# How can I give my drawings more life?



## Tiarhlu (Dec 7, 2008)

The best art to me feels like there's motion even though it's a still image. You can see what is happening before and after the scene. Anything I do always seems to come out very tight and stiff, almost like the character is being squeezed, suffocated. I've been drawing for about  eight years now but that aspect never improves and I can't figure out why. It kind of looks to me like a bunch of lines cut and pasted together for that matter. 

What are the tricks to getting the character to not feel so stiff? I want that great look you see from those animator concept sketches.


----------



## Stratelier (Dec 7, 2008)

Holy cow, that post sounds so much like me it's almost as if I'm looking at a mirror.  Creepy.

Me, my ability to capture 'motion' is hit and miss; personally I believe the initial sketch has the most to do with it -- i.e. if that doesn't capture the motion or energy you're looking for, no amount of subsequent details will fix it.


----------



## Kangamutt (Dec 8, 2008)

Use gestural movements. Don't focus so much on details. When things are moving, details are much more limited, so it fits proper that it should do so in drawing.


----------



## parrothead529 (Dec 18, 2008)

the best way for me is to create an initial sketch that has lots of energy and only afterwards go in and add details, the hard part is figuring out how much detail to add before you start to lose some of that initial energy =P


----------



## M. LeRenard (Dec 18, 2008)

I read through this book on drawing comics a while back (by Marvel).  Their advice was to exaggerate the hell out of everything.  If someone's throwing a punch, put the whole body into it; arm stretched out far, torso twisting, body leaning forward, etc.  Even if they're just standing there, splay the legs a little more than you normally would, cross their arms, lean them back slightly, raise an eyebrow, whatever you got to do.  So take what you're doing now, and increase all the angles, really.
One thing that helps is to first work in either stick figures or just messy, basic shapes.  Don't worry about details; just work on the motion of the figure, the way the limbs are positioned, angles, etc.  Once you draw about a thousand of those in a thousand different positions, you'll get the hang of it, and you can start making finished pieces.
I have that same problem, but I've been working on it.  Here's something I did for practice recently; I don't think it turned out too bad.  But you can see what I was trying to do, anyway.
Maybe some of that advice is valid and helpful.  Good luck.


----------



## Meze (Dec 18, 2008)

What the fox said. Exaggeration is key. If you can apply the old animator's axiom of Squash & Stretch into your illustrations, you'll be well on your way.


----------



## Arshes Nei (Dec 18, 2008)

http://www.scribd.com/search?query=loomis&x=0&y=0 While Hogarth is on there too, honestly it's better to learn the basics. But quite honestly Burne is a bit too stylized and I recommend the basics first. George Bridgman is sketchy but he also talks about rhythm in poses. 

For example, there is a constant shift in our bodies, if one shoulder is up the hip on the same side is down. We are shifting our weight due to gravity. Even then our bodies display force and rhythm. Another example is look at our calves. The outside calf, aligned with the pinky toe is shifted up, while the inside ankle by our toe is shifted up. 

Another example, when we move our torso, one dynamic line is one long one, and the other side of the torso makes two breaks because of the way our bodies move.

I can try provide visual examples but there are books that teach the principal better. 

George Bridgman's Life drawing (is like a 7 dollar book) (A couple of his other books can be found on http://www.archive.org - search for George Bridgman)

Animator's Survival Kit, surprisingly you can find a copy on http://www.scribd.com (I purchased mine however.)

This guy I also believe has a few books that go in the subject too http://mikemattesi.blogspot.com/


----------



## ChemicalWolf (Dec 19, 2008)

Practice doing some gesture drawings, definitely.  These are the quick, animated sketches you do just to capture poses and most importantly, the flow of motion in a drawing.  

Afterwards, work on exaggeration because that helps quite a bit too.

Also, some perspective and creative use of angles can help liven up a drawing as well.


