1. This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn More.
  2. If your account is currently registered using an @aol.com, @comcast.net or @verizon.net email address, you should change this to another email address. These providers have been rejecting all emails from @bulbagarden.net email addresses, preventing user registrations, and thread/conversation notifications. If you have been impacted by this issue and are currently having trouble logging into your account, please contact us via the link at the bottom right hand of the forum home, and we'll try to sort things out for you as soon as possible.
  3. Bulbagarden has launched a new public Discord server. Click Here!

Aquatic Surprise

Discussion in 'Art Gallery' started by GhostlyGlaceon, Jun 29, 2017.

  1. GhostlyGlaceon

    GhostlyGlaceon Member

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2017
    Messages:
    162
    Likes Received:
    80
    [​IMG]
    I Would like to Post this up for Capture please Note - It seems like the shading and greens i put into it do not show up at all after the picture was posted so i apologise for that.

    Target - Staryu
    Rank - Hard
    Points Needed - 55
     
    Monbrey likes this.
  2. Truly

    Truly Stupid Jerk

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Dec 9, 2013
    Messages:
    197
    Likes Received:
    11
    This might seem stupid but I really like this
    it's cute and cartoony and silly. feels very loose.
    (Also whether intended or not, there's detailed shading on the Staryu)
    And actually the staryu has more detailed shading where the "background" pokemon have less focus and detail and look goofy and cute instead.

    and duuude, you've differentiated your sky and mountains not just with color but with the direction that you use to shade them (my favorite trick). yeah, nah, I think this is pretty cool. IMO the framing is a little weird, you could have benefited from either centering the Target or moving it a bit to the other side (slightly more away from the center). IMO, even if you didn't (or couldn't) do that, you could probably benefit from a very slight line of action/motion, showing the trajectory of Staryu... I think it kind of just shot out of the water in an arc.
    The joy of these Pelippers has definitely migrated onto the Staryu and I assume it's jumping around because it's sunny and everything is great and if it had a face it would also be smiling too aaaaaa

    tbh if they don't pass this i would just leave it as is and ask for a peli instead, it's cute and shouldn't be ruined.
     
    GhostlyGlaceon likes this.
  3. GhostlyGlaceon

    GhostlyGlaceon Member

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2017
    Messages:
    162
    Likes Received:
    80
    @Truly thank you so much, it means alot to me when people make the effort to comment on my art and tell me what they think.With the sky i used my white pencil to blend and define the pencil lines smoothly rather then like what i did with the ocean and have defined rough pencil lines.
     
  4. Truly

    Truly Stupid Jerk

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Dec 9, 2013
    Messages:
    197
    Likes Received:
    11
    One more thing-- if it were me, I might have colored in the water mostly-horizontally, and/or possibly given it some resistance based on the land (if you know what I mean-- basically just a line in the water where the current breaks? Idk how to say it). Basically, its because water is always going to be flat on top, whether in a glass or in the ocean. Yours has a lot more texture than I'd expect.

    Although I also get it now-- the sky is Blue + White, the sea is Blue + Green. I didn't realize the sky wasn't just a lightly-shaded blue before, but the reason for the texture of the sea makes a lot more sense with your technique.
     
    GhostlyGlaceon likes this.
  5. EmBreon

    EmBreon Senile

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2010
    Messages:
    616
    Likes Received:
    114
    Claiming this

    nvm, reserved for K'sariya!
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2017
  6. GhostlyGlaceon

    GhostlyGlaceon Member

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2017
    Messages:
    162
    Likes Received:
    80
  7. VeloJello

    VeloJello weird bird

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Dec 25, 2010
    Messages:
    413
    Likes Received:
    60
    K'sariya gave me permission to claim this and here I am, claiming it!
     
  8. VeloJello

    VeloJello weird bird

    Blog Posts:
    0
    Joined:
    Dec 25, 2010
    Messages:
    413
    Likes Received:
    60
    I apologize in advance if I accidentally say Staryu instead of Starmie or vice versa. Happens to me a lot.

