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The Practice and Criticism Thread

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Post one of your latest drawings/pieces/sketches/sprites/songs/etc. here, and everyone will do their part to give you some decent constructive criticism. The purpose of this thread is to help you improve and get better at art by pointing out your mistakes and things you need to work on.

Please don't post here if you're unable to take criticism. If you don't think you can handle someone not liking your piece for any reason, then you probably shouldn't post here.

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I'll go first. I have two things for now:

The first is a tiny animated sprite.

I was limited to a 50x50 canvas, so there isn't much detail.

The second is a sketch commission I did:
 
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Trumully

Cyborg Kiwi
Post one of your latest drawings/pieces/sketches/sprites/etc. here, and everyone will do their part to give you some decent constructive criticism. The purpose of this thread is to help you improve and get better at art by pointing out your mistakes and things you need to work on.

Please don't post here if you're unable to take criticism. If you don't think you can handle someone not liking your piece for any reason, then you probably shouldn't post here.

----​

I'll go first. I have two things for now:

The first is a tiny animated sprite.

I was limited to a 50x50 canvas, so there isn't much detail.

The second is a sketch commission I did:
Hmm, I like this.
With artwork number one, I love the tiny animated sprite! It's awesome! Maybe make the movement near the end a bit slower as I felt that was a bit unnatural. Good job overall, anyways!
Artwork number 2. Just a few things here and there like left over sketch around his right (our left) arm and a tiny pixel shown away from that as well. Otherwise, I think this is amazing! I like the shading, like the emotion on the face and... Yea. Awesome, sage! :P
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
I agree with you on the first one, to an extent. I wanted to make it speed up as she started laughing, but I quickly found out that there wasn't a good way to do that. So it does look a little weird. I decided to go with it anyway though, because it was closer to my original idea. I'm glad you like it!
like left over sketch around his right
Yeah, I realized that I left that one there right after I posted the thread. Didn't catch the dot though.
[doublepost=1445220807,1445138157][/doublepost]Something I'm working on:


Crit me.
 

Status Gear Entertainment

Praised Adventurer
@sage 's 2nd picture:

I like it, you definitely have an understanding to the structure of the human form. One that I am not so good at, even a year of art as an elective, I have trouble with drawing people. At the moment it is simplistically colored which makes it beautiful <3 If I had to give it a go on something needed to be changed, probably angle the face down from the left side a bit more, the body does appear to be leaning over a little as well as the head so the face should be too. Other then that, it's all good boss. ^v^

I saw the title icon and thought of ideas because my curiosity and creative mind won't stop and came up with something close to the original RMMV logo style on the Pre-Order flyer.
It's also a practice for me for making art on a small level which is tough because you need the right amount of color to be seen correctly from a distance. Yay? Nay?
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
One that I am not so good at, even a year of art as an elective, I have trouble with drawing people
It takes well over a year to get good at it. It takes a lot of practice. It took me 2-3 to get a solid understanding of accurate proportions and everything. And even then, I still made quite a bit of mistakes.

At the moment it is simplistically colored which makes it beautiful 3 If I had to give it a go on something needed to be changed, probably angle the face down from the left side a bit more, the body does appear to be leaning over a little as well as the head so the face should be too.
I see what you're saying. I was going to make her looking straight at the viewer, but then I ended up tilting her face a bit. As a result, it's a bit weird.

I like them. They look good and really do stand out.
The only problem I have with them is that the darkest gray and the darkest gold could be a bit lighter. Because they're so dark, it's a bit harder to see them from farther away.
Good work! :thumbsup:
 

LTN Games

Master Mind
Resource Team
Xy$
0.01
This is a logo I created for a client but was not exactly what the client was looking for, i'm looking to get a bit of feedback/critique on it as I seem to like it quite a bit. The lines and numbers in the background are a part of the title screen I made for the client, i'm only looking for feedback on the logo itself. The logo was supposed to be a simple blue color, as the entire title screen is simple.

This is what the title screen looks like, in case you want to see it, you can give feedback on this if you like, up to you.
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
This is a logo I created for a client
I think the logo is a bit pale. It doesn't stand out much against the background, and it's a dull blue as well. I think that color works well for the petals(?) in the title screen, but not so well for the logo itself.

I think the biggest problem with it is the overall shape. All of the parts that stick out throw the logo off balance. If you look at other logos, they're usually compact shapes, like squares, triangles, and circles.

But besides that, I like the components of the logo, like the branches and leaves. You did a good job on them and the rest of the logo.
 

LTN Games

Master Mind
Resource Team
Xy$
0.01
I think the logo is a bit pale. It doesn't stand out much against the background, and it's a dull blue as well. I think that color works well for the petals(?) in the title screen, but not so well for the logo itself.
Yea I agree, the color was pale, sometimes it's hard to work with a client when they want things so specific. When I update this logo I will be using a more saturated color, maybe more than one color as well.

I think the biggest problem with it is the overall shape. All of the parts that stick out throw the logo off balance. If you look at other logos, they're usually compact shapes, like squares, triangles, and circles.
You know I'm surprised I never noticed the off balance before, I do notice this quite a bit now. I will see what I can do about it, but when I start removing things I end up starting it all over lol, it's a good thing and bad thing sometimes.


