I like the simple lines on the koala 🙂

Roper, I love your stalk. I like the highlights on the White feathers on top of the legs against the water. I have been trying to get the ‘perfect’ photo of one of my drawings. I started a thread on here last year and got some good advice, also been talking to a few photographers about it. Starting to get better results now but they still look washed out. Wish I had access to a few older drawings still I would love better photos of them. By pencil point I ment is it blended? You can’t really see once it’s on the forum. It’s s lively drawing.

I like the highlights on the White feathers on top of the legs against the water

Thanks for noticing. 🙂
I decided to blur out the water and hoped it would become more of a contrasting background, as the bird gets darker the water gets lighter and the other way round. No one else has ever mentioned it so I presumed I had blended it too much.
Thanks for clearing up pencil point, I used a range from 6H to 8B including F.
Photographing pencil is a nightmare. I use a Nikon D5000 which has an auto “High” setting. It lightens the paper and not quite as much from the dark. Nowhere near right though, The stork’s neck is almost black in real life.

Great stork and I like the puffin too.

Dragon for me.

I gather that a scanner is the best bet for getting pencil drawings in.
i’m still taking pictures myself. I generally have to up the exposure and contrast to get them right though.

I’m not sure about catflees, but my drawings tend to be too big for my home scanner. I have tried to scan them on a more basic scanner but the pencil quality was lost. It looked more like a digital drawing. That could be due to my lack of patience with scanners.

catflees-what size if you dog drawing?

Hi, that dog is on A3 paper but the drawing is a little over A4.

Scanners wash out pencil work and make them look really flat. I’ve been using a Canon EOS 350d on a sunny day with natural lighting. I’ve used a tripod and a grey scale card. Once an image is put through imaheshack or Facebook though the quality is dropped so it’s never a good representation when presented in that way.

Why would anybody want to do a drawing from a photo? All you are doing is drawing a photo. Get the tracing paper out as it will be quicker. Even better get a filter in photo shop and it can be done in seconds. I am being harsh but my recommendation would be to copy somebody who can draw. Copy their pictures then use their techniques to better your pictures. I would start with some of the greats. Say Rembrandt, or Durer. I can’t really see the point of photo realist drawings or paintings myself.

I mean this is ace.

That is what I have done for a long time. For example I could not paint myself like this but I can copy:

Get the tracing paper out as it will be quicker.

I would start with some of the greats. Say Rembrandt,

not that Rembrandt never ever ever used a camera obscura.

Why would anybody want to do a drawing from a photo?

Because your paid to draw someone who is busy and can’t sit?

Exactly if they can’t be bothered to sit then just do it in photo shop. I doubt Rembrandt went around with a camera obscura all the time. A camera obscura is more like tracing anyway so even if the dutch masters did use them you are kind or agreeing with me.

That’s why I liked doing the scraperboard pics – copied from photos but you have to put your own style into it.
Same with pencil I guess – it’s never going to be an exact rendering of the photo as you have to use pencil strokes to reproduce what you see in the photo.
Personally, I can only copy from photos (ok at still life), which is why I kind of gave up on art!

BTW, is dragons going to be a new thread? Lydon and I have some dragons we’ve done recently 🙂

But drawing from a photo you are drawing a flat plane. No real 3D and you have lost a good percentage of the colour, depth, contrast, etc. Everybody can draw, most of it can be learnt but like anything it takes a lot of time. You have to have some grasp of geometry and from other artists you can get an idea of what marks you can make.

well that’s us told.. 🙂

Some advice that’s all. Most people think art is about doing something original when really the best thing you can do is copy from people better than yourself. Even Picasso said that good artist borrow while great artists steal.

the best thing you can do is copy from people better than yourself

that’s certainly the formula for making your way within the art establishment 🙁

Thing is GEDA, this is the STW art club, not the Turner Prize (couldn’t think of any other serious arty thing)

GEDA, from your comment I don’t think you understand how most of the “masters” worked. They have always used the technology available to aid their work. My recommendation would be for you to go back and look at a bit more art history and technique.
Also you don’t understand different medium if you think a pencil drawing is the same as photoshop. Why draw or paint at all? Just go to country and see it for real.
You might not see the point of photo realist drawings or paintings but a lot of people do. There is room for everyone.

I would say it is not. The establishment, for example Saatchi promotes artists that are “innovative” and claim to be doing ground breaking stuff. Questionable but that’s the way it is.

I do know what I mean. I have just been reading the Hockney book about how the masters used cutting edge technology. But part of that cutting edge technology was to use the techniques of other artists. Hockney in fact makes a point that painting is not dead precisly as it can show a more “realistic” image of the world than a photograph. But also that photography is moving towards painting and it is now one big mash up due to the way photos can be manipulated.

I suppose he was saying that photos such as these are actually painting as they have so much post processing.

But he is adding to the photo not starting with the photo and then copying it which is what I am saying is a bit pointless.

Yeah, but what’s that got to do with the STW Art Club?

I didn’t say couldn’t be bothered. I said too busy. Im not agreeing with what your saying. Creating art can be as much about mood as representation and using a camera at any stage of the process needs no to inhibit creativity. Many artists see cameras as another tool to be used. I say this as someone who has a career as a photorealist.

which is what I am saying is a bit pointless.

It is pointless. This is stw art club.
You also being presumptuous in how some of the work here is produced, and are wrong. For the record Saatchi is also a fan of the realist movement and includes some in his collection, not that that means much but does demonstrate there is more to it than you are seeing.

Reading books is ok, some people write books & know of the people who you mention. I know some would tell you to ‘think forward, not be trapped by the medium’

When did I say that using a camera inhibits creativity? The opposite really. I use a camera but copying photos on its own is in its nature one dimensional. I can see why you might feel defensive if you are a professional photo realist artist. All I said to begin with was you will learn a lot more by copying other artists than copying a photo.

Next theme. Great drawings this week and also a piece of installation art 😯

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/stw-art-club-%E2%80%93-%E2%80%9Cdraw-a-dragon-or-your-chinese-new-year-sign-%E2%80%9D-322012-to-102

Have fun.

Yes, let’s leave the pretentious bullshit to this thread.

I’ve added all the pix to gallery post here 🙂

http://stwartclub.wordpress.com/2012/01/27/stw-art-club-design-a-logobanner-for-art-club-2712012-to-322012/

I would say it is not. The establishment, for example Saatchi promotes artists that are “innovative” and claim to be doing ground breaking stuff

well I would say that you’re wrong.. one cannot begin to hope to get an art degree and thus a foot on the first rung, without first demonstrating a very clear and concerted effort to understand and emulate the works and techniques of those that have gone before..

thus making one’s way in the establishment requires the formula that you subscribe to.. at least at a grass roots level..

It’s the very reason that I couldn’t get to grips with art school as a temperamental and haughty young man as I was far too busy trying to be original..

as for being the ‘best’ or only way to draw properly.. well I’m sure that’s not for any of us to say.. (although I’ll certainly be giving it a try.. 🙂 )

[/blah blah blah]

So I’ve got to stop using photos for reference?

Aah crap, I was enjoying drawing then too. Still, if them’s the rules….

that tiger tank is ACE! GEDA is right though, reproducing a flat 2d image is not a good way to learn how to draw or express yourself. But this isn’t an art class it’s just a bit of a laugh.

So I’ve got to stop using photos for reference?

Aah crap, I was enjoying drawing then too. Still, if them’s the rules….

There aint no rules.

Only not to talk about Art Club 🙂