offering critique Critique Exchange (Please Read OP Before Posting)

[SFyr 1,982]

Critique Exchange

 

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Hello all!
Let me welcome you to a little thread devoted to giving and receiving critiques! Part of the fun of being an artist is seeing yourself grow and learn, and from what I can tell there isn't a fully devoted place to get some solid critique from other artists here on the forums just yet.
 
Why Receiving Constructive Criticism is Great
Whether you're relatively new to art, or possess a large body of experience already, chances are there's still room to improve and get better at what you do! While we ourselves are capable of picking apart our own work, sometimes an outside perspective can catch things we ourselves did not see. Though sometimes it can be a little harsh, criticism is a great tool to use when drawing to improve.
 
Why Giving Constructive Criticism is Great
Strangely enough, giving criticism can be very helpful too! Not only does it help you learn to better articulate your thoughts regarding a piece, it forces you to look closely at a work and evaluate how different pieces fit together (or don't). You’re bound to run into a variety of styles, approaches, and techniques, which may spark ideas for your own work or provide insight for future improvements.
 
Purpose of this Thread
The core theme of this thread is improvement. After all, no one is perfect, and facing potential areas to improve head on is one of the quickest ways to get better as an artist.
 
Everyone has something to contribute here! Whether you’re seasoned or new to the art game, chances are someone out there can point out an area to improve that you weren’t aware of, or help give you some ideas on how to proceed. On the other hand, you don’t have to be a great artist to find flaws or areas to improve in pieces of art. First impressions are important, and with how much media/art we see floating around, many of us know when something doesn’t look quite right! A lot of art depends on how it’s interpreted, as well as how it’s constructed. Even if someone’s ability seems to surpass your own at first glance, you may still find something helpful and worthwhile to contribute that they can use, so don’t be afraid to offer your thoughts!
 

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Rules of Thumb, and General Guidelines

- The best criticism is a mix of positive and negative! It can be discouraging to be given all negative words when you’re trying to better yourself, and likewise all positive words can leave you very little to go on.
- Constructive criticism is still criticism, even if it’s meant well! Some people are more tactful than others with how they offer their thoughts, and being on the receiving end can feel a good bit harsh sometimes. If you don’t feel you could take someone putting down your work, you may want to wait on getting it criticized.
- Try to be as clear as possible about your criticism. You don’t have to know what could be done to fix something, or exactly what bothers you, but the clearer you are the more likely it is to be helpful. For example, saying a character looks a bit lifeless is very different than saying their pose comes off too rigid or stiff.
- Put your own judgement first. It’s extremely important to hear what others have to offer with an open mind, but ultimately it’s the artist’s call on what to do with it all.Sometimes preference plays a huge role in stylized pieces, and you should look for areas that may be valid, but not universally sought after. There will be times where criticism may point you towards a direction you don’t want to go, and it’s important to recognize that sometimes you have to pick and choose what is most helpful to you.
- Please respect the time people put into a work or critique. To a certain extent, you’re bound to receive what you give, and so if you spend a good chunk of time on a work that showcases what you can do, there’s a good chance you’ll give others a lot more to offer helpful critique on.  Regardless, proper critiques take time and effort, and are almost always meant to be helpful rather than hurtful; meanwhile, it takes some amount of faith to let strangers judge something you worked hard on, and tell you what you might have done wrong.

 

 
A Word About Styles
Sometimes an artist’s style will make it hard to criticize, as some choices they make may go against conventional proportions or aesthetics. However, even if something can be attributed to style, it’s important to remember that how it is interpreted and received is still important. First impressions are vital for visual mediums, and while a style may get different reactions from different people, each one is still valid and worthy of noting. What may be liked by someone may not by another, and whether it was intentional or not, it’s still often worth pointing out.
 
Resources
To be added soon!
 

Related Topics
Redraw Group - Topic for those interested in redoing other artists' work in their own style, or the same, for the sake of practice or fun.

How to Proceed
It’s simple: post your art, or come find some pieces to critique! You're also welcome to clarify any areas you want focused on.

 

I want to try to get a few people to regularly check in, but I’m hoping there will be enough interest to get a bit of the MLP Forums community going back and forth here, and helping each other out!

Edited October 16, 2015 by SFyr

[Blue Moon 6,336]

Alright, I've been actively trying to improve my art for the past month or so, so this thread sounds like a great idea!

 

Anyway, here's one of my more recent drawings, so I'd love any critique on it. Also, if it comes to it, please don't worry about offending me; I'm looking to improve so I'd appreciate honesty.

 

 

 

 

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Blue Moon, I'm hoping this helps people out in the end, especially if more people get on board and make use of it.   Thanks for jumping in!

 

Anyways. I was kinda thrown by this at first since Cipher is pretty different from subjects I'm used to, but I'll try to judge what I can.  :grin2: First off, I like the added detail on the bricks; the highlight and shadow makes them pop, which is cool. That, and the slight style shift away from Gravity Falls' very 2D style to something a little deeper while staying cartoonish is something I like.

 

Though, for the critic side, some parts of the image feel just a tad rushed. It might be a slightly sketchier style perhaps, but I feel like a few areas are worth pointing out or commenting on.

- The lines of the bricks seem a little too curved, in that they seem to almost flow through the corner-line uninterrupted, rather that wrapping around as it normally would. Cipher could survive staying a bit more fluid instead of a rigid triangle (if that's what you're going for), but I think it'd look better to have the details/lines fit his form a bit closer. 

