Sketches to paintings, Comics to novels

Forums › General Discussion › Sketches to paintings, Comics to novels

Wyster May 25, 2013

I am currently pursuing art as a hobby, and am pretty, well, bad at it. I love art, but when ever I go to draw or paint or something, It comes out wrong, does anyone know some good tips on staying focused and getting better at art, or any reccomendations as to any forms of art I should try?
✯RagnarLoðbrók✯ May 26, 2013

Happy trees!
〓 HARDHITTA 〓 May 26, 2013

Get some basic books on drawing and practice with those. Practice,practice,practice. It isn't gonna happen over night. Learning how to shade is very important in drawing and painting. If its not shaded right and you don't have your light source right your picture isn't gonna look right. Keep practicing and don't get discouraged and you will soon be drawing good pictures. I like to airbrush but airbrushing and tattoo but both of those are hard mediums to master until you actually can draw and paint good first. Good luck.
‡Ɗɼɑɡoɲ🐉Ⴍuεεɳ‡ May 26, 2013

Hard Hitta wrote:
Get some basic books on drawing and practice with those. Practice,practice,practice. It isn't gonna happen over night. Learning how to shade is very important in drawing and painting. If its not shaded right and you don't have your light source right your picture isn't gonna look right. Keep practicing and don't get discouraged and you will soon be drawing good pictures. I like to airbrush but airbrushing and tattoo but both of those are hard mediums to master until you actually can draw and paint good first. Good luck.

When getting books, I recommend books that actually teach you how to draw what you see, as opposed to ones that just teach specific things to draw/trace, if that makes any sense.
❌❌ZebulonPike❌❌ May 26, 2013

Try drawing a picture upside down (the reference picture is up, but you draw it upside down). It sounds difficult and it kind of is, but it's meant to engage the right side of the brain. Sure, you may know what a tree looks like, but when you go to draw it, the left side of the brain just has you draw the generic tree it was taught to draw as a kid.

Also, try drawing pictures by picking a point on the paper as the focal point. Then, whenever you draw a 3d object, make sure that it draws you back to the point (using a ruler or something make sure it lines up).
❌❌ZebulonPike❌❌ May 26, 2013

And if you're going to be drawing, keep a notepad/sketchbook with you.

As far as art forms go, they all take time to master. I'm still working on wood carving birds (I carve and detail them to full realism). Whatever you do, take your time. And it's always nice to have someone help/teach you. Good luck though!
Wyster May 26, 2013

Hard Hitta wrote:
Get some basic books on drawing and practice with those. Practice,practice,practice. It isn't gonna happen over night. Learning how to shade is very important in drawing and painting. If its not shaded right and you don't have your light source right your picture isn't gonna look right. Keep practicing and don't get discouraged and you will soon be drawing good pictures. I like to airbrush but airbrushing and tattoo but both of those are hard mediums to master until you actually can draw and paint good first. Good luck.

Thanks for the advice on shading, I am currently pursuing sketching and drawing, mostly because I can't really get the colors right, but your advice should help, thanks.
Wyster May 26, 2013

❌❌ZebulonPike❌❌ wrote:
And if you're going to be drawing, keep a notepad/sketchbook with you.

As far as art forms go, they all take time to master. I'm still working on wood carving birds (I carve and detail them to full realism). Whatever you do, take your time. And it's always nice to have someone help/teach you. Good luck though!

Yep, Thanks for the advice, patience in art is key, right?
mdpaulk May 26, 2013

❌❌ZebulonPike❌❌ wrote:
Try drawing a picture upside down (the reference picture is up, but you draw it upside down).

👆👆
This right here.
It is probably the best piece of advice for just starting out in painting or art.
As a painter myself, I find that abstract art is the best thing I can relate to technique-wise.
If you think you've messed up a painting, just go with the 'oopsie.' You never know how it'll turn out.
In the end, usually the paintings I thought I've messed up turned out to be the best.
The Rider May 26, 2013

Find out if there's an organization in your area that supports the arts. I'm from a community of about 25k and we had a League of Fine Arts. They have classes throughout the year for people of all skill levels. Great place to learn and pick up tricks from other like minded people.
Wyster May 26, 2013

The Rider wrote:
Find out if there's an organization in your area that supports the arts. I'm from a community of about 25k and we had a League of Fine Arts. They have classes throughout the year for people of all skill levels. Great place to learn and pick up tricks from other like minded people.

Looking it up, thanks. :)
Excelsior Mob™ May 26, 2013

When I use to study at the art institute, I learned that to start out you should not try and draw what you see perfectly. When you draw, just use what you see and and make it your own. Also you should take a class on color theory. It really helps you understand how color works, as far as incorporating warms and cool, monochromatic and all that. I mostly like doing landscapes drawing for fun, so those practices helped me. That's my 2 cents.
Wyster May 27, 2013

Excelsior mafia wrote:
When I use to study at the art institute, I learned that to start out you should not try and draw what you see perfectly. When you draw, just use what you see and and make it your own. Also you should take a class on color theory. It really helps you understand how color works, as far as incorporating warms and cool, monochromatic and all that. I mostly like doing landscapes drawing for fun, so those practices helped me. That's my 2 cents.

Thanks, I'll try seeing what I can learn about color theory