    Form.
    So here we have a Starmie scaring the living daylights out of a Wingull! With another of the birds chilling in the foreground for flavor. Your anatomy is really good; I’m impressed with how well you handled all of Starmie’s moving parts and odd shapes. There’s a few things I want to get into, though; let’s start with Starmie because it’s the focus of your piece!

    One thing that just jumps out at me is that the upper left ‘spoke’, so to speak, of Starmie’s core is simply gone. There’s a hint of a rectangle where it used to be, but nothing actually sticks out. Because Starmie is a very symmetrical, geometrical Pokemon, this sticks out a lot. Speaking of sticking out, the top ‘spoke’ on the core should stick up a tad more. You did a really good job showing perspective by making the spokes on bottom longer than those on the top, but the top and upper right spokes are mismatched in length when I feel that they shouldn’t be. The face of the gem should also be a little bit lower than it is; the fact that it rests in such a high place makes the angle look more extreme than it actually is in the picture. Other than that, though, the Starmie looks pretty dang good! Like I said, I liked how you showed how the Starmie is facing upward by making the spokes on the bottom longer and more visible. You also gave Starmie’s ‘arms’ a little roundness at the tips, which is nice because the softer shape works in conjunction with your Starmie’s curved arms.

    And that brings us to the Wingull! While your anatomy on these birds was really good, keeping them in their goofy anime style while still making them come to life in physical space. However, I looked at Wingull’s page on Bulbagarden’s image archive, and I found that both Wingull’s poses have been referenced directly from anime screenshots. While I actively encourage using references for whatever you draw in order to hone your skills, copying directly from a photo or screenshot won’t help you grow as an artist - and it doesn’t reflect well on you as an artist or the level of effort that you put into your work. This tutorial has some advice on how you can use reference images to make your drawings look more realistic without directly copying from your references. What you have here for these Wingulls looks good, but knowing that it’s copied from another artist’s work sours that. Beyond this, I feel like you could have worked on the Wingull in front’s wings a bit more. The wing on our right looks very thick because the line of the “arm” doesn’t go all the way to the elbow. However, the wing on our left looks much thinner because the corresponding end of the wing is folded all the way over the arm. This is a confusing mismatch; I personally would go with thicker wings, but having them both match is important to create clarity. Other than that, your Wingulls look good, but more original poses will get you even farther.

    Something I mentioned in another curation is coming around to relevance again, so while I have your attention, let’s talk about tangents! This very good post has some information on tangents. Here’s the definition that the author provided: “A tangent is when two or more lines interact in a way that insinuates a relationship between them that the artist did not intend.” In the circle of water that Starmie creates, there’s a glob of water that meets the ocean with a shared horizontal line. This “long line” is visually confusing; it almost looks like the ocean itself has a massive wave, rather than there being some of the water that Starmie is holding in orbit around it. The dark line around the water blob makes it distinguishable - but still, tangents are something that are best to just avoid where possible. Changing the position, angle, and/or shape of the water blob would eliminate this tangent pretty quickly.

    Composition.
    Ok, so because this piece is dynamic, I feel like I should comment on how the composition affects all of this. You have some good movement, and curling Starmie’s arms back and down a bit makes it clear that Starmie is launching powerfully out of the water. Ordinarily, we read left-to-right, so most people expect motion to go from left to right as well. However, with Starmie leaping from right-to-left, it almost ‘stalls’ a bit, making the Starmie look like it’s jumping out at us. This stalling action also gives the viewer a sense that the action is taking a longer span of time, so it seems like Starmie making a long, graceful jump and showing off its beauty, rather than just shooting through the water willy-nilly. It’s a really cool effect! I also like the way the upper Wingull’s wings and tail point in Starmie’s direction, as does the lower Wingull’s tail. This is really good for creating a focal point. You also did well with differentiating your foreground and background - leaving the lines off of your background was a nice touch. The scale of the elements in it, combined with the lack of lines, pushes it far off into the distance. However, the lined clouds contrast with your far-off shore, so I would suggest reducing lineart there to unify your background.