- I rather like how solid some of the areas of cell shading come off.  :grin2: But I feel some of the areas of softer shadow/light effects conflict with it? Like, solid shading/highlights feel dominant, but seems to compete with soft shading in places. I like the slight glow on the left side, but I feel the right side either stops too short (halfway on the side surface) or is a bit too prominent--and the shadow underneath the hat might come off a bit better if you continued relying mainly on solid shadows there.

- Proportion-wise, I can't easily say too much given Cipher is a pretty changeable and cartoonish character.   I feel like some of the limbs could be touched up: if they're noodle-like in style, I think keeping them consistent thickness is a good way to go.

- His hat looks a little flat for being on top of his head. I think that would simply be a matter of like, treating it similar to how you treated his body, and attempting a more 3D shape with it.   While it functionally works, I think when you look closer, it doesn't seem like it... connects right, because it seems rather 2D going by shape.

 

 

...I don't have enough to properly articulate whatever tiny possible criticism is left.   I'm not sure if the highlights/shadows staying the same on the bricks on both the light and dark side fits, but it doesn't really bother me. Flames could be a little less blob-like and a touch more wisp-like, but the color and effect is there and adds to the image nicely. Eye size could increased, but that'd just be putting it closer to the original design, which is one of those style choices I can't judge.

 

So yeah.

I still really do like this image though, and it's great to see more of Cipher. ♪   I love the highlights and solid shadows on him; while they don't account for a lot of area, it really does give him a bit of flare and life. Shading and a few other areas could be touched up, but the concept and overall look is there, and it's awesome.

[Odyssey 5,713]

Would it be possible if you reviewed my two latest images?

 

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Odyssey, those are actually really cute!   I'll give it my go.

 

On the positive side, like I said, they're adorable. I like how strong their coloration is without becoming the neon/pure color itself--the colored line art was a pretty good touch that went along with this, and matched your style fairly well.  :grin2: I also like how well you used your shading to give parts of each drawing form and depth, especially their facial features. Too many times eyes/noses/mouths seem to kinda float, but here it looks pretty connected even though it's a simpler style. 

 

Neutral side; I like the faint texture layer. I'm not quite sure how to feel about the exact texture, or if it's something to be relied on, but the effect does add a bit of detail to it, and it works nicely enough. 

 

Critical side; back legs are my major point of concern here. I am rather guilty of this myself, but sometimes back legs of a quadruped in a cartoonish style gets relegated into an approximate shape that more or less fits. Looking closer at the back legs of each one, they look a bit... blob like? I can't quite make sense of the bones underneath, as the back feet seem more like a round shape connected to another round shape, rather than a compressed/folded back leg. Maybe I'm not seeing it right, but I think it might be an area to practice a little in. 

Relatedly, I think the torso may join with the hips a little soon, as unless I'm not seeing it correctly, the red cat's body might be a bit short if it was to stand up. From the angle it's hard to tell though, so I'm not gonna push that much.

Also, slight note, I think the blue fox's chest fluff, that comes out in front of the legs, looks a good bit better than red's front legs going in front. Makes the shoulder joints just a tad weird to me, like the right leg might be sitting wrong.

Lesser note that's hard to notice, I think some of the overall facial structure is a bit asymmetrical. Like, the blue fox's right ear and cheek seem to be drifting upwards slightly, the ear moreso. The red cat's left ear seems to drift inwards towards the face slightly compared to its other ear, but that is very minor. Overall they're tiny issues, but I think it may be worth keeping an eye on.  :grin2:

 

Think that's all I got. Everything except maybe the back leg bit is a minor complaint, and even that one isn't a big deal. Your style is awesome, as is your shading and use of color. It all comes off very well and shows a good bit of ability, so I hope you can forgive a little nitpicking, haha. 

Edited September 7, 2015 by SFyr

[VengefulStrudel 1,486]

Great thread idea! I'm certain a lot of people will find it very helpful ^^ Hopefully, I can help in giving feedback someday, but I'm not experienced enough to give such in-depth critiques, heh.

 

I'd highly appreciate if anyone could give me some feedback on this:

 

 

 

 

 

I hope it's not a problem that it's MLP-related, since this isn't the Pony Artwork forum...

[Odyssey 5,713]

@@Odyssey, those are actually really cute!   I'll give it my go.

 

On the positive side, like I said, they're adorable. I like how strong their coloration is without becoming the neon/pure color itself--the colored line art was a pretty good touch that went along with this, and matched your style fairly well.  :grin2: I also like how well you used your shading to give parts of each drawing form and depth, especially their facial features. Too many times eyes/noses/mouths seem to kinda float, but here it looks pretty connected even though it's a simpler style. 

 

Neutral side; I like the faint texture layer. I'm not quite sure how to feel about the exact texture, or if it's something to be relied on, but the effect does add a bit of detail to it, and it works nicely enough. 

 

Critical side; back legs are my major point of concern here. I am rather guilty of this myself, but sometimes back legs of a quadruped in a cartoonish style gets relegated into an approximate shape that more or less fits. Looking closer at the back legs of each one, they look a bit... blob like? I can't quite make sense of the bones underneath, as the back feet seem more like a round shape connected to another round shape, rather than a compressed/folded back leg. Maybe I'm not seeing it right, but I think it might be an area to practice a little in. 

Relatedly, I think the torso may join with the hips a little soon, as unless I'm not seeing it correctly, the red cat's body might be a bit short if it was to stand up. From the angle it's hard to tell though, so I'm not gonna push that much.

Also, slight note, I think the blue fox's chest fluff, that comes out in front of the legs, looks a good bit better than red's front legs going in front. Makes the shoulder joints just a tad weird to me, like the right leg might be sitting wrong.

