# Human Mugs on Anthro Characters



## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Oh hey, a Den post by me. It'll be the only one, I promise. But the topic I wish to discuss is appropriate for this forum. I uploaded a picture yesterday and when I checked my page again, I received a peculiar piece of criticism.
Here's a crop pointing out the concern of the upload, her face.






The person told me that human facial structure on an anthro character is weird and off putting. He/she even said it was not just their opinion but that MOST furries find this odd and think it shouldn't be done to anthros. Frankly, I really don't care enough to change the way I draw this character (she's the only one I give a human face) because I don't really think of it as a legit problem, but aesthetic preference. I DO want some other opinions on the matter out of curiosity, though. I never knew this was something furries didn't tolerate or even really noticed at all for that matter.

Or was that a generalization? What do you all think? Seems like a good place to ask since this is really the most credible furry hub, you universe pondering, self enlightenment seeking, world knowledge deciphering, devilishly HANDSOME scamps.


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## Fox_720B (Jan 27, 2013)

Couple of thoughts:

First...I'd like to see the full character before making any judgements. Her face looks perfectly fine to me but in context of the rest of the body I could better try to understand where the person was coming from.

secondly...I've noticed a lot of people like to try to back up their "personal opinion" by saying "everyone thinks this way". I see it a lot on the main site and it's bullshit meant to make their opinion look more important than it really is. Everyone's preferences are different.

A well done anthro with a human face wouldn't bother me. I've seen it a lot.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

To be honest, It's not my cup of tea. But what's that to stop you from drawing it? If you can pull it off, then by god you can pull it off.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Fox_720B said:


> Couple of thoughts:
> 
> First...I'd like to see the full character before making any judgements. Her face looks perfectly fine to me but in context of the rest of the body I could better try to understand where the person was coming from.
> 
> ...



...

.....

There's a reason I cropped it. ;-;

And the point about his opinion makes sense. He (yes I learned he's a dude just now) didn't really share how he knows so many people are against this. I've heard that line used for many things before in arguments. It's weak, but for something like this, I wouldn't know how one would gauge that which is why I took the liberty of asking.


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## Percy (Jan 27, 2013)

I suppose that it could look weird, depending on how the other features of the anthro are drawn. Though I also suppose it could work. It's all up to what you think about it.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

It doesn't necessarily identify as "furry" to me, but depending on how it were colored, and how the rest of the body went, I can see it as well-made art.


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## Hinalle K. (Jan 27, 2013)

Dem lips


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

Oh sweet jesus what on earth is that... TBH, don't really want to know '^^


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## Aetius (Jan 27, 2013)

This thread quickly went into "WTF" territory.


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## Hinalle K. (Jan 27, 2013)

Rivers Bluetail said:


> Oh sweet jesus what on earth is that... TBH, don't really want to know '^^


Yeah it looks really fishy. Best to stay away from it


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## Fox_720B (Jan 27, 2013)

I don't know, for me it's not that different from people who just wear the animal ears on their heads, but also wear paws and a tail. See that all the time so an anthro drawn like that doesn't really bother me. *shrug*


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## Umbra.Exe (Jan 27, 2013)

I don't really tend to see characters designed that way as "humanized animals" so much as "animalized humans," if that makes sense.

From the face there, I'd expect the rest of the body to be very humanlike, with humanlike hands and feet. Digitigrade legs and paws might look strange in my opinion unless the character was some sort of ungulate (as appears in this case), giving the character a faun/satyr-like appearance.

I've seen feline characters with human faces and bodies, with cat paws, ears, and tail. They tend to look more like anime characters than your 'typical' anthro.

Like the others said, it really depends on the other features of the character. In my opinion I think the more human-like the face, the more human the body should be as well, with just hints of the animal like ears, tail, markings, etc. But there's really no right or wrong way to draw an anthro character, I think.


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## Ley (Jan 27, 2013)

I do human faces, for the most part. His reasoning is weak though, and he may not just like it.

(Also she looks so cute ;u; whats the full picha/your fa?)


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

I always saw furries the opposite; as humanized animals or characters of their own.