But besides that, I like the components of the logo, like the branches and leaves. You did a good job on them and the rest of the logo.
I had a ton of fun with this logo even though the client was very specific, but all of a sudden he would not like one thing and be like try this instead hahah.

Anyways, that was some very good feedback thank you. I will be sure to post here more often, Ill also come back after I fix up this logo to see what I can come up with.
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Yea I agree, the color was pale, sometimes it's hard to work with a client when they want things so specific.
Yeah, some people are dead set on having something similar to another thing, even if it won't lead to anything good.

Anyways, that was some very good feedback thank you. I will be sure to post here more often, Ill also come back after I fix up this logo to see what I can come up with.
You're welcome! I'll be right here when you come back. ouo
 

Wimpbox

Towns Guard
All i can give is 2 of the lastest drawings i published on my deviantART:

These images are very huge because i'd really want my drawings to be really big, infact, but i never seem to want to do smaller ones.



I've been looking for tutorials how to draw in a better start, but i actually started drawing since months ago and not in the past. :I

No, my avatar isn't my art.
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
All i can give is 2 of the lastest drawings i published on my deviantART:

These images are very huge because i'd really want my drawings to be really big, infact, but i never seem to want to do smaller ones.

I've been looking for tutorials how to draw in a better start, but i actually started drawing since months ago and not in the past. :I
You're doing good for someone who just started. You did a great job on the flower.

Big images is a good idea. It gives you enough space to work on details, and that's good.
You really just need to work on the basics, like human proportions and whatnot.

And try not to use the airbrush to shade or to blur your shading layer. A lot of new digital artists do it, and it doesn't look good. If you want to make soft shading, use the soft brush at a low opacity.

Just keep drawing, and you'll be set. ^^

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I have a bunch of things to show. They're a bunch of sketch and colored sketch trades I did with people.







 

Zebestian

The Artist formerly known as Kaimen
Resource Team
@sage The first one looks like he'd belong in a Kingdom Hearts game. Just add some zippers and the character's ready to go. :D
What irks me a little bit about the other two humans is that their legs are cut off. It's not a bad thing, really, but it irks me. Especially the third dude... I'm only a little creeped out. I do like the wasp/hornet/insect thingy though. Don't know why but I think it looks kinda cute. Was that intended? XD
Yeah... sorry for not being able to provide some in-depth feedback here. The only thing I know about art is whether I like it or not. Yours I like. Just the leg issue man. The leg issue. :D

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Alright, tiny rant incoming. I'm very disappointed of this forum for constantly forgetting about the "music". I've stated it in my music thread already, music is also an art form and I'm not okay with it always being ignored or forgotten or whatever. There's not only pixel pushers in this art section, there's also us noisemakers. I constantly feel like I and my work are not taken seriously.
Post one of your latest drawings/pieces/sketches/sprites/etc. here
See? I don't wanna be "etc." XD
I'm not mad though. It's just something I observed here. But, I'm gonna be mean and give you a song to criticize. Ha! Now I got ya! :D

The First Day
A solo piano piece made to celebrate the release of MV. I quickly threw this together on the release date actually, so it is fairly simple. But I think it has potential to be used in a game. :D
 

Holder

Towns Guard
Xy$
0.00
The first is a tiny animated sprite.

I was limited to a 50x50 canvas, so there isn't much detail.
I'm going to focus on improvements that can be made, nothings wrong with it but there's things that can assist you further.
It's rather bright, what background did you work on it with?
You've got the background colour in with the sprite which can cause transparency problems.
I don't know if it was intentional but you've dithered here quite a bit, where it's good to do this with larger sprites it becomes lost with smaller ones.
Did a quick little edit to show other things such as lighting and colours:
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
See? I don't wanna be "etc."
Alright, I'll go ahead and edit it. >.>

Don't know why but I think it looks kinda cute. Was that intended?
Yup. It's like a little fairy wasp thing. I think fairies are supposed to be cute, so I made it a cute little fairy wasp.

What irks me a little bit about the other two humans is that their legs are cut off. It's not a bad thing, really, but it irks me.
Lol. That's something I should probably consider.
These were just sketches, and I tend to make really large canvases when I do sketches because I do a lot at once. Because I draw and color in the middle of the page, I just trail off with the legs or whatever if I know I'm not going to do them.
I should probably cut the images a little higher when I crop them though :P

It's rather bright, what background did you work on it with?
You've got the background colour in with the sprite which can cause transparency problems.
I don't know if it was intentional but you've dithered here quite a bit, where it's good to do this with larger sprites it becomes lost with smaller ones.
I didn't have a background layer, so it had the white and light gray squares. That's most likely why it's so bright.
I see what you're saying, and the edit makes it really clear. Thanks for taking the time to do that!