Lesser note that's hard to notice, I think some of the overall facial structure is a bit asymmetrical. Like, the blue fox's right ear and cheek seem to be drifting upwards slightly, the ear moreso. The red cat's left ear seems to drift inwards towards the face slightly compared to its other ear, but that is very minor. Overall they're tiny issues, but I think it may be worth keeping an eye on.  :grin2:

 

Think that's all I got. Everything except maybe the back leg bit is a minor complaint, and even that one isn't a big deal. Your style is awesome, as is your shading and use of color. It all comes off very well and shows a good bit of ability, so I hope you can forgive a little nitpicking, haha. 

 

Thank you very much! All of this will come in really handy for next time I draw these two. Especially with the back legs. One thing I tend to do with my style is I tend to simplify anatomy a bit, also have the sense of realism to it. I used reference images for both the fox and the cat, but I couldn't find many images of both sitting that wasn't at an angle I was looking for. But it does make me happy to know about what I can do for the back legs for next time!

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Odyssey, You're totally welcome! I wish you luck with when you next work with em, and I'm glad this was helpful some amount, haha. They're both really quite cute characters~

 

@@VengefulStrudel, this is one of those cases I'd love for other people to kick in their two cents, as I don't think I can catch nearly everything there would be to say or offer views on.    But, I shall try to hit a few points that stick out to me.   :grin2:

 

First off, your style is rather cute, and I gotta give you props for taking on a larger scene. Things like this tend to be quite a lot of work and time to complete, and thus a lot of people shy away from it.    But, it's awesome practice in some areas that are occasionally neglected a bit (speaking from personal experience too). I also like the personality you gave to all of the characters--they're all doing their own thing and indirectly telling a bit of a story, which is exactly what a piece like this should do.  

 

On the critical side... My first point, I actually don't know if it can simply be dismissed as a style choice, but personally I find the eyes being so close together a little unfavorable, especially when you have a partial side view such as with RD, Fluttershy, Twi, and Babs.    Again, seems like it might be part of your style in all honestly, but having such a tiny bridge between the eyes throws me off (ideal proportions are such that this width is roughly equal to one eye width, but I think MLP sometimes works off of 2/3rds or at the extreme side, 1/2. This image and this one kinda show what I'm talking about. MLP really does push it a bit, but not too much.)

Next, I think some of the characters look a bit off in how they're connected to the background/environment. Most prominently, Sweetie Belle and Rarity. Their forms seem to be rotated so that their forehooves meet the ground much closer to the viewer, but perspective-wise they're relatively flat viewed from the side. I think the vertical distance of where their hooves meet simply doesn't match up the best with their angle.  

Also, when I mentally draw a horizon line for this image, then draw radial lines outward from a central vanishing point... I get the impression scaling the ponies a little more would make the depth a bit more impactful. This kinda matches with a compositional note that, you're giving this image depth, but I'm left craving a bit to look at both in the far distance and nearer the viewer.   :grin2: I'd suggest looking into vanishing point perspective, and how to build a bit of a scene/landscape (even a basic one) out of using perspective lines. It helps kinda 'guide' different objects/characters, and put them to a better scale sometimes. For example, images like this might be a bit interesting.

 

Quick little visual aid I was playing with in paint to see if I was seeing it wrong~

 

See, if I draw a horizontal line, Fluttershy is about the same depth as Rarity, yet FS appears a little bit bigger. If Spike was to be moved forward, he'd be about the size of RD. Going by Pinkie Pie's size, she's over the sand rather than the water. ...I dunno. I just don't know if these things were intended, haha.

Smaller notes:

Blobular shadows probably could stand to be adjusted so their more fitting with the direction of the light source. They appear underneath some of the characters without much preference of which direction their falling, and I think could be 'flattened' a little to fit better with the perspective.   :grin2:

I'm not really gonna make a huge point about the horizon, but I feel like it being straight would've looked just a touch better. I think most people curve it more to emphasize a strange angle, or a moving nature to it.

The sun looks like it was taken from an oval (very minor, but this sticks out to me).    I think you can get the look you're going for by simply increasing the size of a perfect circle until it covers the same area.

 

Back to some positive notes!

After looking closer at the landscape during all that, I honestly found your water to be pretty awesome.    I like the subtle blending of colors. While I think you could touch up the transition form water to sand (like, add some white ripples/spray/what have you), the water and sand itself looks great, and pretty matching with your style. Personally I have issues matching my background style to my character style, but yours seems to apply pretty evenly to both~

A good bit of the shading on the characters, while fairly minimal, looks rather well used. It adds depth and a little texture when needed, but doesn't really interfere with the overall look that has a cartoonish-flat coloration.

 

So yeah, that's what I got for ya~♪ I hope you keep drawing and doing more with your art!

 

 

Also: You totally don't have to have a ton of experience to critique other people's work, haha. I'm sure you'd be able to find areas worth pointing out, plus the more voices you have on a piece, the more someone can take away~

Edited September 9, 2015 by SFyr

[VengefulStrudel 1,486]

@@SFyr, Ahh, thank you very much for the critique! It's extremely helpful!

I'll experiment around with eye gap widths then, I never really noticed how close they are until now...

Perspective and angles are somethings I need to work on, heh...I think using the vanishing point & horizon guidelines could help me with that. I just did a quick test sketch, the angle/perspective looked so much clearer with them!

Someone also gave me a tip about shadows, using lines to connect the light source with the top of a character/object, then another line to connect them with the end of their shadow. I'll be trying that out as well. I have a feeling I really underestimated the helpfulness of guidelines.

I will definitely keep drawing, but I'll be more open to experimenting around from now on~ And ggain, thank you very much for the feedback!