Maybe I prefer animalistic faces because I suck at drawing human faces :V


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## Fox_720B (Jan 27, 2013)

Rivers Bluetail said:


> I always saw furries the opposite; as humanized animals or characters of their own.
> 
> Maybe I prefer animalistic faces because I suck at drawing human faces :V




Actually there's some truth in that. Animal faces tend to be more forgiving of errors, and so a lot of people learn to draw animals easier than learning to draw a realistic human (not counting stick figures or kid's crayon drawings of people)


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

True. Since Anthropomorphic faces aren't remotely real, they can really look however you choose to make them look. With human faces however, we're accustomed to seeing them on a day to day basis, and have a much more solidified idea of what they should and shouldn't be.


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## Fox_720B (Jan 27, 2013)

Exactly.

On a related note, my friend once came up with a couple of interesting characters based on a storyline idea she'd thought up, where a human and an anthro wound up in love and having kids and such.

One of the kids came out looking like an anthro in most ways, but the other looked nearly human, except having a tail and plantigrade anthro  feet. She looked perfectly natural in that state, too. It was pretty cool.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

If being anthro were real, and humans and other anthro species had kids, would traits like tails and paws have multiple alleles, or be associated with one. I'd imagine fur would be several alleles, like hair color. That would look all sorts of messed up. Needless to say, I prefer my furries to not look like someone put a human and a puppy in a blender.


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## badlands (Jan 27, 2013)

i prefer more animalistic faces if I'm honest, but that's just my personal preference. some people like more human features, some don't.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

She is mostly human in body. The only anthro parts are her feet (she has "cow tows" :3), spots, and...fuck I forgot her tail. She doesn't have any different type of legs, or actual udder. She really is as vanilla as anthros get. I'm not really a fan of the "authentic" look.



Ley said:


> I do human faces, for the most part. His reasoning is weak though, and he may not just like it.
> 
> (Also she looks so cute ;u; whats the full picha/your fa?)



I do not have an FA account. Sorry. Thank you though. c:


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## Tigercougar (Jan 27, 2013)

As an anime fan Im quite used to OPs aesthetic. There are lots of people who are fans if this style. Dont change your style because some people complain about it: if you want to draw it, go ahead and draw it.


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## Vaelarsa (Jan 27, 2013)

Maybe it would look odd on a more realistic character or something, but she looks pretty animu.
It's basically the equivalent of a cat girl.
Nothing wrong with that.


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## IronDog (Jan 27, 2013)

Personally, I find it does depend Ã¸n the character. Some anthros are little more than animal-featured humans, similar to Cathari. Others are a lot more digigrade. I feel that a very human face Ã¸n an animal body doesn't work. Not for me anyway.Just my personal tastes.


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## Mentova (Jan 27, 2013)

I really dislike human faces on anthros. I think it looks really creepy. They look like the result of a science experiment gone horribly, _horribly_ wrong. "Killlllll meeeeeeeeee!"

Also dat duckface...


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

I think it's kinda like the characters in the comic black sad. While the men have almost complete animal faces, the women on the other hand are more human and don't really "fit" with the rest of the scene (unless the woman isn't supposed to be a regular main character).


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Mentova said:


> I really dislike human faces on anthros. I think it looks really creepy. They look like the result of a science experiment gone horribly, _horribly_ wrong. "Killlllll meeeeeeeeee!"
> 
> Also dat duckface...



Quiet you.



Dokid said:


> I think it's kinda like the characters in the comic black sad. While the men have almost complete animal faces, the women on the other hand are more human and don't really "fit" with the rest of the scene (unless the woman isn't supposed to be a regular main character).



I've never read those, but I've seen some pages and thought the style looked really kickass. He kinda reminds me of Batman...


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> I've never read those, but I've seen some pages and thought the style looked really kickass. He kinda reminds me of Batman...



I love this comic. This guy is basically one of my favorite artists of all time. His watercolors are so wonderfully detailed and he knows how to make every panel interesting. 

I mean






Look





at





this





All the historical references and all that. I could talk about this comic all day.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Dokid said:


>



This man looks like he's a star citizen that does his community too great a service. What a nice upstanding role model individual.

But, I honestly couldn't imagine doing a comic in ALL watercolor. He must draw nonstop in the most literal sense just to keep them going. These look great.


