Help with head and face

[wheat jackal]

Sounds like you are doing it right. It takes a while because your are putting in the work you need to do to get it right. As you practice more, you will start to remember the ratios more and more until the become internalized.

I did a free class on how I study the skull a few weeks ago that might help. https://youtube.com/live/WKS1oSVcKoU?feature=share

When you watch the video, keep in mind I can draw that fast because I've been a pro for more than a decade and I've studied the skull a lot.

[trail copper]

@wheat jackal Sorry for not responding i forgot about this, but what ive been doing for the past 2 days is basically practicing copyimg it and remembering where they are when i use perspective boxes, ill watch the video u sent later

[trail copper]

Ive also heard from some videos that recreating faces from refrences under timers also could help train facial features

[wheat jackal]

You have the right idea. do that from a bunch of angles to learn the forms. Next, test your knowledge by doing the same thing without reference, then check your work against the reference at a similar angle.

Why would the timer help train facial features?

[trail copper]

Well tbh i forgot the reasoning im the video i did watch

Think it was just like to make it efficient depending on how fast u can comfortably go

[trail copper]

would u reccommend me doing a more realistic skull or the one im currently doing, i feel this one is a good blend between realism and simplicity

[wheat jackal]

I think I used the same model in my video actually. When I was doing this study for myself I used a plastic model, which I think is better because you can't just copy when drawing real life objects

[trail copper]

How do i get into like the mental aspect of learning from stuff without just copying

personally after doing the copying i feel like i know a lot better the general shapes

Of the skull

the bones

[wheat jackal]

Let me explain the difference that I'm making between copying from images and studying from life: Images have lines and shapes arranged in 2d space that you can copy. In real life, there are no lines or shapes. There are forms in 3d space. To draw from life, you have to translate your 3d experience into a 2d image instead of copying

[trail copper]

get my mind to think 3d?

and about the volume instead of the lines

[azure basin]

here's a thing i learned from gesture god glenn vilppu, the primary feature to learn from the skull is identifying landmarks, these landmarks are what you'll use when you later add on skin and facial features

[trail copper]

Mmm okay

btw im learning this now so i can later on stylize it to fit more anime esc

Proportions

I can send a photo of how ive drawn heads in the past in my artworks

[wheat jackal]

sure

that makes sense

[wheat jackal]

exactly. You also get a richer experience from real life object than models on a screen

[azure basin]

when it comes to how to do copying (i'm translating a chinese course that goes over this learning method)
is it being a deconstruction and reconstruction exercise

while drawing, constantly ask the why
"why did the artist place the line here" or "How did they simplify this complex muscle into a single shape?"

copying is "scientific observation" process of translating a 2D image back into a 3D idea in your head, then back onto the paper.

[trail copper]

I dont have an irl skull sadly but my brother has a 3d printer so i could ask him one day

[trail copper]

Mmm okay

Would it be better for me to practixe the skull by deconstricting it into simples shapes?

[azure basin]

Always ™

[hallow pond]

yes, do that

[trail copper]

Okayy

Ill get to that then

[trail copper]

though it usually takes quite longer for me to construct, im assuming ill get faster over time?

[azure basin]

Yeah, at some point you can just look at something and construct it in your head

Like those clips where super geniuses suddenly math and fractals everywhere

[trail copper]

One last question, how much time should i spend each day on this, im thinking i wanna try a 50/50 split on studying and drawing what i want because ive had experience with burn out before

I planned to use 1 hour every day

[azure basin]

Ideal with be as long as possible but I’ve seen 3 hours be the sweet spot, analyze/deconstruct -> reconstruct, -> review (so you know what to focus on the next session), as long as you can fit those goal markers, the review is the gold because you know how to not waste time

So just divide those phases in that hour frame

[trail copper]

so for this do i each session just pick out the perspective for the skull and continue to do different perspectives later on

[azure basin]

Either will work just experiment for how you process the information

[trail copper]

Ok ok thx

Ill do a session tmrw

although I wont do 3 hour sessions, that is too much for me to do studies, i already have school tests and allat to worry about so im gonna do 1 or 1 and a half