"One pony a day"-project

[Zhooves 843]

*sigh* 

 

Dear diary,

 

Tonight I actually had quite some time to do a drawing, but it just didn't work out. I started and screwed it up several times, so I erased everything and started over... and screwed it up again. I just don't know what went wrong.

So in the end I said "screw it" and put the drawing pad down for today.

I guess this is turning into "one pony every other day" after all... 

Have no fear - soon you will become better, and possibly learn a few tricks to make stuff quicker, better, and less likely to fail~

 

Now, keep in mind that getting used with helping-lines and circles can be quite useful...

If I hadn't gotten at least the basic idea of how to use them, the following sketches would've maybe taken me a couple of hours all together... In stead of a total of like 20 minutes~ (I drew them both today)

 

 

 

(I'm on a BOAT~)

 

 

 

[Hdc 155]

Okay, so I'm back. Finally got something done... Started this yesterday, but didn't have time to finish until today. I looked a bit at the tutorial mentioned by Bugplayer above.

 

 

It's pretty much just "manual labor" again, a standard side view with not much going on. But when I compare it to my previous drawings it is an improvement I think. 

 

By the way, Fluttershy sure had some special elements going on, like the mane "fold" and the eye shape and all that. So, she felt a bit trickier to draw. Also, I've never drawn a pegasus before.

 

Now there are some mistakes but I'm thinking that perhaps I shouldn't list them here myself. It's easy to get self-blind and obsess over certain minor problems while not noticing others. Feel free to comment any mistakes you notice, of course.

[Silverwisp the Bard 2,353]

 

 

By the way, Fluttershy...

Looking good, there is definitely some improvement going on.

You pretty much nailed head and mane/tail.

The frontlegs could sit a smidgen farther back on the body and she could be a tad thinner.

Keep up the good work.

[Hdc 155]

Ok, so I wanted to try something different this time. No clue whether that was such a good idea or not.

 

For some reason, I wanted to draw Berry Punch. I wanted to draw a pony standing upright on it's hind legs. I wanted to draw an angry pony. Initially, I was going to make her punch something as in "Berry Punch", but I realized that there is no way I'm figuring out how to draw that yet.

 

 

Now, I can't possibly tell if this is good or bad myself. The standing pose is weird to begin with so there's no way I'll figure out if the proportions or shapes are anywhere near anatomically correct. I don't really think so, but I didn't really find any good reference for this. 

I had to draw something different this time to keep myself interested. I'm thinking of having some sort of schedule like, one day I'll draw a simple Mane 6 "by the book"-drawing, one day I'll draw something directly from a reference picture, one day I'll draw an OC etc. I don't really know what the best learning exercise is though.

[XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 777]

Now, I can't possibly tell if this is good or bad myself. The standing pose is weird to begin with so there's no way I'll figure out if the proportions or shapes are anywhere near anatomically correct. I don't really think so, but I didn't really find any good reference for this. 

I had to draw something different this time to keep myself interested. I'm thinking of having some sort of schedule like, one day I'll draw a simple Mane 6 "by the book"-drawing, one day I'll draw something directly from a reference picture, one day I'll draw an OC etc. I don't really know what the best learning exercise is though.

I have a feeling that this is your first ever standing pose, I know that feeling all too well

Either way this is pretty good I must say, I like the quality of your line the most and you even added a different value for the hair, that's good. Distinguishing what's a signature part of a pony will help viewers better recognized whom the figure is faster. In this case, darkening the hair (even slightly) helps us quickly figure out that this is indeed Berry Punch (or one of her mane clones) and helps develop the overall harmony of your picture. 

 

If I had to suggest something though, meld her flank with her hind leg into a nice arcing curve to help emphasize her flank. I'd also suggest curving her back a bit more and make her belly a bit smaller. You can also erase a tiny circle into her eyes to represent reflections. Keep in mind that if you do go with the erase method, you'll need to shade in her Iris. Confused? Click this text for a visual aid. Remember, these are just suggestions, not something that's set in stone or something silly like that

 

References for standing ponies are indeed tough to come by. The ones that are within the show are usually the same stock posture. Something you can try out though for finding better poses is to look at things you'd not normally think of as a true standing pose. Like when pegasi are hovering or when pony's are lying down. You'll most likely need to make the legs/hoves longer/bigger, but it's to get a general idea for the building blocks of a standing pose. 