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## Dreaming (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> He/she even said it was not just their opinion but that MOST furries find this odd and think it shouldn't be done to anthros.


Sounds like a bullshit statement to me 

They've got an opinion, and with artwork everyone will have a differing opinion of what's good and what isn't, so you literally can't please everyone

But I wouldn't let a single opinion influence your style, the chances are that they're well aware of this themselves


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

Dreaming said:


> Sounds like a bullshit statement to me
> 
> They've got an opinion, and with artwork everyone will have a differing opinion of what's good and what isn't, so you literally can't please everyone
> 
> But I wouldn't let a single opinion influence your style, the chances are that they're well aware of this themselves



There's always going to be that one person who doesn't like your work.

Lately the mlp fandom has had a problem with people not liking the artist's interpretation of the character's race in human form. Even to go as far as blurting out racial slurs because it's not the race they imagined it to be.


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## Ansitru (Jan 27, 2013)

Dokid said:


> All the historical references and all that. I could talk about this comic all day.



It could just be me, but from the few images I've now seen of the comic, it reminds me a bit of Maus.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Oh, I'm not worried about him disliking it. I was only curious because he said most furries don't like this style. It seems like something that would have some kernel of truth which is why I asked. I'm sure he'd appreciate it a little more if I were good so there would be other factors that would get him past this...maybe. But I even told him "Welp, can't please everyone I suppose. Don't care to." in response to him saying many would dislike this.


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## Mentova (Jan 27, 2013)

I'm gunna catch flak for this but I don't like that comic's character designs. They just look like people with animal heads. They don't even have like, tails or anything. And the cat eared girl that got posted from the comic looks way out of place. At least the actual art is really good.


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

Ansitru said:


> It could just be me, but from the few images I've now seen of the comic, it reminds me a bit of Maus.



It's actually just one story line that focuses on racial issues. There's three books into the one of the two bigger ones. 



Mentova said:


> I'm gunna catch flak for this but I don't like that comic's character designs. They just look like people with animal heads. They don't even have like, tails or anything. And the cat eared girl that got posted from the comic looks way out of place. At least the actual art is really good.



In the forward the artist explains that these people are still "human". It's like we're looking through glasses and seeing their personalities through animals and such. Also yeah the cat women and any of the women who are drawn to be "sexy" or "hot" or whatever are more human looking than the others. It kinda bugs me but the plot and story makes up for it.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Mentova said:


> I'm gunna catch flak for this but I don't like that comic's character designs. They just look like people with animal heads. They don't even have like, tails or anything. And the cat eared girl that got posted from the comic looks way out of place. At least the actual art is really good.



I'll give you flak for it alright...
Seriously, please take it. It's garbage.

I just noticed they didn't have tails. I still think that cat dude looks like a certified, no question about it, one of a kind, hardass.
And that ferret guy looks kinda salty in that image. I love how he was all bored looking and then just gets angry.


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> I'll give you flak for it alright...
> Seriously, please take it. It's garbage.
> 
> I just noticed they didn't have tails. I still think that cat dude looks like a certified, no question about it, one of a kind, hardass.
> And that ferret guy looks kinda salty in that image. I love how he was all bored looking and then just gets angry.



The cat guy is a detective/rogue kind of person. 

Also the ferret girl/ermine girl is what is the KKK at that point in the book. At one part the cop black cat guy points to his chin at the white patch and asks her "isn't this good enough for you?"


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Dokid said:


> The cat guy is a detective/rogue kind of person.
> 
> Also the ferret girl/ermine girl is what is the KKK at that point in the book. At one part the cop black cat guy points to his chin at the white patch and asks her "isn't this good enough for you?"



...I didn't even realize that was a woman. 
And way to stick it to a racist. lol

Is this available online i.e. webcomic or is it only sold like a traditional comic?


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## Fallowfox (Jan 27, 2013)

I have a pretty weird answer for this.

I used to think that furries with animal heads was immoral*, apart from costumes. I'm not quite sure why I even thought this. 

Now though I much prefer animal headed furries. I don't really think human-faced anthros are the full ensemble and I find it off putting.

*[notice in my avatar, produced a couple of years ago, that I have specifically not animalised much of the anatomy. The Jaw is short like a human's and almost everything else is completely unchanged, just human]


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## Schwimmwagen (Jan 27, 2013)

I think it really depends on the characters in question.

