just curious to all the people who know how to make some pretty nice art including people, objects, etc. where did you begin ? how did you start to learn how to make these things and what path did you take to learn more and be where you are at today? thanks

To say that I havé been drawing all my life would be a lie. I''ve got a messed up timeline; here it goes: From age 5-6 I''ve drawn Ninja Turtles and Godzilla stuff. I stopped. I started again at age 11-12 drawing marvel chars after watching X-Men. Became a fan, started collecting cards and comics of it and soon I neglected drawing and became a Marvel collector. Stopped again. And now I''ve just started drawing in 1999 (due to Pokemon) Yeah. Now it sucks to me but when it first hit I was into the game for it was new....and queer yet fun. If I can learn so can you. Just find something inspirational and never stop drawing. Besides, with the net you can easily learn quicker by just surfing around to look at pics you like (no, not porno ) and copy of it.

Dude1:Look at this!
Dude2:Ugh! That''s disgusting.
Dude1:Its art!
Dude2: Its your puke.
Dude1:Its abstract art,dammit!

I feel like a loner because I can''t draw! I''ll rumage through magazine after magazine trying to find something to draw. I find nothing good. So my imagination kicks in and I think of something to draw. I draw it and it looks like something a 3 year-old would draw! Would the trick to becoming a better drawer be to just keep drawing things or what? My friend told me "The more you draw, the better you get. The more you slack, the worse you''ll become!" Could this actually be true? I need help here! Oh, incase you haven''t figured it out by now, my areas of interest are in 3D Art/Modeling and Programming!

Master Conjurer

Practice makes perfect. This couldnt be more true for drawing. Even more so when it comes to using programs to do it. Just explore and try different things. Try looking at http://www.3dcafe.com/asp/tutorial.asp there are some realy nice tutorials there. Whatever you do, keep at it.

I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.
-Vapour

Edited by - Vapour on June 21, 2001 12:04:41 AM

Try copying anime stylish drawing, is very easy and fast, though if you draw american-comics is more hard (and ugly). I made this (drawing ToHeart anime nothing original).


For structure, use the architect method :with a pencil and a block draw in the street ;-).

Of course a beginner can spend 1 , 2 or more hours in a simple pin-ups, expert made this in minutes.

The main is draw some you like (in my case, dislike draw men).

If you want to do hand drawn art, the first thing to do is find out whether you''re better at technical drawing or free drawing. If you''re better at architecture, angular object design and straight line stuff with good perspective, you''re a technical limner(look it up). If you''re good at "organic" objects, like plants, people or anything with a curved surface, you''re a free limner. A vaguely good guide is whether you preferred (or prefer) design & technology or art at school/college. If you''re a technical artist, stick to architecture and angular objects and get someone else to draw your characters and landscapes. If you''re a free limner, you can probably draw anything you want for a game, but don''t count on it, you may still have trouble with technical drawing. Practice is of course the key. Now sharpen a pencil and get going.

If you want to get started in 3D modelling, things are rather different.

First draw a rough sketch of a scene or two that you want to make on paper. Don''t worry if it doesn''t look very good, it''s just to help you get the structure of the scene straight in your mind. This scene will usually be just for practice and you wont want to use it in a game. Think it through very carefully, and keep your early ones very simple. Make sure you know every detail you want to produce, and how it all fits together.
Improvisation once you''ve sat at the computer is, in my experience, very bad.

If you don''t feel up to a whole scene, plan a few objects on their own first.

Now find yourself a decent free modeller/renderer (I recommend Blender), or splash out on a professional program if you feel really reckless. Do NOT do this until you''ve got the entire scene planned out and ready.

Then start modelling. Look up and learn features of the software as and when you need them, and only learn one at a time. When you start making the scene you will be tempted to add stuff to it, using features you probably don''t completely know how to use. If you possibly can, stick to your original plan.

If you''re a perfectionist, you should also remember the golden rule of 3D artwork: you aren''t trying to create an exact replica of something, you''re trying to make something that looks like it is, which is usually much easier and also less heavy on your processor!

