Sketch for Anita Cholaine

[finn's mom]

Those are great, you have a very cool style...

[Miss Z]

Thankyou, like the word 'cool'......

[JenBKR]

Wow thank you so much - I absolutely love it!

[Miss Z]

I'm so glad you like it. If anyone else wants one then you can post it and i can probably have it done by tonight

[catnapper]

Looking good!

All you need to do is push the contrast -- meaning make more darker darks and more lightest lights! You're doing AWESOME though!

Attached is a Beagle that I did and got the world's worst scan on. At the top, the light reflected too much off his head, making the contrast of shadows and light seem dull. The contrast is accurate at the bottom where there is more white. Its almost like two drawings in one -- one with a good amount of strong highlights and deep shadows, and one where all the values are flat. Hope this helps you see things a little clearer. I always wished someone poited things out to me like this when I was starting, because it took a long time for me to figure it out on my own.

[Miss Z]

Wow that sketch is brilliant! I'm just 13, so i'm not really that experienced in sketching, but thanks for the tips! I'll try to use them to the best of my ability!

[catnapper]

Like I said, you've got a good base there. Use your kneeded eraser to "carve" out highlights, and use your 9B pencil to create deep shadows. Here's the portrait with the contrast enhanced. Noticed how it pops and has more dimension? the face comes forward now. You can do it! The point you stopped at is what I consider my halfway point. If you keep pushing the darks darker, and using the kneeded eraser to make the lights lighter, you'll be there!

[Miss Z]

Yeah, i see, thanks sooooooooo much!!! I will try it when i get another sketch

What i tend to do is 'over blend' with my tortillon so that the darker points become merged with the lighter ones