Some characters I really cannot imagine having a full muzzle or digitigrade legs, and still show their personality as well as the design used to. And then there's the inverse, where some characters just can't lose their muzzle or gain plantigrade legs.


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> ...I didn't even realize that was a woman.
> And way to stick it to a racist. lol
> 
> Is this available online i.e. webcomic or is it only sold like a traditional comic?



You can buy it online from amazon for 20 dollars. It's a print but having the book with you just makes it so much better.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

Blacksad looks really cool, I'll have to pick up a copy and see. The art looks amazing.


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## Ryu Deacon (Jan 27, 2013)

Well in my Opinion on a fuw furries it would look ok but on the majority it will just look odd or even ugly, specialy on those with detailed Fur or Scales... 
But its worth noting that ive seen alot of Domestic Cat and Fox Furs with no visible Muzzle(just a flat Scull and Jaw much like a Human) that seem to never look ugly, in that case it would also depend on the Spicies that is being portrayed... then again that could also just come from me seeing so many Nekos in Anime and Art that im use to seeing those spicies with Human Faces lol..


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

Rin-U said:


> Well in my Opinion on a fuw furries it would look ok but on the majority it will just look odd or even ugly, specialy on those with detailed Fur or Scales...
> But its worth noting that ive seen alot of Domestic Cat and Fox Furs with no visible Muzzle(just a flat Scull and Jaw much like a Human) that seem to never look ugly, in that case it would also depend on the Spicies that is being portrayed... then again that could also just come from me seeing so many Nekos in Anime and Art that im use to seeing those spicies with Human Faces lol..



Please use spell check... 

Anyways I mean it depends on the scene and story. I don't mind either but you have to be able to balance things out. If you make one character very human looking then don't make the rest of the scene with almost feral faces. It needs to fit with everything else. It's also up to the artist to draw what they like best. If you don't like how they favor animalized humans then don't watch that artist.


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## Ryu Deacon (Jan 27, 2013)

Dokid said:


> Please use spell check...
> 
> Anyways I mean it depends on the scene and story. I don't mind either but you have to be able to balance things out. If you make one character very human looking then don't make the rest of the scene with almost feral faces. It needs to fit with everything else. It's also up to the artist to draw what they like best. If you don't like how they favor animalized humans then don't watch that artist.


You do know that the OP was asking for opinions on the Subject of Furs with Human Faces, im not acting on Art she/he posted nor am i watching anyone just to slam them on Art that i may not like. As for the Balance in the amount of Human and Animal the Characters should be, your correct on that...
Also nowhere on the Internet or irl have i ever said to anyone that they should change their style of drawing, its a bit of an overstep for you to make such a acusation.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Rin-U, I'm really not trying to look rude or sarcastic. I'm just going on your location since it says Germany, but are you confident in your English? I had a bit of trouble understanding a few of your points.

And also, I don't think Dokid was accusing you, but rather he was speaking in a general sense.


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## Ryu Deacon (Jan 27, 2013)

Mind you but i dont exsactly see what is wrong with my Writing that you cannot posibly understand, im not perfect but certainly confident enough. Your certainly the first on the Internet or Irl that has a problem understanding my writing...


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## RayO_ElGatubelo (Jan 27, 2013)

What you drew looks good, but generally I prefer my anthros pretty animalistic.


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

Rin-U said:


> You do know that the OP was asking for opinions on the Subject of Furs with Human Faces, im not acting on Art she/he posted nor am i watching anyone just to slam them on Art that i may not like. As for the Balance in the amount of Human and Animal the Characters should be, your correct on that...
> Also nowhere on the Internet or irl have i ever said to anyone that they should change their style of drawing, its a bit of an overstep for you to make such a acusation.



I....was speaking in a general sense. Anyways I was just saying that it all depends on the artist as well as the viewer. Everyone has their own "cup of tea" and it's fine. You never said that the artist should change to please others.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

You can tell he's German because he capitalizes his nouns  Oh, you Baden-Wurtemburgers. It is a little difficult to understand, but that's not really a huge deal. 

Anyways, I think we all agree on the topic above.