I've always had troubles with contrast, and I really had to fight myself not to make digital art too bright when I first started.
[doublepost=1446336365,1446335765][/doublepost]Oh, I forgot about the song.
But, I'm gonna be mean and give you a song to criticize. Ha! Now I got ya!
I really don't know anything about music. I couldn't help you if I wanted to.
It sounds alright, I guess. It's kinda plain because there's just one piano track, and a slow one at that.
Another piano track or something might help.. maybe. I don't know.
It's kind of repetitive as well. I don't know if that's good or bad, but it's an observation. Lol.
 

Minty

Knight
Xy$
0.00
Ehm, how about these?
Cat's Eye.png
^ A Steven Universe fan-character I made for a friend.
Cat's Eye shaded.png
That's a version where I was practicing shading.
I'll see what else I feel like uploading x3
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Ehm, how about these?
^ A Steven Universe fan-character I made for a friend.
That's a version where I was practicing shading.
I'll see what else I feel like uploading x3
The drawing looks good.
There are only two problems I have with it. The first is the mouth, and the second is her right shoulder.
I can't really tell what expression she's trying to make with her mouth, so it makes her face look a little weird.
Her right shoulder is a little too round and needs to be more of a right angle, like the other shoulder. If you fix the shoulder, you should also move the white strip over a bit to look even.

Here is what changes I think should be made: edit1.png
And here is what it will look like if you change those things: colored.png


As for the shading one:
You did a good job cel shading it, but I think you kind of overdid the airbrush. You used too large of a brush size for it, so you have the white stuff showing like halfway through her body. If you dialed it down, I think it'd look better.
I like the effect you went for, and I think the colors look really nice in it.
[doublepost=1448605460,1446406479][/doublepost]I have something I'm working on:

 

HumanBLuE

Towns Guard
Xy$
0.00
Hey guys, spent all day trying to learn the anatomy of a lion and here is my result.
Fantasy Lion2.png
This is probably gonna be the most painful faceset for me to draw..!~ (tears) But I want him in the game and I like to have some advice on what to add or fix before I start coloring. Also can anyone tell me how to get "$Bigmonster" sized character templates? (glad)
 

OldPat

Towns Guard
Xy$
0.00
I... didn't saw this topic! o.o
I'm seriously in need of genuine feedbacks\criticisms\advices. I'm looking to improve myself more and more.

I'll just post one of the new artworks I made:
Direct Link: http://orig09.deviantart.net/cded/f/2015/354/3/8/karma_flow___anabelle_s_torments_by_ssafropat-d9krz6b.png

I'm trying to improve in practically everything, so I'm looking for feedbacks regarding composition, coloring, lineart, anatomy, things like that.
Thank you in advance for your time! I'm not so good at giving good advices for other people's works, but I'll try to help by sharing some when I can!
 

Bizarre Monkey

I SHALL BE GLORIOUS!
@OldPat: The only thing I could really see you need to improve on is toning down the filters you use, for example, the outglow filter on the girl there, it's way too much, hurts the eyes, the reason for this being that there's already so much to look at, I think getting rid of those glows would be a really good start.

@Everyone: Need some feedback on this thing.

Once colored I'll be placing it in place of the four actors here for the box art I'm working on.
http://i.imgur.com/2YWZ2sW.png
 

sage

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Hey guys, spent all day trying to learn the anatomy of a lion and here is my result.
This is probably gonna be the most painful faceset for me to draw..!~ (tears) But I want him in the game and I like to have some advice on what to add or fix before I start coloring.
I think it looks pretty good. I don't really have any criticisms. I do think the face is a little too thin though. Lions do have long faces, but they're also pretty wide.


I'm trying to improve in practically everything, so I'm looking for feedbacks regarding composition, coloring, lineart, anatomy, things like that.
Thank you in advance for your time! I'm not so good at giving good advices for other people's works, but I'll try to help by sharing some when I can!
I think scooting the girl to the right more, and the shadow girl(?) to the left would help with the composition. You want your main focuses to be around the thirds of the screen.

aaa.png

thirds.png

I also think the saxophone guy she be flipped, so he points back towards the picture, instead of away, redirecting you back to the center.
I like the dimness of the sax guy though. It doesn't distract you from the girl, which is good.

I think you did a great job on the girl too. She looks good.

Adding more color to the tears and changing the shadow girl's expression more would help make it stand out. I didn't realize the two images of her were different at first. The focus was drawn towards the colored one because they were so close and she was brighter, so I didn't notice.

Your contrast is a little high, but I like it.


@Everyone: Need some feedback on this thing.
You need to work on a lot of basics. Anatomy, clothing, foreshortening, posing, and just general stuff.

aaaaaaaa.png

Having the girl on the side throws off the symmetry and balance of the picture. If you don't stick something (it could even be the logo) on the other side, the picture will look weird as a whole due to a lack of balance.

The feet on the front dude look awkward. When you run, don't kick your leg back like that, you always keep your foot pointing towards the ground, and not the sky.

Also, the cat guy is missing a shoulder, and you should be able to see the coat between his legs (I forgot to mark that).

Finally, a lot of things (especially legs) look awkward because you don't really show foreshortening. Skeleton's front knee looks oddly high because there aren't any wrinkles in the pants to indicate foreshortening. The front guy's upper left arm (on our right) looks short compared to the other one because the shirt doesn't curve back very much.



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