how to color. *looks down sadly*
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Izabella2016 [2014-03-06 07:08:49 +0000 UTC]
Thanks, this actually makes quit a bit of sense. I never knew why my peoples looked funny, and now I know how to fix them! :3 I have one question about clothes though. How did you learn where to put the creases? I knew that I had to add, them, but I never did(and still don't) quite know where to put them.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
DamaiMikaz In reply to Izabella2016 [2014-03-06 07:51:29 +0000 UTC]
> How did you learn where to put the creases?
Reference pictures. Looking at my own clothing ^^
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Izabella2016 In reply to DamaiMikaz [2014-03-06 23:48:24 +0000 UTC]
Mk, thanks :3 Wrinkles and crease have never been my forte.
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Whetsit-Tuya In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 22:39:14 +0000 UTC]
And I hate that kawaii-desu crap, I do gritty realism anime like Metal Gear, Darker than Black and Batman, I gained inspiration and innovation from the artists in this site, I see you also go for the realism
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Whetsit-Tuya In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 22:34:55 +0000 UTC]
Really? Sit in the back of your room? How is that like zooming out your screen?
All the pictures belong to you but you googled random model?
Thanks a bunch for the tutorial, I'm happy you made this, tons of people make tutorials but they're generally arbitrary crap that fails to explain anything other than "Copy this down exactly and you'll be a great artist like mwah.", you humbly explained a lot of basic steps that I didn't know and I'll keep note of what I learned, I know I can trust you
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
DamaiMikaz In reply to Whetsit-Tuya [2014-03-06 07:50:54 +0000 UTC]
> Really? Sit in the back of your room? How is that like zooming out your screen?
It's making the pictures smaller
> All the pictures belong to you but you googled random model?
The drawings... I meant
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Whetsit-Tuya In reply to DamaiMikaz [2014-03-06 17:24:48 +0000 UTC]
Sitting in the back doesn't make anything different, I can still only see one picture out of the two unless I zoom out
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DamaiMikaz In reply to Whetsit-Tuya [2014-03-07 08:14:23 +0000 UTC]
You must have a small screen ^^
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Whetsit-Tuya In reply to DamaiMikaz [2014-03-07 08:26:19 +0000 UTC]
I'm on a laptop not a smartphone
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
DamaiMikaz In reply to Whetsit-Tuya [2014-03-07 08:29:38 +0000 UTC]
I'm usually on a desktop with a huge screen. So I guess that's the difference ^^
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Whetsit-Tuya In reply to DamaiMikaz [2014-03-07 08:42:29 +0000 UTC]
I press pg dn and it zooms out the screen
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FlyTheFish In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 22:02:10 +0000 UTC]
Oh, gosh! THANK YOU!!! I know how to improve my own art now!!!
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MarcosDeDiego In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 21:28:43 +0000 UTC]
BTW, Danika: Great work! with it's flaws and all. At least you seem to spend more time sharing your knowledge than most of your haters do.
Showing your early works as references for "bad examples" makes you more humble and reliable than all the people ranting here.
At least you can learn from your own mistakes, and i think that THIS is the most important ( but not stated) point in your tutorial.
Good work, and i enjoy all of your tutorials. they allways worth a watch.
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anoxymous In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 21:27:30 +0000 UTC]
I really really love this! Keep it up!~
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MarcosDeDiego In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 21:22:37 +0000 UTC]
hey haters, why don't you make your own tutorial and then cope with 4 pages of haters?
Sudenly, a bunch of people with no skills start a flame war against somebody who ACTUALLY is versed in the matter.
I have no beef with the critics who try to add something to the conversation, less beef with the ones that say negative things (that's good for oneself to inprove) but people! most of the angry mob here are individuals that the only thing they know about color, drawing, anathomy and composition is from making copycats of their favourite animated series. Why all the anime/manga lovers tend to be such crybabys and angry haters when somebody touch their style?
And you know something, style is a way to do things, there's no such Manga style or comic-book style per se, Manga and comic book (keeping in mind that Manga means more or less comic-book) have as many styles as people draw them. But "manga Style" French Style", "comic book/superhero style" are simplifications that sometimes helps and sometimes, in the case of hardcore fans, tend to confuse more than it was supposed to.
If you read carefully "Akira" "Lone Wolf and Cub" & "Naruto" you can see that the similarities between the three are less than the differences. And the example is about three well known mangas, if you dig deeper in japan you can discover things that you can barelly call "Manga Style".
The same rule can be applied in European comic Book: Max-Moebius-Herge or american comic-book: Miller-Romita Jr-Sienkiewiz or even indi comic-books: Seth-Burns-Crumb
If you want to break the rules, you have to know them first.
But some of you seem to be more happy posting your rants and doing copycats of the latest fashion anime than trying to learn.
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Votre-Reine In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 20:54:16 +0000 UTC]
I personally love this tutorial
In case some of the people that are bashing you for this didn't know: YOU CANNOT GET INTO ART COLLEGE WITH CHEAP ANIME STYLE, YOU HAVE TO LEARN SOME FORM OF REALISM!
I, myself, can say I am not perfect at what was depicted in the tutorial, but I'ma learn from it the best way I could. Thanks for it ^u^
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Soranova In reply to ??? [2014-03-05 19:56:36 +0000 UTC]
o-o im confused by the negatives since this is indeed very helpful XD good work!~
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