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## Umbra.Exe (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> She is mostly human in body. The only anthro parts are her feet (she has "cow tows" :3), spots, and...fuck I forgot her tail. She doesn't have any different type of legs, or actual udder. She really is as vanilla as anthros get. I'm not really a fan of the "authentic" look.


Yeah, that sounds like the usual/expected way I've seen anthros with human faces. As someone else said, they seem rather like some anime characters. 

The style seems fine by itself, but if you were to mix her in with other, more animal-like characters, she would probably look very out-of-place.


And about that Blacksad comic: It does seem odd how human the cat-lady is. She even has hair like a human's when it appears that _no one else_ in the other panels does...

EDIT: Actually I think I see two people with human hair, it's just very short. But the ones that do still have animal faces, even the females.


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## Rivers Bluetail (Jan 27, 2013)

Even then, a lot of furries have human looking hair. It all depends on how you pull it off.


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## benignBiotic (Jan 27, 2013)

Xo I don't have any problems with human-faced anthros. I've seen it work before and your character there looks really cute! 

You can't please everybody.


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## badlands (Jan 27, 2013)

it can work but it's a lot harder to make it look right.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 27, 2013)

Rin-U said:


> Mind you but i dont exsactly see what is wrong with my Writing that you cannot posibly understand, im not perfect but certainly confident enough. Your certainly the first on the Internet or Irl that has a problem understanding my writing...



Forget it.



benignBiotic said:


> Xo I don't have any problems with human-faced anthros. I've seen it work before and your character there looks really cute!
> 
> You can't please everybody.



Thanks! What I'm honestly stunned no one criticized here or in the picture's comments itself her eyes. They're HUGE. Intentionally, but still. Then again, almost all cartoon characters have disproportionately large eyes so I guess it's a matter of what are we desensitized to more, yes?



Rivers Bluetail said:


> Even then, a lot of furries have human looking hair. It all depends on how you pull it off.



That's the case with most things. Not everything, but a lot.


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## Dokid (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> Thanks! What I'm honestly stunned no one criticized here or in the picture's comments itself her eyes. They're HUGE. Intentionally, but still. Then again, almost all cartoon characters have disproportionately large eyes so I guess it's a matter of what are we desensitized to more, yes?



The eyes fit the scene and character. So there's nothing really to complain about. I honestly really like the way that picture was drawn and how it's so overly cartoony.


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## benignBiotic (Jan 27, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> Thanks! What I'm honestly stunned no one criticized here or in the picture's comments itself her eyes. They're HUGE. Intentionally, but still. Then again, almost all cartoon characters have disproportionately large eyes so I guess it's a matter of what are we desensitized to more, yes?


Yeah. I watch animation almost exclusively so huge eyes aren't a big deal for me. #brony And again some people will like it some will be turned off. It's whatevs.


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## Batty Krueger (Jan 27, 2013)

Do not want.
I want my faces beastly.


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 27, 2013)

I don't see an issue with drawing anthros like that if the face meshes well with the rest of the character. Though personally I prefer my anthros to have more animalistic faces, but to each there own.


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## Kio Snowfyre (Jan 27, 2013)

Not really my style, OP, but passable, I understand plenty people like/dislike (or are indifferent about) various styles and may just like the one in the attached picture but I prefer faces that preserve the "animal" of the character, while may be there being enough human features to exaggerate the personality or to make the image ironic/humorous/satirical. I don't know what makes certain styles "click" with me, really, it must be from has been conditioned to me since I was a young child.



Fox_720B said:


> Actually there's some truth in that. Animal faces tend to be more forgiving of errors, and so a lot of people learn to draw animals easier than learning to draw a realistic human (not counting stick figures or kid's crayon drawings of people)



I think that depends how well you can distinguish other species' faces, for example, if you made life drawings of two animal faces of the same species and showed it to a random person they'd probably only identify the species and some slight differences, whereas the owner knows the face more and can distinguish. Closely looking, I can see how different and unique animal faces are, and humans are animals, after all. Depends how much you look at a certain species' face, although clothing / make up / hair styling / piercing / tattoos / apparel help humans distinguish each other a bit more, as well. Although, with the "furry character" (I use this term for conversation) face you can have the animal qualities with the human distortion, which in a way is why I feel cartoon animals are so effective, although I don't mind pure animal or human faces on their own, it's really down to the personality just a human-like animal is very awesome and I even like animal characters that just can talk like humans (like Homeward Bound) and animals that can just express human body language but can't speak (Wile E. Coyote is bordering on this example)  Not as keen on humans being morphed to look animal-like as I find the idea of being an animal at base to be far more what should I call it... hmm, almost sort of magical, perhaps?