[LordSwinton 759]

Could use some pointers on how to fix this piece: http://fav.me/d98ptcd

 

I can tell it's probably the head but I'm quite bad with perspectives 

[SFyr 1,982]

@@VengefulStrudel, you're totally welcome, haha. I'm glad some of what I said was helpful. 

 

Also, if it helps, I've met very few people who don't need more practice with perspective and angles and such. Like hands, it's just one of those topics that haunts most artists. Either way, for larger scenes, I've found putting down some guidelines for the landscape and scaling-towards-the-horizon deal helps me put things together in a more believable way.  I hope it works for you too.

 

Good luck with continuing your art!

 

 

@@Swinton, that's honestly pretty cute, haha. I like the touch of simplicity to the image~♪

 

In reference to what you said about the persective bit, I think it's more a matter of not having a high level of practice with different angles.   Your style (no lineart with solid colors) is one of the harder of the styles to get right starting out from what I've seen; often it takes a good grasp of posing/anatomy already, as they'll help you better distinguish shapes when all you have is little more than a silhouette to give form. In this case, I kinda feel like the base plan for his body could be a bit improved--like, a sketch that this was built up from. Right now, the torso and head simply look too circular. Like, his neck doesn't really seem to be more than an upward dip in the torso-mass overlapping the head circle. It 'is' a harder angle I'll admit, but it's one you should be able to practice with for sure. If you could replace some of the simplified body parts with more distinguishable contours (shoulder, cheek, etc), I think it'd come off a bit better. 

 

The idea is there, regardless, and I like the overall impression. It's a harder style sometimes as I've said, so definite props for attempting to learn and practice it.  :grin2: Though, I think I'd recommend continuing practice with posing/anatomy (probably with gold old pencil and paper); it'll form the base plan for things like this, and help make vague forms a lot clearer and more impactive. 

 

Also slight note: I'd also recommend looking at different techniques for grass and clouds and such.  Clouds actually have a bit of a distinctive shape sometimes beyond just curves, and the grass looks a tad repetitive. If you spend some time looking around, you might find a few more interesting ways to do both that will give your art a bit more impact and polish as an "overall picture."  :grin2: Pretty much everything draws from life, so you could go that route too if you're inclined, though even the MLP show/universe should have plenty of inspiration.

[LordSwinton 759]

Thanks for the advice! I've always just gravitated towards lineless art and I'm glad you don't think it's horrible. I've only recently learned to make peace between my background. Most of my pictures don't have a sky. I'll be sure to come back again real soon when I finish another piece!

[Blue Moon 6,336]

@@Blue Moon, I'm hoping this helps people out in the end, especially if more people get on board and make use of it.   Thanks for jumping in!

 

Anyways. I was kinda thrown by this at first since Cipher is pretty different from subjects I'm used to, but I'll try to judge what I can.  :grin2: First off, I like the added detail on the bricks; the highlight and shadow makes them pop, which is cool. That, and the slight style shift away from Gravity Falls' very 2D style to something a little deeper while staying cartoonish is something I like.

 

Though, for the critic side, some parts of the image feel just a tad rushed. It might be a slightly sketchier style perhaps, but I feel like a few areas are worth pointing out or commenting on.

- The lines of the bricks seem a little too curved, in that they seem to almost flow through the corner-line uninterrupted, rather that wrapping around as it normally would. Cipher could survive staying a bit more fluid instead of a rigid triangle (if that's what you're going for), but I think it'd look better to have the details/lines fit his form a bit closer. 

- I rather like how solid some of the areas of cell shading come off.  :grin2: But I feel some of the areas of softer shadow/light effects conflict with it? Like, solid shading/highlights feel dominant, but seems to compete with soft shading in places. I like the slight glow on the left side, but I feel the right side either stops too short (halfway on the side surface) or is a bit too prominent--and the shadow underneath the hat might come off a bit better if you continued relying mainly on solid shadows there.

- Proportion-wise, I can't easily say too much given Cipher is a pretty changeable and cartoonish character.   I feel like some of the limbs could be touched up: if they're noodle-like in style, I think keeping them consistent thickness is a good way to go.

- His hat looks a little flat for being on top of his head. I think that would simply be a matter of like, treating it similar to how you treated his body, and attempting a more 3D shape with it.   While it functionally works, I think when you look closer, it doesn't seem like it... connects right, because it seems rather 2D going by shape.

 

 

...I don't have enough to properly articulate whatever tiny possible criticism is left.   I'm not sure if the highlights/shadows staying the same on the bricks on both the light and dark side fits, but it doesn't really bother me. Flames could be a little less blob-like and a touch more wisp-like, but the color and effect is there and adds to the image nicely. Eye size could increased, but that'd just be putting it closer to the original design, which is one of those style choices I can't judge.

 

So yeah.

I still really do like this image though, and it's great to see more of Cipher. ♪   I love the highlights and solid shadows on him; while they don't account for a lot of area, it really does give him a bit of flare and life. Shading and a few other areas could be touched up, but the concept and overall look is there, and it's awesome.

Thank you! I've been trying to work on my lineart, but this helped me realize to just slow down and take my time to make the lineart look good.

 

Anyway, I recently finished this drawing, so I'd love any critique on it. Thanks!

 

 

 

 

 

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Blue Moon, first off, I like how this one has almost an atmosphere to it.  The contrast between the light spots and shadows fits the seen very well, and makes the cat very much a part of its surroundings.  It's a really lovely effect.

I also like how the style is somewhat cartoonish in appearance, yet looks like it'd fit well with detail--kinda looks like an unpolished still from an animated film or movie.

