Every time i watch anime, manga, or even the wallpapers created by members of
the minitokyo society, I have asked myself how do they get to draw that good?
I have practiced many times already, but I dont seem to get much results out of
it. I have been wondering if it is the lack of materials to practice or the lack
of a teacher or something else. So I would greatly appreciate the different
members of the Minitokyo community if they could suggest me some ways, books,
webpages, etc in order to improve my anime drawing skills.
There's a fairly popular book (series of books?) called How to Draw Manga; you
might try that. I've never used it, so I don't know how good it is (never really
tried to draw).
Thank you for the suggestion BobaFett2ha, I'll try that. However, can you please
tell me how can I get those books for in my country I can hardly find them.
haha, well it's called skill....keke just joking, when i started drawing i was
just inspired by anime/manga and i thought..."hey, i can do that" and
i then just started drawing whenever i got bored *trust me i get bored very
often* , when i started drawing i didn't buy any books or look for tips on the
web nor get anyone to teach me, i figured everything on my own and practiced my
own techniques, dunno...maybe you could try my way and see how it goes haha
Does 'many times' to you mean 20 times or 5 years? Of course nobody starts off
with an absoluately amazing picture for their first. Yes, there are very young
artists who are absoluately amazing, but they are fast learners.
You have to be carefully with anime because the compostion of shapes are
important. Keep that in mind ;P Good shapes!
I would start off studying carefully the picture you like. And hopefully the
pictures you like are actually well-drawn xP For example, see where abouts the
nose start. Does it start where the cheek ends? Or slightly above or slightly
below? The eyes, are they like parallellograms, flat pentagons, semi-circles or
just something wierd...? Where does the bottom eyelid bend in comparison to the
top? And vice versa.
And how far is the top eyelid from the bottom? Be careful! Some beginners make
them too far apart. So to compare the length to the width might be a good
idea.
And trust me, as you get better, your judgement does too. And you start to see
things you've never nocticed before. Even if before you've studied at the
picture extremely hard.
And look though a lot of, lot of Anime styles and pics. You'll start to get use
of it and notice the difference in every single style. You know, there are so
many style and ways to draw those 'typical' big anime eyes, then you could think
of at the beginning. And you'll get better at spotting mistakes and see which
pictures are well-drawn or not.
And do not be afraid to rub things out that you notice it is wrong! And redraw
it! It'll most probably be better that way and you'll feel a lot better than if
you've left it behind. ( and you do not need to rub out the entire thing )
And you could hold up the drawing look at it from the back of the piece of
paper. Interesting technique for spotting out mistakes that you wouldn't be able
to find until a month or so later. It flips the image horizontally, so your eye
views it as a new image. Like chewing gum, the brain gets tired an tell you that
the gum has ran out of taste. Gum will never run out of taste! Pop another
chewing gum in and you'll taste it again. So trick the brain about this picture
being new ( even if you'll only spent 2 mins on it ) being a new picture.
That's why it's easier to spot another people's mistakes than your own, because
it isn't you who spent 3 hours on it. And that's why I never believe that 'You
are the biggest critique of yourself', unless you are anorexic or has a bad
taste in things xP
You could always use a mirror, or if it's a digital picture there should be a
option to help flip it. I prefer turning the picture around on paper,
personally.
And because of the above, get another people to critique your picture! If
flipping the picture over, doesn't completely erase every problem! People
usually critique you so you could improve. Yes, they are actually helping you!
If they do want to upset you they would simply say "That sucks."
You don't know how much I love critiques! I'm so desperate to improve.
Now that I've given you some general tips that I had to take over 2 years to
find out X_____x Hopefully, you too will be a fast learner...
You could always ask me to critique and give you more tips, if you wish! And
Good luck!
merged: 02-04-2007 ~ 02:07am
And sorry if I've overkilled you with writing @_____@ I do do massive posts
often. ( that was my first Minitokyo post )
But trust me, it's just a lot of facts placed together. Not just on one single
tip ^^;;;
Part of getting better at something is to push yourself to do things you know
are beyone your abilities. If you have trouble drawing ears for instance
practice that until you've got it down. After you've mastered the basics be sure
to try and draw something beyond your skill level every now and then to push
yourself to get better, as its better to try and fail to not try at all as you
get experience that way.
ok, there are two kind of artist (or illustrators) normal and gifted, gifted
have a natural skill to draw, it easy for them to learn, and drawings flow
easyly... normals on the other hand are illustrator whom practice a lot, and
have dedication, not only sit one day and say i will draw anime, if you are
gifted, it will work, if not, logicaly it wont... you must practice, and
practice and practice a lot, to get a fairly good draw.
Everyone has their own taste in anime-styled drawings.
If you can get a feel of your own style and get the flow going for the next few
drawings then from that, you can evolve and add extra details or remove
unnecessesary lines/curves.
PRACTICE! . Oh god thinking back now. I think I've draw so crap before. I've been into
drawing for 1-2 years and I reckon I've improved alot. Yet, I'm still not
satisfied. Pursue a goal with enough determination and time (yes especially
time) then you're bound to be able to achieve it. Don't let yourself get down by
how you start out. <s>like I'm one to say</s> Seriously so long as
you can even just think you can draw without any drawbacks. You'll do great.
