Dear John It's really admirable to see how you keep improving your drawingskills by watching, copying& analyzing. I love it how you always sound so eager and amazed. Keep sharing your thoughts, I can't get enough of it.
What I like about Eisenberg is the clarity of his lines and solid compositions His hands are pretty cute too!
"When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes..."
Your drawings are nicer slightly. I think you changed the proportions a tiny but, but in a good way, and more stylish a teeny weeny bit. You just naturally do that I guess, haha.
"When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes..."
This is such an important point, one that is rarely mentioned in art instruction. It doesn't matter if your line is curvy like Ketcham and Hurst, angular like George Baker, scratchy like Searle or smooth like Lichty- It's the solid, constructed form that the lines surround that is everything. You have to be aware of the 3-d shape as you draw your lines. S.
Aaah, this is really helpful for me right now. I'm doing some Flash animation for somebody right now and I've been looking to early Ed Benedict designs (like the first Flintstones stuff) for inspiration. I wanted to avoid the drawings going the way of current Cartoon Network/Nickolodeon fare (i.e. super angular), so this is great advice.
Love all these posts on construction, composition, lines of action and the like. Are there any books that you (or anyone for that matter)would recommend for help with this sort of stuff?
It's hard to draw Yogi Bear perfectly. He is full of subtilities in his composition that makes him very unique.
I really love your blog because of course it's full of great advices to learn how to draw but it's also full of great cartoonists that are really important to know and that are to much unrecognized in the buisness. Every time that I'm seeing a new post I'm telling me god I'm so stupid I don't know that artist.
Also, are there ever instances when it's appropriate to draw TWO lines of action? Like, if a character is running in two directions at once?Two lines of action, even three lines of action would be fine as long as they all work together. They should never be awkwardly interrupting each other. I'm sure John could elaborate further on this.
Brilliant. And who said that you've gotten sloopy with your drawing technique?
When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes - if that makes any sense.Sadly, whenever I tell my fellow classmates about this key fact about character design, they all think I'm a lunatic, thinking that it's "out of place" and "old-fashioned".
Am I going crazy, or are they just stupid?
Anyway, I'm not to sure if you can answer this question, John, but who will be interviewed in the upcoming Spumko book?
I hope Bob Camp was asked to be involved, 'cause it would be a shame if he was forgotten in all the hubabaloo that had happened when....
....Well, I guess I shouldn't continue yapping, because from what I've read in old magazine articles from the 90's about the "You-know-what" and the "what not", the last thing I'll need is to "Get the Horns".
Have a good one, and thanks for sharing your wisdom.
Your blog is a blessing for those Baby-Boomers or Generation X or Y or whatever who enjoy real cartoons. I love your passion, and this blog is a treasure.
Your analysis of the Huck first panel construction is off. Way off. The second panel construction is dead on.
(my previous link was a dud, so I'm reposting this)
Thanks for this great post John. I've been wondering about how the HB characters marry design and classic construction. This was very insightful. When I read that you were going to do this post, I did a construction study of my own. I'll be doing more.
17 comments:
Dear John
It's really admirable to see how you keep improving your drawingskills by watching, copying& analyzing.
I love it how you always sound so eager and amazed.
Keep sharing your thoughts, I can't get enough of it.
What I like about Eisenberg is the clarity of his lines
and solid compositions
His hands are pretty cute too!
LINE OF ACTION QUESTIONS:
Is the line of action ALWAYS at the center of the body, or in the case of Yogi and The Man pointing, would the line go across the arms?
Also, are there ever instances when it's appropriate to draw TWO lines of action? Like, if a character is running in two directions at once?
These drawings and analyses are great! Thanks again, John! I'm sharpening my pencils right now.
- trevor.
"When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes..."
That is pretty interesting. I will try that.
Book! Book! Now! Now!
How's the book coming along?
Your drawings are nicer slightly. I think you changed the proportions a tiny but, but in a good way, and more stylish a teeny weeny bit. You just naturally do that I guess, haha.
"When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes..."
This is such an important point, one that is rarely mentioned in art instruction. It doesn't matter if your line is curvy like Ketcham and Hurst, angular like George Baker, scratchy like Searle or smooth like Lichty- It's the solid, constructed form that the lines surround that is everything. You have to be aware of the 3-d shape as you draw your lines.
S.
Aaah, this is really helpful for me right now. I'm doing some Flash animation for somebody right now and I've been looking to early Ed Benedict designs (like the first Flintstones stuff) for inspiration. I wanted to avoid the drawings going the way of current Cartoon Network/Nickolodeon fare (i.e. super angular), so this is great advice.
Love all these posts on construction, composition, lines of action and the like. Are there any books that you (or anyone for that matter)would recommend for help with this sort of stuff?
It's hard to draw Yogi Bear perfectly. He is full of subtilities in his composition that makes him very unique.
I really love your blog because of course it's full of great advices to learn how to draw but it's also full of great cartoonists that are really important to know and that are to much unrecognized in the buisness. Every time that I'm seeing a new post I'm telling me god I'm so stupid I don't know that artist.
this site rules, i am quite a novice cartoonist and blogger, id be honored ggod sir if you looked at my madness http://ejcounlimited.wordpress.com/
Also, are there ever instances when it's appropriate to draw TWO lines of action? Like, if a character is running in two directions at once?Two lines of action, even three lines of action would be fine as long as they all work together. They should never be awkwardly interrupting each other. I'm sure John could elaborate further on this.
Brilliant. And who said that you've gotten sloopy with your drawing technique?
When I was copying the drawing I didn't just look at each line and figure out what angle it was on, I instead looked at the shapes within the lines and then drew the lines around the shapes - if that makes any sense.Sadly, whenever I tell my fellow classmates about this key fact about character design, they all think I'm a lunatic, thinking that it's "out of place" and "old-fashioned".
Am I going crazy, or are they just stupid?
Anyway, I'm not to sure if you can answer this question, John, but who will be interviewed in the upcoming Spumko book?
I hope Bob Camp was asked to be involved, 'cause it would be a shame if he was forgotten in all the hubabaloo that had happened when....
....Well, I guess I shouldn't continue yapping, because from what I've read in old magazine articles from the 90's about the "You-know-what" and the "what not", the last thing I'll need is to "Get the Horns".
Have a good one, and thanks for sharing your wisdom.
From an aspiring animator/ cartoonist.
Your blog is a blessing for those Baby-Boomers or Generation X or Y or whatever who enjoy real cartoons. I love your passion, and this blog is a treasure.
Your analysis of the Huck first panel construction is off. Way off. The second panel construction is dead on.
(my previous link was a dud, so I'm reposting this)
Thanks for this great post John. I've been wondering about how the HB characters marry design and classic construction. This was very insightful. When I read that you were going to do this post, I did a construction study of my own. I'll be doing more.
LINK HERE
I agree with Kali. You made them look better. More fluid. More shape.
This is an awesome blog. I check it everyday. Thank you for posting.
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