 

Umm. Critical side. Personally I find a few parts a little off. The base of the tail seems to almost make a right turn; in my experience, cats' tails tend to curve a bit more fluidly and don't jut out like you have this one doing at the base. The cat's back left leg also doesn't look right to me--I think removing that sudden curve/mass would make it fit better, as right now, in context to the positioning of the parts around it, it looks like a lump on top of the spine.

Also, the cheeks and ears seem a little misaligned, and almost seem to have a slightly different style. Left side has a rounded cheek and rounded ear; right side has a pointed cheek and pointed ear, the former of which is actually a good bit downwards from the left. Normally this would imply a tilt of the head, but given the rest of the features don't, it just looks off to me. 

 

Beyond that, my only criticism is that while a messier style can be a plus if used effectively, there are some points where it feels a bit too much.  The window frame is my best example of this--the thickness of said window frame seems to vary a great deal as you go up/down, and the coloration is practically disconnected from the lines where one may think it'd be aimed to fill. The bottom side also shows a pretty nice bleed from the bottom layer onto the glass, which for me hurts the idea of depth because it's pretty distracting, and (to me) makes me think more about how an artist layered this-layer-than-this-layer rather than was painting depth.

Other slight area that was a little too messy for me, was the areas of highlight/shadow, like on the cat's shoulders, tail base, and the bottom left/top right corner of the window frame. You see tiny flecks of either light or shadow that were clearly missed when creating shadows. They're too far to be included in the actual area of highlight, so it really just comes across as something overlooked because it was done quickly.

 

So yeah, overall... Love the overall look and effect. Might wanna adjust angle/anatomy a tad, and clean up a few parts so it looks a bit more clean/solid--even if you keep a messy style, in a place or two it still feels a touch much.

[Gaviera 52]

what up

 

There seems to be a lot of critiquing here but not much exchanging. I'll drop by sometime and see if there's anything I could chime in with, eh?

 

Anyway,if you don't mind me giving you even more work, I made this here thread with a little more info, asking for critique before even coming across this one. Wanna give it a shot? Here's the image: 

Thank you for helping artists out, by the way, that's really great of you to do!

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Gaviera, thanks so much, haha. I'd love to see you chime in here as you please! 

I'm honestly fine if the exchange thing picks up more later rather than sooner. I may eventually resort to pestering some people and seeing if they're interested in joining up here and there, but I mostly just want to get people thinking about critiques and growing their ability.   Let people see places for it more and all that, haha.

 

Anyways. I actually really like your style.  It's a good bit messy, but I think you do a good job at giving this drawing character and personality. It has that appeal of a sketch while also possessing a good bit more polish too. Really just awesome. 

 

I'ma drift into critical points for a few paragraphs, haha. Though like I said, I love it.  :grin2:

Right.

My biggest issue is with the back legs. The joints don't really match up, especially at the hock and below. On his left leg, it's pretty far up, almost in line with his stomach, while on his right, it's almost halfway down the length of his leg. Meanwhile his left leg is about 2x the length from there down, and seems to possess another joint? I dunno, I think that's just worth brushing up on in terms of anatomy.

Next point; his left shoulder--the line around it more specifically. While the bone structure looks great and hints at a good grasp of anatomy (in my opinion), the dark line around it is just a little too thick, and gives it the look of jutting out far too much, almost as if there's a big crevice between his shoulder blade and torso. I think that's just a subtle touch of the line art that went the wrong way here is all.

Another thing that struck me, is that the eyes and muzzle seem to be at different angles from each other. If I ignore the nostrils, and draw a line down what I think is the center of the muzzle going off the eyes, I run into his right nostril rather than cut between them. 

 

Those are honestly my biggest. The rest are just minor nitpicks. 

- I think if you had his right front leg kicked to his center less (like, if it was it's own layer, basically scale it horizontally so it's closer to the left side of the image), it'd fit the perspective of the image a little better, as it seems a little sideways in space.

- The mouth looks a little flat; I'd need to see more of your artwork to judge better if it's a fitting stylistic point, but having only seen this image, it looks a tad off (especially since no bottom lip is visible). 

- I think you could add a little more interest to your back legs if you curve one or two backwards more; they look a bit too parallel and straight, and while the overall look is great, I think you have a chance of mirroring the staggered gallop of a real horse and making similar images even better. 

- Cart wheels are a bit different in size. Extremely minor nitpick at this point.

 

Anyways. Done with looking at potential areas to work on. I want to restate that I really do just love your style.  :grin2: Like I more or less said, it seems to capture a lot of the liveliness and charm of sketches, while also keeping a higher level of polish and depth. I think a good bit of it is in the lineart: it is extremely rough, but bold and pretty solid at creating form, so it has a natural interesting variation without losing clarity. I also like that a lot of your joints and body parts have the feeling of a structural component underneath; like, with the back hips, shoulders, and front legs in particular, they feel like joints made of muscle and bone. While I can find little hiccups here and there elsewhere, it's still a great thing to see--I think what issues you have can be ironed out with more practice, and maybe studying reference images more.  You really do have a great thing going though, for sure. Awesome stuff!

 

...Also, another positive I wanted to mention: I like the small locations of shading. It adds a great touch of depth in places like his midsection and underneath his jaw, but it's still sparse enough to not really draw much attention. It's a minor thing that helps the image as a whole stand a little more solidly. 

Edited September 18, 2015 by SFyr

[Gaviera 52]

Right.

My biggest issue is with the back legs. The joints don't really match up, especially at the hock and below. On his left leg, it's pretty far up, almost in line with his stomach, while on his right, it's almost halfway down the length of his leg. Meanwhile his left leg is about 2x the length from there down, and seems to possess another joint? I dunno, I think that's just worth brushing up on in terms of anatomy.

