Reddit reviews Keys to Drawing

www.drawabox.com

And someone also recently suggested this book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0891343377/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

/u/AppStoreVeteran gave you a great reply, but I just wanted to add in another perspective:

If you're interested in a more traditional approach to learning art, you can get to the point where you're making decent (not mind-blowing, but functional) illustrations with just a few months of serious effort. If you treat it like a semester-long course and put in the work, you can reach art student levels in a little under half a year.

1. Pick up either this or this book (I recommend the first one if you lack confidence/motivation, but the second one is great too; in fact, pick up both if you can).
   
2. Set aside 30-60 minutes every day to practice (using the book[s] as a guide).
   
3. Practice faithfully and with legitimate effort.
   
   Art is learning just like programming, playing an instrument, or public speaking, so, if you're even vaguely interested in it, I highly recommend you give it a serious try.

Keys to Drawing by Bert Dodson will give you the fundamentals which is the most important thing, from there you can apply them to whatever style you choose.

Practice practice practice.

Alright, you requested a critique and I've had time to give some thought to your work now.

Right off the bat I'm going to agree with the common sentiment here: The writing is strong. The story has some great propulsion. I'll go as far to say that you know how to write at a fairly proficient level. That's excellent! To paraphrase the guy who made Beetle Bailey, you can be an unskilled artist and still have people read your comics, but you can't be an unskilled writer.

Here's where the actual critique of detailed points starts.

Off the bat, the art is very rough. Like the art of anyone who is starting out, the art here shows a lack of practice. It seems like you know what you want to do, but don't have the mastery over the basics that is necessary to execute on it the way you want to. There are plenty of ways to build these skills. For human figures, figure drawing with a live model will help immensely in understanding how humans work, and help you understand how your favorite artists have stylized their work with their own understanding of human anatomy, which in turn should help you take what you have here and turn it into something closer to what you want from it, or at least what I'm assuming you want from it.

However, despite it being rough on a technical level, you achieved something very cool with the character designs. Morris is drawn in a much more insane-looking, much less realistic looking way to Angela White, which lends to us, as readers, feeling that insanity even before we're told. Combined with the warped camera angles you use when he encounters the alien warden and surreal pages we get when he is being questioned ends up reinforcing this idea that he is insane. White is drawn more like a reasonable human being by comparison, and this reinforces the idea that we should trust her. You've used the medium to your advantage despite being unrefined in skill. You have a good sense of how to approach these things that will only serve you further if you decide to improve your drawing skills.

You've got some interesting paneling going on, and I do not want to discourage that experimentation, but I do want to give you feedback on the effect it has had on your page flow and balance.


On Page 4 you've got a problem with the weight of the composition along with the overall flow of the page. My eye was drawn around the page as the red line indicates. Everything about the page wants to keep your eyes on the right side of the page (this is what I mean by weight, you could think of it as a kind of gravity as well) until you reach the bottom of the page where you are given an invitation to move back up the page into the center and left-hand side. This creates a situation where a reader who is taking in the art and isn't just reading from text box to text box will read the panels as I've indicated with the green numbers, rather than the intended reading order indicated with the blue. I can see that you did think about the flow of this page and it looks like it is intended to flow like this, but the text itself in the first box of text leaves your eye in a place where it wants to be pulled down by the slope of the Metro Waste dumpster when you're done reading it, undermining the page flow. If there is a less to be learned about this specific page, I think it's that text leads the eye as much as shape and rhythm, and keeping that in mind when you are designing a page will help you control the reader's eye more effectively in the future.

There are similar issues on some other pages. The layout itself in many cases is perfectly fine, the problem ends up being the flow of the page leading the reader to read the dialogue out of order, making for a confusing experience. Don't you dare think that I'm telling you to stop being so ambitious with your layouts. I don't think that's the answer at all. Keep trying to make these work. Keep these things in mind when making your own pages and while reading other people's comics. When something works, figure out why. When it doesn't, ask yourself why.