    Colors and Value.
    SPEAKING OF LINEART. I’ve been wanting to talk about your lineart this whole time but I wasn’t sure where to bring it up. I think this section works well enough! Like I said, I like what you did with the lineart to create contrast between the far shore and the foreground Pokemon. I like your colored lineart most; it gives everything a nice distinctness without it being too jarring. However, because of the colored lineart, the black lineart on the Wingulls really stands out. If the Wingulls were your focal point, I would say that this might work, but they’re not, and the stark black is a little jarring. When you’re working with white, remember that white isn’t just the bright version of black. Anything white tends to take on the colors of things that are around it - so if you set a white sheet of paper in a green room, it’ll look slightly green; if you set the same sheet in a red room, it’ll look slightly red. If you set a Wingull near a blue sky and ocean, the Wingull will probably look blue! And same with the clouds. Using blue for your lineart for the white Wingull and clouds, in this environment, would help the Wingull stand out a little less, especially since the black lines are broken up with the blue bands on Wingull’s wings and tailfeathers.

    Now onto the actual colors colors. They’re pretty dang good! I really like how soft and pale your sky is in comparison to the slightly darker, greenish waters. The white-and-gray clouds are a really good break between the sky and sea, too. I would recommend making the green of the trees a little bit more diluted though; the stark green is a little out-of-place for something that should be in the background and less important. I would also recommend incorporating a bit of the reddish-brown of the far shore’s rock into the foreground - unless you really want a specific color to pop, you’ll want to spread it all throughout your piece.

    I talked about this a bit when I talked about the lineart, but I would personally recommend tweaking the clouds. They’re already nice and soft, but the gray makes them look like rain clouds! While there’s nothing wrong with rain clouds, shading them with blue would bring the upbeat, energetic mood up even more. Same thing with shading the Wingulls’ white feathers blue. Don’t be afraid to try shading with different hues!

    Technique.
    OK I don’t have a ton to talk about here that I haven’t covered in the other sections but I still do have a few words! You made good use of blending, which is really cool to see in a colored pencil drawing. You kept it mostly on Starmie, and I think it looks better that way - Starmie seems like a smooth Pokemon, and the blending also shows that you put some care into the Pokemon that’s the focus of this piece. Also, I really like the way you used your strokes. Your clouds are colored with broader, more vague strokes that suits their amorphous...ness, your rocks are colored with even coats so that they look cohesive but still look a little rough, your sky is all filled in, and your sea has some nice strokes that indicate waves! However, with the ocean, specifically, I would mention changing the direction of those strokes. The ocean will seem to be moving perpendicularly to the direction of your strokes, so right now the waves seem to be moving either down and to the right or up and to the left. This isn’t inherently bad, but I feel like it’s more motion than you’re looking for. I would suggest making your strokes for the ocean horizontal. That way, it looks more like the ocean could be moving toward us. If you incorporated a bit of one-point perspective, making the strokes nearest us just a tiny bit broader and the ones farther away just a tiny bit smaller, it would also help your water appear more vast. Overall, you’ve done a good job with your materials; there’s just a few more things that you could do to really unify everything and better execute what you’re going for.

    Conclusion.
    Okay, I had to deliberate this a bit, but I’m going to say Staryu (and not Starmie; I did have to double-check the name) captured. You had excellent use of colors, you demonstrated strong understanding of your medium, you had a solid background, and you did good things with Starmie. However, I do want to warn you that at this rank, copying poses from official art is not likely to pass - and even less so now that the art scoring system has been updated. You don’t have to go to weird or wild extents, but make sure that when you use reference images, you don’t directly copy the poses you see. Keep that in mind and keep up the good work! Enjoy your sea star!
     
    GhostlyGlaceon likes this.