Next point; his left shoulder--the line around it more specifically. While the bone structure looks great and hints at a good grasp of anatomy (in my opinion), the dark line around it is just a little too thick, and gives it the look of jutting out far too much, almost as if there's a big crevice between his shoulder blade and torso. I think that's just a subtle touch of the line art that went the wrong way here is all.

Another thing that struck me, is that the eyes and muzzle seem to be at different angles from each other. If I ignore the nostrils, and draw a line down what I think is the center of the muzzle going off the eyes, I run into his right nostril rather than cut between them. 

 

Those are honestly my biggest. The rest are just minor nitpicks. 

- I think if you had his right front leg kicked to his center less (like, if it was it's own layer, basically scale it horizontally so it's closer to the left side of the image), it'd fit the perspective of the image a little better, as it seems a little sideways in space.

- The mouth looks a little flat; I'd need to see more of your artwork to judge better if it's a fitting stylistic point, but having only seen this image, it looks a tad off (especially since no bottom lip is visible). 

- I think you could add a little more interest to your back legs if you curve one or two backwards more; they look a bit too parallel and straight, and while the overall look is great, I think you have a chance of mirroring the staggered gallop of a real horse and making similar images even better. 

- Cart wheels are a bit different in size. Extremely minor nitpick at this point.

 

@@SFyr

 

Sweet! Critique. Aight, let's hop to it-

 

-True, though I was gonna argue that it's more a trouble of me trying to force perspective, though, it turns out they were BOTH slightly misplaced. I drew some redlines to indicate how the legs should have gone, probably, with the difference being less dramatic. That mystery joint, though, that was scary. Just me trying to look cool, I guess

 

-At first I didn't understand, but I applied some unsaturated blue to thin down the line some and oh my god that looks so much more natural than it did before. Good catch! That mistake was probably a result of my process where the sketch layer would eventually become the lineart layer. Very messy, but also very fun.

 

-At first I didn't quite understand, and I'm not really sure if I do, but the redlines showed me that there was a bit of a distance issue with each of the nostrils to the center of the face- is that what you were talking about? I corrected it, either way.

 

 

 

-Made some edits, to the front and one of the back legs, keeping in mind proper anatomy and perspective a little more closely. It does look a bit better, the gesture!

 

-Mouth being flat was my only cop-out in the entire work, if you forget me forgetting to plan a background. It's not really reminiscent of the style I want to be chasing, but I didn't want to get too specific about how equine mouths look and move the skull after I had already done linework and forgot to add a gahdamn mouth

 

-It was... kind of on purpose? I had this reference image open, but really, the cart's body doesn't match the one in the reference, so it really has no business having differently sized wheels like that. And no, I wasn't going for a wheel with spokes like that one, It's just supposed to be plain old cylinders

Anyways. Done with looking at potential areas to work on. I want to restate that I really do just love your style.  :grin2: Like I more or less said, it seems to capture a lot of the liveliness and charm of sketches, while also keeping a higher level of polish and depth. I think a good bit of it is in the lineart: it is extremely rough, but bold and pretty solid at creating form, so it has a natural interesting variation without losing clarity. I also like that a lot of your joints and body parts have the feeling of a structural component underneath; like, with the back hips, shoulders, and front legs in particular, they feel like joints made of muscle and bone. While I can find little hiccups here and there elsewhere, it's still a great thing to see--I think what issues you have can be ironed out with more practice, and maybe studying reference images more.  You really do have a great thing going though, for sure. Awesome stuff!

 

...Also, another positive I wanted to mention: I like the small locations of shading. It adds a great touch of depth in places like his midsection and underneath his jaw, but it's still sparse enough to not really draw much attention. It's a minor thing that helps the image as a whole stand a little more solidly. 

 

Aw yis. Thanks, mate! I especially appreciate that you think my work has real "feel", the things in art I love the most are good design,comprehensible complexity, and what I can't find another word for but immersion, and that is a significant chunk of that last one. As well as several other things, but those are pretty big in my book.

 

Also, reference image practice is the best. I'm thinking of using some photography and using it as reference to practice colours as well as for the draws.

 

Yup. Shading is a must. Can't go without it. This type of shading is a bit easy, just a bit of hatching to imply form here and there (and just a little bit, since hatching the whole thing is usually hell), and a solid, darker grey. Without shading, it would seem a lot more boring. It's quick, it's easy. It's a good way to create some interest. Can't call something done without it. Unless it's on purpose.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Gaviera

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Gaviera, for the record, I love how seriously you take your art, haha. Your aspiration really shows.  :grin2:

 

Anyways. The edit the hock positions does look a good bit better. I think a case could be made for his right leg still being shorter than his left, but at this point it falls into the area that could be excused by perspective.  The mystery joint, I think that might just have been a random outgrowth of your sketchy style, haha. Something strange that lined up as you were thickening/refining your lines.   It also looks a lot better in the second image, regardless.

 

Next two points... I'm starting to realize that when I point something out, I should probably use visuals.  Usually works much better than a written description, yet for some reason I've mostly relied on words, haha. Though, I think you've addressed pretty much everything so far, but for clarity, these were two of my original points:

 

Like I said though, much less of an issue now, and the shoulder thing I think would just be decreasing it a 'tiny' bit. Because of the perspective/angle, how thick that line is kinda decides the 'shape' of the bulge.

 

 

He does look a bit less stiff for sure, haha. Either way, references of horses and such will definitely be your friend, especially since like, related to what I said earlier about the realistic feel, despite the cartoonish image it still seems pretty rooted in points of realism.