As sheol13 said. There are 2 'main' (and I'm stressing that word) types of anime
artists. The fortunate and the lesser fortunate. I'd say I'm one of the lesser
fortunates. But heck I've gone through drawing practice during yr 9/10 while
managing homework, assignments and exams. So why can't everyone who really wants
to draw be good at it. Whether it be easy or hard. Anyone can ^^
The best thing to do is to make lots of practice, atleast everyweek or
something. You should start by copying other peoples work or drawings over and
over again, and as soon as you get better you can start making your own. It took
me a while to actually be good at drawing, but sometimes I do wish I was better.
At least I am the best at drawing anime at my school.
The important thing when you first start is that you should try and make it as
similar as possible. It takes sometimes but it works. That's how I do it.
oh! deviant art have many tutorials you can try experimenting on! but i suggest
that you must have enough back ground on the basics like proportions, lightings,
style ect... and i do agree that it takes a long while to really make beautiful
art! i mean i've been drawing anime for 11 years and im still learining a lot!
^^
don't give up hope! there's always space from improvrment
Well my best advice is everyone draws there own way some can draw better then
others. but as long as you practice and never give up try to draw you will get
better and better trust me. as long as you love you art work you'll keep getting
better. my i still have alot to learn but i'm improving so my way of the anime
drawing would be NEVER GIVE UP.
learn to draw poeple in real life, then anime will be a sinch. They are based on
the same principals, once you get basics down then you can distort propotions to
you own liking. If you start drawing stylised first you will proably end up
having to force yourself to unlearn you bad habits like some of the foolish
amongst us...;)
why dun you try drawing from life? It will improve the way you see things. Don't
limit yourself to anime/manga drawing. good artists know how to draw a peanut
butter jar, a spoon, a hibiscus flower as much as they can draw a hot anime
bishie.
spend at least an hour a day on practice. be faithful to it. keep a private
sketchbook you can bring anywhere. Soon enough, your hands and eyes will develop
a mind of their own!
Its also a good idea to observe people on your spare time, just to have an idea
on how anatomy works. Either that or buy a book. Cos if you should stare, be
sure to wear dark glasses, neh!? or you might be mistaken for a weirdo haha!
Well I'm always asking that same question
I wish I could draw like many of the artist I know,
But I do know where you can find some tutorials, over at devianart some members
have good tutorials I like to see :/
I think it just takes to draw that good some simple things:
-creativity -imagination -practice and PATIENCE *lol*
Every time i watch anime, manga, or even the wallpapers created by members of the minitokyo society, I have asked myself how do they get to draw that good?
I have practiced many times already, but I dont seem to get much results out of it. I have been wondering if it is the lack of materials to practice or the lack of a teacher or something else. So I would greatly appreciate the different members of the Minitokyo community if they could suggest me some ways, books, webpages, etc in order to improve my anime drawing skills.
There's a fairly popular book (series of books?) called How to Draw Manga; you might try that. I've never used it, so I don't know how good it is (never really tried to draw).
Thank you for the suggestion BobaFett2ha, I'll try that. However, can you please tell me how can I get those books for in my country I can hardly find them.
haha, well it's called skill....keke just joking, when i started drawing i was just inspired by anime/manga and i thought..."hey, i can do that" and i then just started drawing whenever i got bored *trust me i get bored very often* , when i started drawing i didn't buy any books or look for tips on the web nor get anyone to teach me, i figured everything on my own and practiced my own techniques, dunno...maybe you could try my way and see how it goes haha
I really appreciate your suggestions and I might be up to trying each of them if I get the time. Thanks a lot for the comments.
If you go to a bookstore nearby, or a chain one, I'm sure that they would order some in for you. =D
Does 'many times' to you mean 20 times or 5 years? Of course nobody starts off with an absoluately amazing picture for their first. Yes, there are very young artists who are absoluately amazing, but they are fast learners.
You have to be carefully with anime because the compostion of shapes are important. Keep that in mind ;P Good shapes!
I would start off studying carefully the picture you like. And hopefully the pictures you like are actually well-drawn xP For example, see where abouts the nose start. Does it start where the cheek ends? Or slightly above or slightly below? The eyes, are they like parallellograms, flat pentagons, semi-circles or just something wierd...? Where does the bottom eyelid bend in comparison to the top? And vice versa.
And how far is the top eyelid from the bottom? Be careful! Some beginners make them too far apart. So to compare the length to the width might be a good idea.
And trust me, as you get better, your judgement does too. And you start to see things you've never nocticed before. Even if before you've studied at the picture extremely hard.
And look though a lot of, lot of Anime styles and pics. You'll start to get use of it and notice the difference in every single style. You know, there are so many style and ways to draw those 'typical' big anime eyes, then you could think of at the beginning. And you'll get better at spotting mistakes and see which pictures are well-drawn or not.