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## Umbra.Exe (Jan 27, 2013)

Rivers Bluetail said:


> Even then, a lot of furries have human looking hair. It all depends on how you pull it off.



That doesn't really bother me much if done well. The fact that the cat lady posted here has hair and humanlike features, while no one else in her universe appears to, bothers me a little. It doesn't seem very consistent. Maybe it was done intentionally to make her stand out more?


And OP, I didn't even realize her eyes were so big until you pointed it out. I guess I'm just used to anime-style drawings, and it appears others here are used to the look as well.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 28, 2013)

Yeah, I really made them SUPER huge purposely. I don't know why. I tend to just throw small features spontaneously for certain characters just because I fucking feel like it. 

I drew an overly happy girl with this gap in her teeth. lol


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## Catilda Lily (Jan 28, 2013)

It can work, it really depends on how it is drawn. How much it looks like an animal or human.


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## Verin Asper (Jan 28, 2013)

I gots no problems with human faced anthros, just when its inconsistant


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## Symlus (Jan 28, 2013)

All right- here is my opinion: No, I don't think Human-faced anthros should really be drawn/created/birthed/etc. Do I really care? No. Will I ever see this stuff again? Probably, but I have managed to turn a blind eye to a majority of the "OMGWTFISTHAT?!" that can appear on FA on times.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 28, 2013)

Lev1athan said:


> All right- here is my opinion: No, I don't think Human-faced anthros should really be drawn/created/birthed/etc. Do I really care? No. Will I ever see this stuff again? Probably, but I have managed to turn a blind eye to a majority of the "OMGWTFISTHAT?!" that can appear on FA on times.



I would be a bit thrown off if someone's main concern regarding furry art is human facial structure. 
Now what I DO understand people finding creepy are those photomanipulations. o-o;


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## CynicalCirno (Jan 28, 2013)

What a weak minded person criticized you. Did he really need to have most of, perhaps the whole furry community to back him up?
If he can't present an opinion on his own, then forget him. Style in art is not an error. Preference in art is not a mistake. If said person can't understand that - god help him.


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## Sarcastic Coffeecup (Jan 28, 2013)

I don't really like human faces on anthro characters. Idk why. It just doesn't feel right.
But that's only a personal preference, and those should be kept to oneself. To go correcting someone else's style on your preferences is not the way to go.


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## Fallowfox (Jan 28, 2013)

Sarcastic Coffeecup said:


> I don't really like human faces on anthro characters. Idk why. It just doesn't feel right.
> But that's only a personal preference, and those should be kept to oneself. To go correcting someone else's style on your preferences is not the way to go.



I think it pushes it straight up uncanny valley. The same reason people prefer robots with droid faces rather than synthetic human ones.


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## CynicalCirno (Jan 28, 2013)

Fallowfox said:


> I think it pushes it straight up uncanny valley. The same reason people prefer robots with droid faces rather than synthetic human ones.










I must agree that synthetic humanoid faces are very disturbing.
Is that true for animals for the same reason? I've never seen an animal with a humanoid face so I wouldn't know, and even art has never shown me such a thing in detail.


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## Fallowfox (Jan 28, 2013)

Afterimage said:


> I must agree that synthetic humanoid faces are very disturbing.
> Is that true for animals for the same reason? I've never seen an animal with a humanoid face so I wouldn't know, and even art has never shown me such a thing in detail.



I'm about to make a gross oversimplifcation, please put up with me. 

One possible explanation for the uncanny valley is that the human brain operates like a filing cabinet. It prefers being able to classify incoming information so that it can compress it and presumeable hence work more efficiently. [perhaps an explanation for stereotyping]
When a creature appears that fills two 'mutually exclusive' areas in the filing cabinet this is a confusing dichotomy that cannot be easily resolved for the brain, threatening its sense of congruence. 
In the case of stereotyping this could be resolved by say ignoring the existance of masculine gay men, because they don't match the percieved criteria of the stereotype so they must secretly be straight. Dichotomy averted.

