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When is it finished?

4/1/2021

2 Comments

 
I was thinking about this the other day because l thought l was done! At least with the first part of the drawing. Until l took a photo! And what a disappointment that was! It certainly no longer looked finished!
This is my tip for today. Take a photo. Then really look at it. For some reason it seems that when you look at a photo you suddenly see what you could not see when the piece was in front of your eyes. Sometimes l will see that a shape is a little off, sometimes l will see that l need more contrast or darker colors or more highlights. Sometimes as in the photo below l will see that it needs more layers.
Picture
Even allowing for the different daylight (which as you can see has bleached out the paper slightly on the first shot) you can see a huge difference between the two pieces.
The first piece is nearly there, the second one has reached a point where l feel l can call it finished, or near enough.
As soon as l took that first photo l could see that my work was not popping off the page and therefore it was not finished.
The only difference between photo one and photo two here, is more layers. There is no extra detail, l just punched the colour home using a heavier pressure. And l kept on layering until that color popped off the page.
Of course in truth, there is always something more that we could do to a piece of work and we could work on one piece for the rest of our lives. But if it doesn’t look exciting and vibrant in a photo then it probably doesn’t in real life either.


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2 Comments
Beth Doherty
4/8/2021 05:24:47 pm

I couldn't agree more! I use photos to help with composition and accuracy before starting a finished piece. It's also helpful to flip the photo in an editing app. It's like getting a fresh pair of eyes.

Reply
Sallyann
4/9/2021 02:24:46 am

Hi Beth, l am not very good at editing photos , l really wish l was as l am sure l could get better compositions that way.
It is interesting what you say about flipping a photo as l often used to hold a piece in front of the mirror which l think does the same thing, and you are right you do suddenly see things and wonder how you could have not noticed before!

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  • Home
  • Shop
  • Original Artwork page 1
    • Original artwork page 2
    • Original artwork page 3
    • Original Artwork page 4
    • Original artwork page 5
    • Original artwork page 6
    • Original artwork page 7
    • None animal art >
      • Broken Gem heart
  • Videos
  • Tutorials
    • Layering Tutorial
    • How to draw a Monarch Butterfly Wing
    • How to draw cat's eyes
    • How to draw owl eyes
    • How to draw feathers 1 (hummingbird/Jacamar type feathers)
    • How to draw feathers 2 (irregular feathers)
    • How to draw feathers 4 - parrot feathers
    • How to draw feathers 3 chest/breast feathers
    • How to draw feathers 5 - Wing feathers
    • Hummingbird Head Feathers
    • How to draw cat fur
    • How to draw chimpanzee fur
    • How to draw a grasshopper’s wing
    • How to draw fish scales
    • How to draw snake scales
    • How to draw lizard skin
    • How to draw fish fins
    • How to draw a gemstone
    • How to draw tree bark
    • How to draw rose gold
  • Tips and Techniques
    • How to get white
    • What pencils should I use?
    • All about sharpeners?
    • How to blend with colored pencil
    • How to burnish
    • Erasing colored pencil
    • How to mix colors
    • Keeping your work clean
    • Reference photos and copyright
    • What to draw
    • How to make your work look real
    • I can't draw
    • What paper should l use?
  • Blog
  • Contact