Ragamuffin's Journal

[dvlfsh]

Yeah, I afraid myself, when it comes to slowing down and thinking, when I need to speed up process. Because...it sounds stupid! Like "How can I become faster, when I slow down the pace?!". And first attempts look like complete evidence of this concern. But actually you need to "fail" few times to win after. It's long-term run. Sometimes hard, but still rewarding.

[ragamuffin]

@dvlfsh Yeah, i can see that. It's okay, i'm used to "failing a few times" by now! ...That sounds more depressing than it really is!

Here's sketch 24/365

"The Simurgh is the highest symbol of Varos; patrons and guardians of the High Council.
Bringing any harm to one of these creatures is an enormous crime... but that's not an easy thing to accomplish"

[ragamuffin]

Sketch 25/365

"The Faunyr bathe often in the rivers and lakes of the tropical islands they call home, in a communal ritual of sorts. The Aldrysian archipelago sits squarely on the Equator: it is hot all the time, and it rains all the time."

I was thinking of what the Equator line could be called in my fantasy setting, but then i just realized that "equator" means "that which divides in equal parts". So it makes sense for them to call it the same thing!

[ragamuffin]

Sketch 26/365

"Dunno how it got there. What, did you want a story?"

This one turned out really messy and muddy. But time limit, so no fiddling!

Some more character sketches!

[dvlfsh]

Impressive amount of work, You set a good example, mate!
I think last painting is too harsh in terms of value transitions. Looks a bit dirty. Also try to use conception of line/brush economy even in your personal artworks and sketches, not just in studies like gestures. Because last bunch of sketches also looks too noisy in some places. BTW, character sheet of Nerissa is perfect

[ragamuffin]

Thanks! Yeah, i can see it. I'll keep working on that.

[ragamuffin]

Here sketch 27/365

Death Knight Adalfonse teaches the ways of battle to his great-great-granddaughter Liliana.

"Proper posture is not such an arcane concept to present thee such a challenge, Lily."
"Y'know, for someone who's been around for so long, you really should be more patient."

Also a more developed version of an earlier sketch. It's the fish-squid-elder-horror girl that people seemed to like

The initial concept was to draw a "monster-girl" type character that actually looked a bit monstrous and freaky... and maybe to some i succeeded. But to me she's just cute, so i guess i failed

I'm a bit dissatisfied with it and i can't really put my finger on the issues. It lost some of the energy of the original sketch.

Anyway, i'd like to know what you guys think!

[JesterSeraph]

Reasons why the character isn't scary:

• Non-threatening posture
  • She looks relaxed, which gives the sense that there's nothing to be afraid of.
  • Stance isn't ready to attack, or even imposing. There's no reason to be scared.
• Smiling, happy expression
  • This is only scary if the situation makes it so. A character smiling while tearing off someone's arm? There's something wrong. A character smiling while standing relaxed, with eyes that aren't scrunched or squinted? Looks friendly.
  • A more ominous, aggressive set of eyes, with or without a frown, would look more off-putting and threatening.
• Soft, harmonious colours
  • It's not bad colour choices, they just aren't threatening.
  • There isn't enough saturation to create tension in contrast.
• Too bright
  • We as humans are naturally distrusting of darkness.
  • Your coloured image puts too much light on her face, hair, shoulders, and back fin.
    • These areas could be much darker, since the water and the orange are the only light sources.
  • Higher contrast is more impactful. Current image is too 'soft'.

[ragamuffin]

It's pretty simple stuff really, isn't it? I didn't commit to the scaryness in any aspect, and thought a bunch of red "Sauron eyes" would do the trick.

[chris_r_art]

I would maybe go more into the blacks for the shadows and giver her face more information, like add wrinkles and also remember that sometimes bits and pieces block others from getting Exposed from the light ^^

[ragamuffin]

@chriswhatelse Thanks! I'll see what i can still do about this one.

Here's sketch 28/365

"We followed the trail until we came upon the Anvil of Gallhoc, stopping to take in the view."

[stealcase]

You are really putting in the WORK!
Kudos to you honestly, keep going at this pace and you'll be amazing in no time.

[ragamuffin]

Thank you, @stealcase ! Hopefully you're right I draw every day, but some days i can put more work in than others. I'm still not as consistent as i want to be.

Here's sketch 29/365

"Get the hell off my pond!"

[ragamuffin]

Sketch 30/365

"The shrine"

Practicing landscapes and scenery

[ragamuffin]

Sketch 31/365

"May our cause be just, may our hearts not falter"

[ragamuffin]

Sketch 32/365

"Court of the Beast-Queen"

[JesterSeraph]

Oh man I'm a fan of this character. Nice work.

[ragamuffin]

@JesterSeraph Glad you like her!

Here are sketches 33 and 34. Couldn't post yesterday because of a big power outage.

"Can't believe it was a one-headed hydra. My plan of charging 'per-capita' backfired badly."

"Lady Leona"

Drawing females is super hard for me, especially female faces. I can do it, but i often have to fuss over it a lot until i'm satisfied with the result. Drawing dudes is more like, bam! There's a dude. This pains me, cause i wanna draw more pretty girls.
Of course i know the solution is to just draw a whole lot more females. Pretty much all i drew as a teenager was armored dudes, so it makes sense it comes more naturally

[schism]

These are really cool. The stylized brush strokes have a lot of energy to them.

[ragamuffin]

@schism Thanks!

Here's sketch 35/365

The new "telephone" had just been installed, connecting them to Central Headquarters in Varos, and the knights were still getting used to operating the equipment.

"You don't need to shout like that Sir-"