 

The wheels... okay, that makes sense, haha. I do think having different sized wheels on a flat-bottom cart is something only a cartoon can pull off though, but then the show has occasionally gotten away with some interesting stuff.  :grin2:

 

Anyways, still awesome stuff, and again, I really like your style. I think you'll go far.   Keep up the great work, yeah?

[LordSwinton 759]

I rarely do lined work so could I get some pointers on what I did right or wrong with this piece?

 

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Swinton, it's always great to try something rare or different, haha.  Awesome job on that.

 

First off, I guess I'll start with the lines, as you mentioned that they're something you rarely do. I'm glad that I see you're attempting to vary their thickness--done right, it can be a pretty awesome yet subtle detail to add in. However, I don't really see much rhyme or reason to where the lines are thick or thin.  It seems to follow body parts or areas, when generally you have thinner lines around highlighted areas, or to match more detailed pieces. Also: I would be a little careful on how thin you make them; in a few places they almost seem to disappear, so I'd recommend maybe dialing that back just a touch in those cases. 

 

Smaller note while I think of it. I actually like the technique of mirroring eyes to ensure they're symmetrical--though I think you may want to add the highlights afterwards, as you get a bit of a highlight from the opposing direction in this case. 

 

The muzzle is a slight point of concern. It does have a more masculine/stallion-esque structure, but size and squareness of it almost seems a little too much so. That, and it seems to be an almost side-profile muzzle shape, rather than the slightly-off-from-head-on the eyes and head suggest. So yeah, same with the eyes and line work--good ideas in the right place, but the execution and theory could benefit from a practice and maybe more references. 

 

Lesser note: I'm not quite sure if you're going for a slightly chibier body style. It looks cute as is, but it definitely looks like a chibification. If I'm wrong and he's meant to be a colt, I'd recommend altering the head to be a little more childish (less stallion-esque); if he's meant to be a normal adult (non chibi), I'd recommend lengthening the legs a good bit.  But yeah, that's what I got. I like it as a stylized offshoot of show style, which kinda seems to drift more towards a strange, cute simplicity, which has potential for sure. Though I still recommend a little practice to bring it out more.  :grin2:

[LordSwinton 759]

@@SFyr,

 

Thanks for the advice! I have absolutely no idea how to manually create lines with varying thickness, I just used the default thin to thick line style and played around with it. I don't really have a definitive style but generally I do chibi stuff so I guess it shows, wasn't really aiming for any style in particular though. I tend to do big head, smaller body proportions so my sense of proportion is quick out of wack nowadays. Thanks again for your words of wisdom!

[Gaviera 52]

Let's have another go at it.

 

This is a bit of an experiment- I've been playing around with colour theory and techniques and have finally been able to manage something worth looking at. I'm still green with colours, (kek) so, I'd like to know what you think. I don't quite have a set technique down, but what I did and will try playing with a bit more, is setting up a base colour under the sketch, painting basic colours over that (same layer, so the brush blends 'em), then airbrush some more colours into the whole thing and colour pick from there with my painting brush. I'm thinking the beginning layer with the base colour (In this case, red.) could actually be skipped, and then I could add it later in the airbrush phase. I think the colours would end up the same... maybe? Maybe. Probably not, actually.

 

A little observation I had was that making new linework, as opposed to my last image, which I basically just carved my final image from the sketch, is very difficult. It's also very difficult to get a good colour, as sometimes the lines could be too subtle or too harsh, or I could have just messed up a curve or something. Maybe difficult isn't the right word, maybe it's a little frustrating, is all. Stabilizers feel too awkward and clean, though.

 

Also, cleaning up was a mess, but with airbrushing, I feel as though the technique is more intended towards images with backgrounds, so the colours blend nicely.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Gaviera

[SFyr 1,982]

@@Gaviera, this is honestly a pretty difficult one to critique, haha. I spent a little time just scratching my head on how to proceed, or what I can point out with confidence.  Well, partial confidence at least. 

I definitely see potential in this approach and general look, and as it stands it's rather impressive. That, and I'd like to commend you for experimenting and trying to tackle a harder approach, haha. 

 

I don't know how solid this will be, but I personally kinda feel it's currently a bit of a mix of two rough ideals. Like, somewhere between fully capitalizing on rough charm, and trying to be clean.

I think spending more time smoothing out a few of the areas where it feels like one layer was fully buried by another (but shows through), like on the lower half of the eye or the tail, would be a plus. That, and maybe being a bit more uniform in direction/stroke style. The other areas in general seem to have longer strokes that almost fit the body in some places, or move with the shadow, while the lower eye and tail seem to kinda swirl a touch messily.

OR, as an alternative to cleaning it up, maybe focus on keeping it rough, with lesser but more defining strokes. This image is one of the things that really sold me on how strangely enchanting really rough work can be, if everything has a purpose. Obviously it's not the same subject or style, but I can see a bit of similarity. 

 

Another note; I think the lineart looks a little 'seperate' in a few areas, such as his chest bands or the short distance around his eye. That and I think his left arm could use just a little shadow to help make the lineart there a little more convincing. But as a trend, I think you're on the right track.

 

Neutral side, I'm caught between liking the low contrast of little shadow, as it makes the image overall a good bit softer, and asking myself if darker values (and maybe stronger colors) would make the image more bold or pop more. Cannot say, but I think it's just one of those "end effect" choices that is good either way, but it makes me wonder. 

 

Positive side, I honestly think you did pretty well capturing the anatomy of Snivy. The colors look a touch muted when comparing this with the show, but it really does seem to serve to help that soft appearance, which a lot of the other choices seem to lend well to as well. So, I'm glad to see that you're mixing a few different areas of approach to a more unified goal of sorts.   That and, all things considered, you seem to be doing quite well with experimenting in this style. I think there's a good bit of potential ahead of you here.