You can use a disjointed or chaotic pageflow to your advantage though. I don't really know if there is a name for this in comics, but in music there is the idea of "word painting", which is when music matches up with the meaning of the song. This page of A Lesson Is Learned, But The Damage Is Irreversible does just that. As the tidal wave hits and the man goes outside, the page gets more and more chaotic. You'll be scanning things twice and trying to figure out what is going on, but you still have the flow of the water in the center of the page to return to to guide you through the image, as well as sudden, clear borders in color creating panels without using panel gutters. It's really just the illusion of chaos, but this is what can be achieved through a solid understanding of how to guide the eye through a page. It's a pretty well known example among people who read a lot of webcomics I think. I'd highly recommend giving their archive a read.

You attempted something interesting on this page right here. The motion of the hammer going from resting position to smack dab into the Alien Warden's head was a cool, good idea. From the other comments here, I see that you have read Understanding Comics, and so probably remember from that book that Scott McCloud equates the space between panels to time. What happens between any two panels? Time passes. With so many panels and no other indications of speed, despite being probably one of my favorite things you attempted here (I do really love when motion is created in a still image, which you totally achieved!), it feels very slow, like he's sort of pushing the hammer into the Warden's head rather than a quick and violent bash that the situation seems to call for. I otherwise like what you did with this page. There are a number of ways you could change the perceived speed of the attack, from using less frames to complete the action (animation techniques like less frames = less time apply here), to somehow indicating that it only felt slow somehow and using that "time" for some purpose. Like any advice given here, it's mostly just trying to arm you to make more informed decisions in the future, not tell you what to do flat out.

Bringing it back to this musical idea of "word painting", here is Meredith Gran of Octopus Pie using the technique you used above to create a wonderful scene. You're on the right track by attempting these things.

The reading order on this page doesn't seem right to me. The red numbers are the order I read them in, and the blue are what I perceived to be the intended reading order. It appears you're supposed to read it in a clockwise motion, but there's nothing to actually indicate that to the reader, which will leave them lost momentarily. I really enjoy the line of action you have created for just the character's head in panel 1, and I find the final panel on the page to be delightfully creepy.

So, as far as actionable advice goes, working on your technical skills is the most obvious place to improve. Keys to Drawing and Perspective Made Easy are both books that focus on some basics that will help you improve. If you can, a figure drawing class is probably the best way to learn how to draw people, along with studying anatomy on your own time. If you can't do that, you can draw timed from photos, but drawing from life is definitely best. I haven't read a whole lot of horror comics, but I know that with those I have, grotesque detail often heightens the feelings of unease and can get me feeling squeamish. Junji Ito comes to mind for that. If you haven't read it, maybe The Enigma of Amigara Fault could provide some visual inspiration. Ito's other works often go more overtly detailed and grotesque, so it's possible that you may want to look further into him if he isn't already someone you've read.

You'll notice I haven't much touched on your story in detail. I could, and if you want to I will to the best of my ability, but I wanted to cover the art bit first since you seem to have a better handle on telling a story at the moment, and because this has gone on long and might be better digestible in parts anyway.

I hope this is helpful.

Here are a few books that have helped me over the years.

http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377

http://www.amazon.com/Draw-Looney-Tunes-Dan-Romanelli/dp/B0032FO6G4/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330652405&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Creating-Characters-Personality-Animation-Graphic/dp/0823023494/ref=pd_sim_b_13

http://www.amazon.com/Vilppu-Drawing-Manual-Glenn/dp/1892053039/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330652274&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Force-Dynamic-Drawing-Animators-Second/dp/0240808452/ref=pd_sim_b_11


Also, there's some other books that are out of print that you can download: http://alexhays.com/loomis/ also really great stuff there.

I don't know that much. On this subreddit every "beginner" is told to get "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" by Betty Edwards. I personally don't have this book, but I have this one "Keys to Drawing" by Bert Dodson, which basicly teaches the same stuff as Betty Edwards. Both these books will help you get started and teach you to draw what you see. I prefer "Keys to Drawing and is in my opinion better because I prefer the language he uses.

Also check out ctrl+paint. The "traditional drawing" section and the "Drawing 2" is quite helpful.

