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simbalm — Dragon
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#breath #coloursplash #dragon #eyes #glare #portrait #realism #smoke #smoker #smoking #stare #krita #realismportrait #realistic #realisticportrait
Published: 2016-03-23 11:36:13 +0000 UTC; Views: 1348; Favourites: 74; Downloads: 3
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Description
Constructive criticism welcome!I'm a simple guy: I see a nice photo, I paint!
I found this really great pic (fav.me/d9voojw by Epytafe ) and decided to paint it my own way.
I'm really glad cause I found the perfect brush for skin texture
Smoking is bad but painting smoke is great fun and more healthy
Krita and
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Comments: 66
Thanks for the kind words and the interesting feedback!
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Not a problem! Good work deserves words.
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this is amazingggggg. I suck at drawing smoke but it always looks sooooo coool.
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Ce portrait est impressionnant ! J'adore l'idée de la tâche de lumière sur l’œil !
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no idea what that means 
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that means oh my god
I like it so very much
in the name of JESUS
LOL
seriusly.... i like so much
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Excellent work. Strong use of light and shades. The smoke actually suggests motion.
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An interesting painting. I love the smoke, it appears very real. The man has a very sly or evil appearance about him. The combination makes for a great concept. Very well done.
Thanks for submitting to . Have a great day.
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I'm commenting on behalf of the group.
Firstly i absolutely love the white on black, the other way around it would probably not looked half as mesmerizing but you captured it perfectly^^
I love the amount of detail you put into the different layers of smoke and his skin. It looks very realistic and even though it is quite close to the reference you manage to make it your very own.
The mood of this piece is very unique
The only thing that irritated me a bit is the light that reflects on his skin, but other than that really awesome
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I love the detalization you have put into this! The character and the smoke looks amazing.
Only the smoke from the right, that shapes in stripes look a little weird for me..
Because I think (and as far as I have noticed) when you release the smoke from the mouth then it diffuses and forms a little cloud..
OR it forms in lines when charcter was moving, but not releasing smoke from the mouth..
Well, I think so..but I´m not really sure.. I would put it more "realistic" but your way of "lines" is more artistic I think.
Keep up the good work, you draw amazingly!
ProjectComment
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Hello!
Interesting piece! I really like your style, and how it's very inspired by the traditional methods. Did you paint this *on* the black background, or did the black background happened later in the picture? I'm fascinated. Anyways, you have a lot that's going well in this piece: the rendering of the smoke, the stark mood (which is also aided by the background and use of shadows), and the execution of the man's facial expression. It's a very subtle glare, which draws expression from the how the eyebrows are positioned and how the face is angled. Regardless of having a reference or not, the fact that you were able to simulate the expression is impressive.
The small shard of colour is a nice touch and contrast, but I think the execution could be a little better. At first glance, I register the information that it is a light source, but as you examine the painting further, it starts to feel more like a streak of paint (e.g: colour on black and white) that feels more like a stylistic choice. The depiction is putting me in a slight status quo of what it really is supposed to be, which does question the overall narrative of the piece. Also, I feel like -- with the darkness of the background -- you could benefit with having more shadows and contrast will be an effective intensifier which, in return, will also add more dimension and depth.
Other than that, I think you have successfully captured the mood you are aiming for through colour choice and facial expression. I really like how you paid attention to the subtle facial details, because those little things do help with the impact. The portrait has life and is compelling, and reflects the grip you have on your style as an artist. Keep doing you, and keep growing!
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Thanks for the insightful comment!
I did paint the whole picture on a black background. It was there from the start, just as on the reference photo.
The story behind the shard of colour is that I started by copying the reference as well as I could. Then I realized I thought it needed more contrast so I came up with the idea to add a streak of light (and, why not, colour) on one of the eyes to make that awesome glare pop a little more and add a mysterious fantasy touch to an otherwise very everyday looking photo. So it makes sense that you can't figure out whether it's a light source or a stylistic choice because it's meant to be both. I totally get that it may not help the narrative. I admit I tend to neglect that aspect. I approached this piece more as a technical challenge to myself and put most of the work into the style. The narrative that he was some kind of human dragon only came afterwards, sort of by itself.
Thanks again!
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You're welcome!
Ooh, that's an interesting twist: both stylistic *and* a light source. You got me there, and actually, it's pretty effective in keeping the viewer's attention. As for the fantasy element, it didn't really register until you mentioned it now. I interpreted the whole piece as portrait of a man hiding in the shadows, with his appearance and the smoke being part of his mystery. I think it can work both ways, as it can be interpreted both ways depending on the viewer's perspective (that's the fun part about art, right?). But for a technical challenge, though, I think you've done it pretty well. Experimenting is a part of growing and knowing who you are as an artist, and I think even if the narrative/overall idea came later (which happens), that adding more focus on what you want to tell the viewer (or what you want to make them think or feel) can really enhance the impact of your pieces. 
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Yeah, I'll definitely be working more on the narrative of my next pieces!
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You’ve pulled off a very intense piece! I like the streak of light over the left eye and it’s very effective as a centrepiece of lone colour. The composition is interesting but I feel it might be a little heavy on the right – maybe add some more depth on the left or extend the canvas and move the head a little further to the right to make it a focus in the final third?
Your anatomy is pretty good to my eyes but it looks to me slightly rough around the eyes, particularly the left eye. I think things could use a little sharpening there. Also, while the eyes are very dark and that creates a nice intense atmosphere, it also steals a little bit of realism from them, for me. So I think some more shades (subtle so as to not lose the effect) could be a nice touch? The smoke is really well done, I don’t have much to say there aside from there could perhaps be some more tonal variation in the strip coming from the mouth. Just to mix it up.
Overall, a nice job! It’s definitely evocative of a dragon
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Thanks for your helpful comment!
Just what do you mean by "slightly rough around the eyes" and "could use a little sharpening there"? Please have a look at the reference image (fav.me/d9voojw ) and tell me what I'm doing wrong.
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No problem! You're very welcome
By that I just meant that on the left eye, the line where the skin met the eyeball looked a little blurry to me. I understand there could be shadows on either one but then a colour difference could perhaps help define one from the other? Hope this makes more sense XD
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Ok, thanks! It's true I mainly use blurry brushes to get that traditional look but sometimes that doesn't perfectly work.
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No worries. Well it was just a tiny little thing
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Really well done.
The contrast with the light makes it look more deep, somewhat like if there was something hidden or mysterious about him.
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The idea of the dash of colour and light was to give him a slight fantasy look. I like to think he's a dragon hidden ni human form but sometimes his true nature reveals itself to those with keen eyes...
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Wow, the first thing that struck me was the contrast! At first I thought it was a photograph but then I saw that it was a painting. You've done a great job capturing the moodiness of the image, and I really like how you rendered the smoke. The only thing I would do, at your level, is to start looking at ways to add some creative twists to the image. Instead of doing a direct copy, maybe it would be cool if you made the smoke form into a vaporous dragon, or played around with the colors some to make the shadowy less drab I would do something to add some cooler tones that would make the warmer tone pop more.
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