In the case of a humanoid non-human the creature sits there staring at you and will not go away, so the dichotomy persists and causes discomfort. This is perhaps why many of the most successful mosters of fiction have a human quality, such as the minatore, frankenstein, the mummy, king kong, etc

Of course it could also be that furries just like animal heads more, because that's what they're into. We could eliminate this possibility by asking non-furry volunteers how much they liked furry images with human and then animal faces. I'm guessing they'd also like the animal faces more.

[if you want human-faced animal art here some is]




This is from the film 'mirror mask' the art belongs to dave mckean.


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## benignBiotic (Jan 28, 2013)

Actually now that you guys mention it there are plenty of uncanny valley examples of anthros with human faces. Don't worry Xo, yours is still adorbs.

The forest god from Princess Mononoke freaked me the math out for this reason *shudder*


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## Zrcalo (Jan 28, 2013)

OP, you said that she was basically a full human with a tail and crow feet, I dont consider that "furry" art at all. That's more nekogami or "cat girl". It's more of an anime thing than it is an anthro thing. I think in order to be considered "anthro" it has to have more animalistic features than that. But that's me.


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## Fallowfox (Jan 29, 2013)

Zrcalo said:


> OP, you said that she was basically a full human with a tail and crow feet, I dont consider that "furry" art at all. That's more nekogami or "cat girl". It's more of an anime thing than it is an anthro thing. I think in order to be considered "anthro" it has to have more animalistic features than that. But that's me.



What exactly constitutes furry is a murky semantic argument. 


Want to see my new bricksona?


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## Andy Dingo Wolf (Jan 29, 2013)

It's not really my cup of tea, but then, one of my female characters has a humanlike face


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 29, 2013)

Zrcalo said:


> OP, you said that she was basically a full human  with a tail and crow feet, I dont consider that "furry" art at all.  That's more nekogami or "cat girl". It's more of an anime thing than it  is an anthro thing. I think in order to be considered "anthro" it has to  have more animalistic features than that. But that's me.



What makes something furry is one of those things that varies from person to person.



Fallowfox said:


> Want to see my new bricksona?



Your just another brick in the wall. Kudos if you know what that's from.


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## Fallowfox (Jan 29, 2013)

RadioactiveRedFox said:


> What makes something furry is one of those things that varies from person to person.
> 
> 
> 
> Your just another brick in the wall. Kudos if you know what that's from.



I was completely hammered when I came up with the idea of a bricksona. ;]


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 29, 2013)

Fallowfox said:


> I was completely hammered when I came up with the idea of a bricksona. ;]



HAHA, the wonders of alcohol.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 29, 2013)

Zrcalo said:


> OP, you said that she was basically a full human with a tail and crow feet, I dont consider that "furry" art at all. That's more nekogami or "cat girl". It's more of an anime thing than it is an anthro thing. I think in order to be considered "anthro" it has to have more animalistic features than that. But that's me.



I thought I'd see this. Was wondering when.


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## Ssela (Jan 30, 2013)

Reminds me a little of Kyau from Fantastic Panic.  I don't see a problem with it.  You can draw anthros however you want really, pretty sure there's not a set in stone rule saying an anthro has to have an animalistic face.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 30, 2013)

You'd be surprised at how ANGRY I've seen people get over certain things surrounding anthro anatomy trying to make stuff etched in stone. This guy wasn't mad, but I have seen heated emotions from people with their nose in the air regarding the subject. 

People still cry over hybrids even if it's done well. lol Granted fewer complain on good pieces compared to people who just started drawing, but still. I find it funny since an anthro by default is a human, animal X hybrid. I can pull out the evolutionary and adaptation shenanigans for that, but this isn't the thread for it.


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 30, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> You'd be surprised at how ANGRY I've seen people get over certain things surrounding anthro anatomy trying to make stuff etched in stone. This guy wasn't mad, but I have seen heated emotions from people with their nose in the air regarding the subject.
> 
> People still cry over hybrids even if it's done well. lol Granted fewer complain on good pieces compared to people who just started drawing, but still. I find it funny since an anthro by default is a human, animal X hybrid. I can pull out the evolutionary and adaptation shenanigans for that, but this isn't the thread for it.