My own personal rule: if you want ACCEPTABLE art, just keep drawing/modelling every day to a deadline. If you want to get paid for your work, this is probably the best approach.

If, on the other hand, you want BRILLIANT art, stick to making stuff you think is going to be good, when you get divine moments of inspiration or a sudden burning desire to create something specific and original.

If you aren''t lucky enough to recieve divine inspiration on a regular basis, and most people don''t, then just do the best you can.

If anyone reading this forum thinks this would make a good article, or good material for theirs, feel free to use it.

Where can I find Blender and are there any other good freeware 2D/3D drawing/painting/modeling programs out there?

Blender can be found at: http://www.blender.nl

A free program for doing 2D stuff is gimp (http://www.gimp.org). For windows, try http://www.gimp.org/win32.

Next time, look at the Internet first before posting questions about where to find something. www.google.com appears to be a good search engine.

I have done searches, but it''s still hard to tell which programs are GOOD. I dont like wasteing time and space downloading programs that may or may not be what I need. Thx for the help.

Hello,

I am no prodigious art talent so I cannot contribute as much, but I can pass along what I''ve learnt in my own path of development.

If you are *serious* about making a living with your drawing / painting skills, then you need to learn how to draw, first and foremost. If you are just doing anime fanart or imitating the stylized work of established artists then I can honestly say while that may get you noticed in certain niche areas of development, as a whole you are more likely to get ignored. I''m not saying it''s a bad thing to take some inspiration from artists whose work you admire; however you will need to show versatility and skill of your own, if you wish to be taken seriously by the majority of developers.

Improve your understanding of anatomy. Pick up a good book dealing with anatomy and study the drawings. Reproduce them on paper. By getting to know the skeletal structure and musculature of the human body, you will learn about proportion and the actual mechanics of movement beneath the skin. I realize this might be boring for some, but this is to help you build a solid fundamental base which you can work from; certainly the knowledge you gain will reflect in your work.

Take your sketchbook along with you whenever it''s feasible and draw what you see. Observation is really important; the understanding you have built up in learning your anatomy will help when you start to capture figures in motion (gesture). However when you are doing gesture drawings it is not so much about getting the right proportions or the exact muscle structure, as it is about capturing the movement. It will build your understanding of expression through various body movements, and will help you develop a visual library. This is an important area of an animator''s abilities, so hopefully I did not confuse things for you = ).

If you''re old (and mature) enough to handle it, I''d encourage you to enroll in some life drawing classes. Beyond some of the more obvious benefits of working from a dedicated live model, you may well encounter some very experienced and talented artists willing to offer tips and advice. If you are really lucky they may give you some sort of mentoring, and encouragement that you might not have found by just working on your own.

Learn to view your work with an objective eye. Do not let complacency set in; there is always room for improvement no matter how talented you may be. At the art school I went to students were subjected to critiques from peers and classmates on a weekly basis. You need to develop a thick skin, because no matter how objective the criticism you are bound to (at some point) take things too much to heart. While you may think your work is really good, someone else is going to point out flaws. You need to detach yourself enough from your work so that you can see the crits for what they are, and apply the suggestions given with an eye towards improving. In the absence of such outside input, you will need to take on that role yourself. Can you remain objective? Will you be able to see the good and the bad in your work? Hopefully so, because if you find yourself working for game company one day some art director is going to be doing exactly this and you should be well prepared for anything that might come your way.

Finally, practice all the time. Building up all that pencil mileage is arguably one of the best methods of improving your skill, if not the best. It is one thing to like animation / art, and work on it for your own personal enjoyment. There are no pressures, beyond the ones you bring to bear on yourself. I''d argue that it is a totally different matter when you wish to make a living based on your ability as an artist; with the latter, you are now unfortunately working from someone else''s standards and you need to meet and exceed that level. That is one glaring distinction that IMHO too many folks do not bother to make. Making games is fun; but there is a tremendous amount of hard work that goes into it as well. Don''t be ignorant of this. Make sure you''re committed to putting in the hard work to get where you want to go.

Sorry for the length of the post!

Good luck.