----------



## Anbessa (Dec 19, 2008)

along with ArshesNei's suggestions I'd like to recommend Don Bluth's "Art of Animation Drawing" which teaches you the basics of animated movies, how to exaggerate right, anatomy (surprisingly enough, animated cartoons use human-like anatomy as a basic) and so on. I can give you a ISBN number if needed.

also, keep in mind that people moving, walking, constantly shift all parts of their bodies. one exaggerated form is the way models move on the catwalk. if you can, grab a little sketchbook and a pencil, or a ball pen, and go outside to watch people, and do quick sketches of them.


----------



## Arshes Nei (Dec 19, 2008)

Don Bluth's book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Don-Bluths-Ar...=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229722331&sr=8-2


----------



## shadycell (Dec 21, 2008)

the best way is to imagine yourself in that pose. if you do dancing or any kind of performing arts it's much easier to do this. you have to kind of feel it out. imagine an arm stretching out from the vertebrae, the swish of the hips as it twists, and so on.


----------



## .Ein. (Dec 21, 2008)

For me, to give the feeling of life to a still image, I found it necessary first to ask myself, 'What is the motivation of the pictured character?', or 'What emotion or sense do I wish to convey with this scene?'  Try doing a bit of method acting; Think like them or like you're there, try your best to use your heart as a tactile organ and feel what you're putting down.

As far as motor skills go, the physical part, I highly recommend you study the human anatomy very closely, as well as the anatomy of whatever sorts of creatures you'd like to anthromorph them with; Or at very least the closest naturally occurring counterpart (I.E dragons would probably look to the Komodo or the like.)

It's very useful to be able to draw each limb and structure in the body starting with the skeleton, and then being very well acquainted with the muscular structure as well.  Try to get to the point where you can draw a limb's skeleton, then the musculature, and finally lay the skin over it.  If you are a traditional artist, I like a fine-grain tracing paper for that, so that I can view each layer through the others to keep me on shape.  If you're a digital artist, I like to use Open Canvas, but anything you can layer with is fine.  Even if you're more of a fantasy artist, this healthy base in realism will sharply improve your skills at giving fluidity to a still shot greatly if given time and effort. =3  

Also, helpful for later on!  Once you're into the anatomy study for awhile, try taking pictures of yourself in a pose you want to draw; Even so much as just your hand or foot, etc.  Then take that photo and draw yourself; Starting with the skeleton, work out.  Nudes or semi nudes work best since you can see your unique features this way and begin to get a real feel for how the muscles lie under different body types, etc.  

After awhile, this becomes second nature to most artists, and although difficult to master (it is time consuming and often frustrating at first), like anything else it pays off if you don't give up.  Personally, I go back and refresh about which muscle pulls what muscle, etc. just to keep my mind sharp on how each joint and limb I'm drawing works.  

Time to hit the books! <3  

P.S: A good way to study motion is to use a camera with digital image stabilization (most have it now) and take full motion pictures.  Dancing, running, jumping, anything and everything you can.  Even watching the wind blow hair or clothing around helps.  Use those photos to see what real live motion looks like when you freeze-frame it.

I hope you find this useful! n_n;


----------



## Gene (Dec 22, 2008)

I sympathise with you entirely - balance and fluidity is one of the most goddamn difficult and frustrating things to capture in a piece; but the satisfaction when it just WORKS is the best thing ever.

Personally, I disregard any and all usage of the "stick figure" method entirely. I understand that it helps some artists compose a sense of balance into their pieces but, for me, in all the years I've been drawing it's never really helped me in any way. Using stick figures almost always guaranteed my poses to be stiff, linear and devoid of nearly all emotion. This is, of course, my own experience on the matter and I'm not at all suggesting you should kick that idea aside without experimenting with it first. If the stick figure is the way you're used to constructing your drawings, then by all means, stick with it, but perhaps learn to manipulate it to create more dynamic poses - if you're familiar with the line of motion/action line, I imagine that combining that with a match stick man could be of some use.