I don't know how much you practice, but you should draw everyday, even if it's just a five minute scribble. I personally try to draw one hour a day (which is really little). Maybe start with 30 min a day and then go upwards from there. It's quite hard to do this, but if you manage to do it everyday for about 2 weeks it will become automatic in a way...

complementary to what /u/cajolerisms as said about resources, someone else recommended the book Keys to Drawing by Bert Dodson. It is a book from the 90s, however, people gave it good reviews on Amazon and no one else has recommended other book instead. I bought my copy few weeks ago and I'm waiting to wrap my hand around it :)

If that's as far as you've got in "years" then you need to approach the craft from a different angle. Study typography (for letter structure) and architecture (for learning how to draw).

Two books worth reading:

http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Right-Side-Brain-Definitive/dp/1585429201

http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377/ref=pd_sim_b_5

Books, books and more books. Or courses.

I like to draw anime and I spent a few years just photocopying.
https://www.instagram.com/chrissyatsea/
The problem with that is that it made me better at copying not composing. Also I didnt like to get off my comfortable areas. I didnt know why the artist drew it like or how they did it. I just copied it. Like if you are copying a math problem you dont know what it means at all. So you need to be taught why it works like that. Unless of course you are gifted.<br /> <br /> So there is a good handful of books out there to help you with such things.<br /> <br /> The whole case on books is that if you arent a talented or gifted artist youre gonna have to do what we normies do best. Learn the fundamentals. Gifted people are gifted with the ability to just do and not know. Since we arent we start here.

Another thing to ask yourself if you arent willing to commit atleast an hour or more a day or atleast a good amount of hours a week on drawing is this: &quot;Does this just sound good or do I really want it?&quot;<br /> <br /> Here is a few books<br /> <br /> http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Right-Side-Brain-Definitive/dp/1585429201<br /> http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377/ref=pd_sim_14_5/189-6540426-4014231?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;dpID=51BQ2AW%2BCWL&amp;amp;dpSrc=sims&amp;amp;preST=_AC_UL160_SR124%2C160_&amp;amp;refRID=181BN40T9TTX026F0EBF<br /> <br /> I am currently working with anatomy on George Bridgman Books.<br /> <br /> http://www.amazon.com/Constructive-Anatomy-Dover-Artists/dp/0486211045/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;dpID=51vQXcL6ZyL&amp;amp;dpSrc=sims&amp;amp;preST=_AC_UL160_SR107%2C160_&amp;amp;refRID=13K2R2Y1Y6FZD3BJCBKK<br /> <br /> (Oh yeah try to find all the PDFS to these if you can`t afford them. I know that sounds wrong but these books are bestsellers if that makes you feel any better..)

Different strokes for different folks. Depending on their learning style, some love Loomis but hate Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain or say Keys to Drawing didn’t help them a bit. Truth is, most artists eventually read them all and use portions from each of them.


My personal reading focused more on the philosophy of art. I wanted to learn the traits and mentality of a successful artist and why they do what they do.


Books by Steven Pressfield:
The War of Art,
Do the Work,
Turning Pro.


I also re-read The Art Spirit by Robert Henri.

I'm going to play devil's advocate and not recommend Drawing on the right side of the brain.
The exercises are standard introduction to drawing exercises, which are fine, but the text is ... really debatable.
She took "Quit drawing symbols" and applied all kinds of psychology to it, when it's important to just stop drawing symbols.
The book's exercises itself are great however, if you can get your hands on the workbook instead, I would recommend that because it's just all the exercises with 5% of the text.
The most important part of drawing is actually doing it, especially when you're just starting out.

Also, I've heard good things about Keys To Drawing

Get this book and do all the assignments in it. Practice like crazy. If you want it you can do it. The idea of magical talent that you just have or don't have is silly. You just need passion and a hell of a lot of working time. It will hurt.

This can't be considered "finished" by the realism standards, you should consider filling the contours with pencil, even if lightly, and if you still have your reference, try to look a little more at it, see how light and shadow behave on its surface.
Realism/drawing from life is mainly observation, would be great if you read some books on the subject. keys to drawing and drawing on the right side of the brain are a good place to start. They may help you learn how to hold the pencil correctly, measure effectively, also may show the basics of light and shadow, and perspective.

I'd recommend one book: Keys to Drawing by Bert Dodson. The book is worth its weight in gold largely because Bert emphasizes the point Yosafbrige made prior: draw what you see NOT what your brain imagines. Drawing from memory (at least initially) will like lead to numerous inaccuracies since our memories are quite faulty and can't retain all the detail our eyes can perceive. Essentially Keys to Drawing teaches you to ACTIVELY OBSERVE your subject. Frankly this is exhausting at first. It takes more effort to stare and study your subject than merely fixating on the paper in front of you.