These people need to realize that how one draws an anthro is just a matter of personal preference. Its not like there are real world examples to go by so there really is not a right or wrong way to do it. Besides that if they don't like it, then they shouldn't look at it.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 30, 2013)

And I get the whole realism helps fantasy argument but everyone assumes that if you do something "wrong" it means you don't know what you're doing when it could in fact be something called choice. No one considers that too much anymore. :/

Certain things may seem outlandish and generic at times. I saw a girl who a sonic styled cat/lobster mix before, but if that's what they want, no one can tell them they shouldn't do it. I wouldn't have an issue if someone disliked my stuff though. 

But back on the main topic. You know something? I'm not one for ever doing a "realistic" anthro face.





This is a _highly_ over simplified fox face I did. See a nose? I don't. I call it creative laziness. =w=
No one had issues with it though. I was honestly surprised. The guy was also one of the ones who faved this.


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 30, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> And I get the whole realism helps fantasy argument but everyone assumes that if you do something "wrong" it means you don't know what you're doing when it could in fact be something called choice. No one considers that too much anymore. :/
> 
> Certain things may seem outlandish and generic at times. I saw a girl who a sonic styled cat/lobster mix before, but if that's what they want, no one can tell them they shouldn't do it. I wouldn't have an issue if someone disliked my stuff though.
> 
> ...



Really, I wonder what made him like this character but not your other one. It looks really awesome by the way.


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## Judge Spear (Jan 30, 2013)

...
You think so? This was a product of sheer boredom. Wasn't colored well either. 

But I don't know. I guess deliberate human features are the only thing that can put him off, but he's dissonant when it comes to nothing being there. I kind of want to experiment and put these two girls side by side in a future pic to see the response. 
May be some real surprising reasoning behind it.

This is doing...surprisingly well for a Den thread.


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## RadioactiveRedFox (Jan 30, 2013)

XoPachi said:


> ...
> You think so? This was a product of sheer boredom. Wasn't colored well either.
> 
> But I don't know. I guess deliberate human features are the only thing that can put him off, but he's dissonant when it comes to nothing being there. I kind of want to experiment and put these two girls side by side in a future pic to see the response.
> May be some real surprising reasoning behind it.



I do. I would be interested to see what responses you would get from a side by side comparison.



> This is doing...surprisingly well for a Den thread.



I was kind of thinking the same thing.


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## Ssela (Jan 30, 2013)

I think your style looks adorable =)


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## VGmaster9 (Jan 30, 2013)

While I'm not a huge fan of the totally human face look, I'm not too much into the totally animalistic look either. I prefer their faces to look both a bit human and a bit animal at the same time. Artists like Chalo and AWD tend to mostly make their faces more appealing to me, and I really like that.


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## benignBiotic (Jan 31, 2013)

I'm beginning to really like the human-faced stye, I don't understand the hate. There's uncanny valley, but I'm sure some artists could avoid that.


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## Midsummer (Jan 31, 2013)

For me, as a commissioner/art lover, it depends on how well the artist pulls it off as to whether or not a flat-faced furre or fully animal head looks better or not. Some can pull it off with their style looking pretty good and still representative of the species it is supposed to be, and some can't. As an artist, I flip-flop between both more depending on what the commissioner prefers than my own personal preference.


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## Milotarcs (Feb 1, 2013)

Mine would look more than just freaky with a human face.


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## ONEintheinfinite (Feb 1, 2013)

I don't care honestly it's most def an aesthetic preference that this lovely thread is reaffirming with it's post, actually I do have stronger liking to human faces- thank you star trek.


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## Judge Spear (Feb 2, 2013)

VGmaster9 said:


> While I'm not a huge fan of the totally human face look, I'm not too much into the totally animalistic look either. I prefer their faces to look both a bit human and a bit animal at the same time. Artists like Chalo and AWD tend to mostly make their faces more appealing to me, and I really like that.



See, I even do that too. It's easier, but it gets the message across. 
Chalo and I have something in common. He never puts noses on cows and I never put them on foxes. I don't know why.


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