But honestly, the most effective way is just repeating what the posters above me have said n___n; gesture drawing is probably the most effective way of getting what you want and fast - just.... SCRIBBLE. That's what I tend to do a lot of the time. When you grasp the first concepts and ideas of what you want just throw lines at the paper in a vague imitation of what you're visualizing (gawd dammit I sound like some cranky art professor Dx;. The most important lesson I've had to learn (and am still struggling with) is that it's *okay to make mistakes*. You won't always get ideal results every time. but that's okay too. It's just one less "bad" drawing left in you :] Don't be afraid to start small - take any sheet of paper and doodle some thumbnails to get the feel of the pose before moving on to your final product. I've got hundreds of thumbnail sheets with so many doodles on them that I've not done anything with - some are okay, some are horrible, some are better than the final thing. But that's okay, because nobody has to see them but you.

Gesture drawing from your head is a little difficult to do straight off the bat - hell, I still struggle with it a lot of the time - so sometimes it will help to google a reference. Don't be afraid to do that; you have to learn to walk before you can run, just like you have to see a bike before you can draw one. References are your friend and they want to help you~

I'm so sorry for randomly intruding into this topic and bombarding you with this ENORMOUS WALL OF TEXT with my inferior knowledge, but I truly hope there's at least something in here that may help n___n; I really should have posted some sketch examples of what I'm talking about, so perhaps I can doodle something up later or dig out something from my room, if you'd like? I do apologise for sounding so smarmy and INTELLECTUAL (if you can call it that) with all my massive words and DUUUURH arty hippie attitude, but I unfortunately tend to ramble quite a bit. D: Just like I'm doing now in fact. DAMMIT.

UH ANYWAY, I wish you the very best of luck in all your artistic endeavours~


----------



## Anbessa (Dec 22, 2008)

Gene said:


> I sympathise with you entirely - balance and fluidity is one of the most goddamn difficult and frustrating things to capture in a piece; but the satisfaction when it just WORKS is the best thing ever.
> 
> Personally, I disregard any and all usage of the "stick figure" method entirely. I understand that it helps some artists compose a sense of balance into their pieces but, for me, in all the years I've been drawing it's never really helped me in any way. Using stick figures almost always guaranteed my poses to be stiff, linear and devoid of nearly all emotion. This is, of course, my own experience on the matter and I'm not at all suggesting you should kick that idea aside without experimenting with it first. If the stick figure is the way you're used to constructing your drawings, then by all means, stick with it, but perhaps learn to manipulate it to create more dynamic poses - if you're familiar with the line of motion/action line, I imagine that combining that with a match stick man could be of some use.
> 
> ...



he has many good points, but I fear he forgot to tell you his method, which might also be helpful for you. he's right, not everybody can cope with stick figures. another method would be using geometrical shapes.
you see, the human body consists of a collection of geometric forms, coarsely said. a zylinder for the torso, and ellipsoids for arms, legs, a disc for the hands (until you give them more shapes), and balls for the joints. very much like these wood puppets for artists, but of course with many more joints along the torso. if stick figures refuse to work for you, try imagining such a puppet, and compose your figures out of rounded shapes.


----------



## Arshes Nei (Dec 22, 2008)

Well I guess it depends on what shape you look for. Artists like Raphael or Luca Cambiaso used cubes since it gave them an ability to see depth. This is especially useful for getting planes of form down.

(May not be work safe though it's artistic nudity)
http://www.bildindex.de/rx/apsisa.d...:"cambiaso, luca"&no=1&count=50&sort=no&rid=2

The overall point is to look for different ways to see the form. 

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=26748

One book which is interesting because it isn't his best but has a great coursework on different ways to study the figure with works of his students is Gottfried Bammes.
http://www.amazon.com/Artists-Guide-Human-Anatomy/dp/0486436411/

I mean you can either do a contour, gesture, or ink blot the figure. It's not like there's only one method.


----------



## Mokusei_Kaze (Dec 24, 2008)

Are you wanting movement with multiples or a single character?