PRO TIP: Spend more time looking at your subject than the paper in front you. As soon as you find yourself spending too much time looking away from your subject, you begin (unconsciously) to use memory and fall on tried and tired techniques. This is the easy, and faulty way to draw -- at first. With enough practice (several years) drawing from memory will become a more reliable source.

http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377#

Bert Dodson! It's this one :)

Hi, I am learning how to draw using this book:
https://www.amazon.fr/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377

I just started to learn portraits. Here is one from a 3/4 view. Do you have some advices?

Here is the original: http://orig11.deviantart.net/0b46/f/2014/007/3/4/touch_my_face_by_wondermee-d71908j.jpg

I guess my main shortcoming is that I am not patient, I don't like to spend a lot of time on details, so my drawings will never be even close to the very realistic portraits I see in this sub.

So as a side question: do you have to be patient to be a good draughtsman?

Thank you for your replies!

I'm the lazy kind too. Drawing isn't very strenuous, and you can sit and draw your own foot for your drawing of the day, if you want. :)


I actually bought two books--the one I mentioned (http://www.amazon.com/The-Drawing-Right-Side-Brain/dp/0007116454), and Keys to Drawing, by Burt Dodson http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413937201&sr=1-1&keywords=keys+to+drawing+by+bert+dodson. They are fab books that made me understand that anyone can draw. Some days I got inspiration from the books and did exercises, and other days I'd pick something from around the house or out of a book or even froze the tv and drew people I saw there. No rules except to draw what I saw or imagined once a day, and to finish what I started. For me, finishing was the most important thing, because I get frustrated and want to quit.


Would love to share! That means I'll have to learn how to upload here ...


If you do choose drawing, I'd love to see how it goes!

Nicolaides's Natural Way to Draw seems to be a good program, but it's EXTREMELY tedious. If the op can't draw a recognizable likeness of something he is looking at, then Nicolaides's program would probably just get super frustrating with its hundreds of hours of gestures and blind contours. Studying gesture anatomy is fantastic, and seems to be the best way to learn how to draw figures from imagination, but if you can't draw well from observation, then your drawings from imagination probably won't look the way you want them to.

I've tried to start learning how to draw several times in my life, but I always got frustrated at the results and quit very shortly after starting. Then 2 months ago I decided to start again using Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Edwards, and I'm still drawing almost every day.

For beginners looking for quick results, I'd recommend Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Another book that I've found to be extremely helpful for general drawing instruction is Keys to Drawing by Burt Dodson.

If you seriously have your mind set on wanting to improve, get yourself Bert Dodson's "Keys to Drawing".

Keys to Drawing by Bert Dodson is good. I also like Drawing and Perceiving by Douglas Cooper.

The main thing is just practice. You have to train your hand, and improve your observation skills. It's not uncommon to get halfway into a drawing only to find problems, so try to practice proportioning and don't be afraid to make mistakes. Just keep going.

Another fun thing is to see other artists' work and try to copy their technique. You can give that a try once you get used to the basics.

All or nothing thinking is a problem. There is always room for improvement, but we're talking tens of hours starting out, and then each successive plateau will require another tens of hours to overcome. That's if you're taking pencil and charcoal mediums seriously. Painting in each medium has its own hurdles.

If I was starting over, I'd probably go with 'Keys to Drawing.' It's a very practical book for someone teaching themselves. No shortage of youtube videos after you get done with it, so be ok with googling topics you want to learn more on.

Look for a copy of Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain in your local library. https://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Right-Brain-Betty-Edwards/dp/0874775132/

You don't have to read through, just try some of the exercises and see if they suit your learning style. You don't need the drawing kit or workbook, just the book. They have a website here: https://www.drawright.com

Alternately. look for a copy of Bert Dodson's Keys to Drawing: https://www.amazon.com/Keys-Drawing-Bert-Dodson/dp/0891343377

In both cases, see if you can find an older edition. They are just as effective to use and often cheaper, and the newest editions of both books are printed terribly.