 

As for what I'd suggest as 'the best' learning exercise, I'd say first learn how to directly draw from reference images. The reason why is because as of right now you probably don't have a strong grasp on symbol recognition (SR for short.) If you go to drawing straight from the imagination while your SR hasn't been refined, things may look wrong in your image. Focus on the building blocks of how to draw a pony (I.E. Draw from reference) and in due time you won't have to go back to reference shots. Just be sure to mix it up with different poses and experiment! Replace the character you're referencing with an OC's Mane/Tail/CutieMark, toy with different ideas as how to represent a pony's muzzle, hair, etc. As you continue to grow, your style will show itself, believe me. But for now, just focus on the building blocks my friend and try to 'let go' when you're drawing. 

 

I hope this wall of text has helped you in some way, I look forward to your future drawings 

Edited May 14, 2013 by Accellerant

[Hdc 155]

 

I hope this wall of text has helped you in some way, I look forward to your future drawings 

 

Absolutely. Amazingly helpful post. Thanks for taking the time to write all that. I will definitely make good use of your advice. 

[Hdc 155]

Yesterday, it was time to draw Apple Bloom. I wanted something easy and straightforward, so I drew from this reference. Didn't really try to change anything around.

It looks pretty good I would say.

 

 

The only thing that kept irking me was her right eye. Specifically the pupil & iris shape. I redrew it several times, until I felt that I was starting to obsess over it. I had to let it go in the end, because I was sort of losing any form of objective judgement. Also, I almost started messing up surrounding things because of the erasing. Perhaps I tend to draw a bit too small scale, which makes erasing a pain.  But enough about that damn eye, I'm pretty happy with this. Proportions felt better this time, perhaps it's easier to draw fillies.

 

 

 

*sigh* that damned eye, I still stare at it...

Edited May 16, 2013 by housedoc

[AngryUnicorn 163]

I've been inactive on the forums so I haven't been able to keep updated on this topic. I love your improvement! I only wish I had time in the day to practice up on my drawing 

 

When summer rolls around, I might try my own pony-a-day thing for myself to see how much I can improve. Great job and keep up the work 

[Zhooves 843]

Yesterday, it was time to draw Apple Bloom. I wanted something easy and straightforward, so I drew from this reference. Didn't really try to change anything around.

It looks pretty good I would say.

 

2013-05-14.jpg

 

The only thing that kept irking me was her right eye. Specifically the pupil & iris shape. I redrew it several times, until I felt that I was starting to obsess over it. I had to let it go in the end, because I was sort of losing any form of objective judgement. Also, I almost started messing up surrounding things because of the erasing. Perhaps I tend to draw a bit too small scale, which makes erasing a pain.  But enough about that damn eye, I'm pretty happy with this. Proportions felt better this time, perhaps it's easier to draw fillies.

 

 

 

*sigh* that damned eye, I still stare at it...

 

Ok, now this is starting to look like something~

I would say this is pretty close to perfect - you have improved a lot~

Now I guess the next challenge for you would be to draw something without too much of a reference...

[Hdc 155]

Ok, so I took a few days off. Thanks for the kind words for the previous drawing.

 

 

So I wanted to try a standing-like pose again (hovering in this case). I was also due for a Dashie drawing.  I think I've decided to alternate between completely reference-based drawings, and ones where I only look at reference pictures when I feel like I need to for specific parts. This drawing is of the latter type.

 

*Since this was my first flying/hovering pose drawing, I needed some reference for legs and wings. Legs turned out too small perhaps? (again)

*I wasn't sure how to position the "background wing" though, so I sort of winged it. I think it works out okay?

*I found it difficult to come up with a position to pose her forelegs. This looks a bit too dog-like.

*The tail is not that good, the grayscale rainbow effect is not a success and the "color-fields" have a wonky shape.

*I should make the eye highlights bigger probably. And the eyelashes. Several of the smaller details are a bit unpolished, actually.

 

Overall, I'm not that unhappy though. The Apple Bloom drawing is better, but that one is completely based on a single reference.

 

Again, thanks for your support, feedback and interest.