And do not be afraid to rub things out that you notice it is wrong! And redraw it! It'll most probably be better that way and you'll feel a lot better than if you've left it behind. ( and you do not need to rub out the entire thing )
And you could hold up the drawing look at it from the back of the piece of paper. Interesting technique for spotting out mistakes that you wouldn't be able to find until a month or so later. It flips the image horizontally, so your eye views it as a new image. Like chewing gum, the brain gets tired an tell you that the gum has ran out of taste. Gum will never run out of taste! Pop another chewing gum in and you'll taste it again. So trick the brain about this picture being new ( even if you'll only spent 2 mins on it ) being a new picture.
That's why it's easier to spot another people's mistakes than your own, because it isn't you who spent 3 hours on it. And that's why I never believe that 'You are the biggest critique of yourself', unless you are anorexic or has a bad taste in things xP
You could always use a mirror, or if it's a digital picture there should be a option to help flip it. I prefer turning the picture around on paper, personally.
And because of the above, get another people to critique your picture! If flipping the picture over, doesn't completely erase every problem! People usually critique you so you could improve. Yes, they are actually helping you! If they do want to upset you they would simply say "That sucks."
You don't know how much I love critiques! I'm so desperate to improve.
Now that I've given you some general tips that I had to take over 2 years to find out X_____x Hopefully, you too will be a fast learner...
You could always ask me to critique and give you more tips, if you wish! And Good luck!
merged: 02-04-2007 ~ 02:07am
And sorry if I've overkilled you with writing @_____@ I do do massive posts often. ( that was my first Minitokyo post )
But trust me, it's just a lot of facts placed together. Not just on one single tip ^^;;;
Part of getting better at something is to push yourself to do things you know are beyone your abilities. If you have trouble drawing ears for instance practice that until you've got it down. After you've mastered the basics be sure to try and draw something beyond your skill level every now and then to push yourself to get better, as its better to try and fail to not try at all as you get experience that way.
ok, there are two kind of artist (or illustrators) normal and gifted, gifted have a natural skill to draw, it easy for them to learn, and drawings flow easyly... normals on the other hand are illustrator whom practice a lot, and have dedication, not only sit one day and say i will draw anime, if you are gifted, it will work, if not, logicaly it wont... you must practice, and practice and practice a lot, to get a fairly good draw.
Everyone has their own taste in anime-styled drawings.
If you can get a feel of your own style and get the flow going for the next few drawings then from that, you can evolve and add extra details or remove unnecessesary lines/curves.
PRACTICE!
. Oh god thinking back now. I think I've draw so crap before. I've been into
drawing for 1-2 years and I reckon I've improved alot. Yet, I'm still not
satisfied. Pursue a goal with enough determination and time (yes especially
time) then you're bound to be able to achieve it. Don't let yourself get down by
how you start out. <s>like I'm one to say</s> Seriously so long as
you can even just think you can draw without any drawbacks. You'll do great.
As sheol13 said. There are 2 'main' (and I'm stressing that word) types of anime artists. The fortunate and the lesser fortunate. I'd say I'm one of the lesser fortunates. But heck I've gone through drawing practice during yr 9/10 while managing homework, assignments and exams. So why can't everyone who really wants to draw be good at it. Whether it be easy or hard. Anyone can ^^
The best thing to do is to make lots of practice, atleast everyweek or something. You should start by copying other peoples work or drawings over and over again, and as soon as you get better you can start making your own. It took me a while to actually be good at drawing, but sometimes I do wish I was better. At least I am the best at drawing anime at my school.
The important thing when you first start is that you should try and make it as similar as possible. It takes sometimes but it works. That's how I do it.
oh! deviant art have many tutorials you can try experimenting on! but i suggest that you must have enough back ground on the basics like proportions, lightings, style ect... and i do agree that it takes a long while to really make beautiful art! i mean i've been drawing anime for 11 years and im still learining a lot! ^^
don't give up hope! there's always space from improvrment
Well my best advice is everyone draws there own way some can draw better then others. but as long as you practice and never give up try to draw you will get better and better trust me. as long as you love you art work you'll keep getting better. my i still have alot to learn but i'm improving so my way of the anime drawing would be NEVER GIVE UP.
learn to draw poeple in real life, then anime will be a sinch. They are based on the same principals, once you get basics down then you can distort propotions to you own liking. If you start drawing stylised first you will proably end up having to force yourself to unlearn you bad habits like some of the foolish amongst us...;)
why dun you try drawing from life? It will improve the way you see things. Don't limit yourself to anime/manga drawing. good artists know how to draw a peanut butter jar, a spoon, a hibiscus flower as much as they can draw a hot anime bishie.
spend at least an hour a day on practice. be faithful to it. keep a private sketchbook you can bring anywhere. Soon enough, your hands and eyes will develop a mind of their own!
Its also a good idea to observe people on your spare time, just to have an idea on how anatomy works. Either that or buy a book. Cos if you should stare, be sure to wear dark glasses, neh!? or you might be mistaken for a weirdo haha!
Well I'm always asking that same question
I wish I could draw like many of the artist I know,
But I do know where you can find some tutorials, over at devianart some members have good tutorials I like to see :/
I think it just takes to draw that good some simple things:
-creativity -imagination -practice and PATIENCE *lol*