With a single character, to create a stronger illusion of movement... like for a punch, jump, crawl, run (and so on and so on) you do it at the peak of the motion... where the body it the most flexed, stretched or contorted when compared to the relaxed stance a person/creature would have.  Here is an example of something I did of my character jumping/floating forward  (image is mature, artistic nudity) http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1638633/

With multiple characters it actually gets a bit easier.  It is easier for the human mind to think of what will happen next if you have two characters interacting, BUT the key is to really have them in eachother's space bubble.  Character with interlocking arms and tangled legs... can still be seen as having life even when they are at rest.  you CAN do the same thing with a solo character, but you got get the character really intangled in something in order to add the same depth.  here is a sample or an at rest "living" picture of three characters together.  (once again, mature content: artistic nudity) http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1818864/


----------



## Tiarhlu (Dec 25, 2008)

Gene said:


> I sympathise with you entirely - balance and fluidity is one of the most goddamn difficult and frustrating things to capture in a piece; but the satisfaction when it just WORKS is the best thing ever.
> 
> Personally, I disregard any and all usage of the "stick figure" method entirely. I understand that it helps some artists compose a sense of balance into their pieces but, for me, in all the years I've been drawing it's never really helped me in any way. Using stick figures almost always guaranteed my poses to be stiff, linear and devoid of nearly all emotion. This is, of course, my own experience on the matter and I'm not at all suggesting you should kick that idea aside without experimenting with it first. If the stick figure is the way you're used to constructing your drawings, then by all means, stick with it, but perhaps learn to manipulate it to create more dynamic poses - if you're familiar with the line of motion/action line, I imagine that combining that with a match stick man could be of some use.



We seem to be coming from the same place...I think. I've tried the stick figure method, and all of that construction stuff you see in the "how to draw" books, but it's never really worked for me. I can get a somewhat decent collection of shapes that look like something, but when I start adding in the details it gets messed up. One reoccuring issue is with the head and neck area. I'll start drawing that and while it looks fine I then realize that the shoulders aren't in the right spot for it to connect, or the head ended up a different size than my circles. 

What I usually do is just start up top and work my way down. I've found I have to draw things in a certain order or it doesn't work at all. The one time I finished something starting with the feet, it was a very long, difficult process filled with erasing. I tend to be able to draw individual parts of the figure fine, but then when they're all stuck together they seem off. It's stiff and often some of the anatomy doesn't seem quite at the right angle or whatnot. Does that make sense?

And the previous person said: 





> With multiple characters it actually gets a bit easier. It is easier for the human mind to think of what will happen next if you have two characters interacting, BUT the key is to really have them in eachother's space bubble. Character with interlocking arms and tangled legs... can still be seen as having life even when they are at rest. you CAN do the same thing with a solo character, but you got get the character really intangled in something in order to add the same depth.



I usually draw one character. I'm not sure why, though I do want to start adding more than one in a drawing because I do think that'll give more interest and help me avoid the looking at the camera syndrome.


----------



## Mokusei_Kaze (Dec 25, 2008)

Whenever you have a solo character, it is very easy to get into the pattern of doing a portrait styled picture... with the character looking out at the camera.  You can still have live in pictures like this, but you need to have a lot of light and shadow play involved... and even then... the character will usually look like a statue look like a statue. Have your character involved in something, even if it's solo... like a book or cooking or meditation.  It will also add depth to your visual character


----------



## Marci (Jan 16, 2009)

I always found that even drawing the basic geometric shapes right off stiffens it all up.  I always do a gesture line for every part of the body before putting in the basic shape.  So I draw the curve of the spine before doing the torso, the line of the shoulders before drawing their shape, and lines for the limbs before drawing their rough shapes, too.

If we are talking about a finished piece, not just a sketch, I frequently take photos of myself in that pose and study that - do a practice drawing, do a gesture drawing, print out the photo and draw the lines of the body on top of that, or any other exercizes to process what is happening to the body.  And always exaaaaggerate.


----------