[Gaviera 52]

@@SFyr

 

Hey, really sorry to respond so late. Thanks for taking your time to give this a critique.

 

BLUH, I completely missed those bare spots and forgot about brush direction (Still pretty new to actually having a direction when brushing! It's a cool painterly effect, but I gotta get used to it.) I definitely feel like gravitating towards cleaner work, and am trying to go more towards this type of cleanliness as well as color mastery (and expression in form and hella creative thought, though that's not really covered in this work, this one is just a color study).

 

True! It does look separate, somehow the lines were harsher. I think it might have been attributable to using such low values in a particularily delicate parts of the palette, especially referring to his chest bands. Adding shadow to the arms would have also been useful, it kinda looks like a tattoo of an actual arm in retrospect, lol

 

Also, I actually really like the idea of using colors to imply shade more than a higher value contrast! It's a lot more subtle, I think the artist that I linked above does it a lot better. It's one of those kinda goals,

 

Thanks broseidon

Edited October 21, 2015 by Gaviera

[Master Intelligence 53]

Hi. Recently I wanted to get into roleplay again. So I decided to create a new OC. I want this OC to be my biggest yet. But I don't know much about creating Original Characters so I made the best backstory I could make. And would now be looking for critique so I can improve on the character. As I feel he's not perfect what do you think

 

Critique Exchange

 

---

Hello all!
Let me welcome you to a little thread devoted to giving and receiving critiques! Part of the fun of being an artist is seeing yourself grow and learn, and from what I can tell there isn't a fully devoted place to get some solid critique from other artists here on the forums just yet.
 
Why Receiving Constructive Criticism is Great
Whether you're relatively new to art, or possess a large body of experience already, chances are there's still room to improve and get better at what you do! While we ourselves are capable of picking apart our own work, sometimes an outside perspective can catch things we ourselves did not see. Though sometimes it can be a little harsh, criticism is a great tool to use when drawing to improve.
 
Why Giving Constructive Criticism is Great
Strangely enough, giving criticism can be very helpful too! Not only does it help you learn to better articulate your thoughts regarding a piece, it forces you to look closely at a work and evaluate how different pieces fit together (or don't). You’re bound to run into a variety of styles, approaches, and techniques, which may spark ideas for your own work or provide insight for future improvements.
 
Purpose of this Thread
The core theme of this thread is improvement. After all, no one is perfect, and facing potential areas to improve head on is one of the quickest ways to get better as an artist.
 
Everyone has something to contribute here! Whether you’re seasoned or new to the art game, chances are someone out there can point out an area to improve that you weren’t aware of, or help give you some ideas on how to proceed. On the other hand, you don’t have to be a great artist to find flaws or areas to improve in pieces of art. First impressions are important, and with how much media/art we see floating around, many of us know when something doesn’t look quite right! A lot of art depends on how it’s interpreted, as well as how it’s constructed. Even if someone’s ability seems to surpass your own at first glance, you may still find something helpful and worthwhile to contribute that they can use, so don’t be afraid to offer your thoughts!
 

---

 

Rules of Thumb, and General Guidelines

- The best criticism is a mix of positive and negative! It can be discouraging to be given all negative words when you’re trying to better yourself, and likewise all positive words can leave you very little to go on.
- Constructive criticism is still criticism, even if it’s meant well! Some people are more tactful than others with how they offer their thoughts, and being on the receiving end can feel a good bit harsh sometimes. If you don’t feel you could take someone putting down your work, you may want to wait on getting it criticized.
- Try to be as clear as possible about your criticism. You don’t have to know what could be done to fix something, or exactly what bothers you, but the clearer you are the more likely it is to be helpful. For example, saying a character looks a bit lifeless is very different than saying their pose comes off too rigid or stiff.
- Put your own judgement first. It’s extremely important to hear what others have to offer with an open mind, but ultimately it’s the artist’s call on what to do with it all.Sometimes preference plays a huge role in stylized pieces, and you should look for areas that may be valid, but not universally sought after. There will be times where criticism may point you towards a direction you don’t want to go, and it’s important to recognize that sometimes you have to pick and choose what is most helpful to you.
- Please respect the time people put into a work or critique. To a certain extent, you’re bound to receive what you give, and so if you spend a good chunk of time on a work that showcases what you can do, there’s a good chance you’ll give others a lot more to offer helpful critique on.  Regardless, proper critiques take time and effort, and are almost always meant to be helpful rather than hurtful; meanwhile, it takes some amount of faith to let strangers judge something you worked hard on, and tell you what you might have done wrong.

 

 
A Word About Styles
Sometimes an artist’s style will make it hard to criticize, as some choices they make may go against conventional proportions or aesthetics. However, even if something can be attributed to style, it’s important to remember that how it is interpreted and received is still important. First impressions are vital for visual mediums, and while a style may get different reactions from different people, each one is still valid and worthy of noting. What may be liked by someone may not by another, and whether it was intentional or not, it’s still often worth pointing out.
 
Resources
To be added soon!
 

Related Topics
Redraw Group - Topic for those interested in redoing other artists' work in their own style, or the same, for the sake of practice or fun.

How to Proceed
It’s simple: post your art, or come find some pieces to critique! You're also welcome to clarify any areas you want focused on.

 

I want to try to get a few people to regularly check in, but I’m hoping there will be enough interest to get a bit of the MLP Forums community going back and forth here, and helping each other out!

 

sorry I sent it without the link https://mlpforums.com/page/roleplay-characters/_/gem-sharpener-r8960

Edited October 21, 2015 by Coder-MP