My go for level 2. The step from three to five values felt huge! It was much harder than I anticipated. I did some experimenting with colors, which was fun! But my markers really weren't suited for this paper :) and I really don't like the look of these colored pencils. For that one my composition also wasn't to my liking and I wasn't capable of turning it into something I liked.

This was as fun as it was challenging! I really tried to focus on simplification with the markers. Working through multiple iterations of the comp really reinforced shapes and designs so moving on to the larger thumb I felt more confident about the start of the sketch. Going to keep 3 value markers handy from here on out!

Project - Value Composition Thumbnails | One more try after demo

Today I'm posting my second page, this time for level 1-b. Maybe I'm still playing a little (too) safe.. Trying to shake that off with the level 2 photos up next!

My solutions for the first photo. Maybe with too much details, but I like how is end up.

I tried the first photo, 6 small thumbnails and the two that I found most interesting palm sized too. Onto the next ones! Changing up the values to emphasize a specific area of the composition is fun! I don't know why I thought highlighting the hair was so appealing. I felt that this 'character' would be silently watching from a distance, giving his face a mid value seemed to fit that vibe.

I drew along with the video, next I'm going to use my own references and draw different angles. Advice? I felt the paper was kind of working against me. Is smooth paper required for working with charcoal? I'm using 'Derwent' charcoal pencils and just a simple cheap sketchbook with a coarse grain. I think I'm gonna switch back to a regular pencil for the next couple of drawings to be able to create a more smooth look.

Composition course? Count me in! ;)

My submission! I took my time to do a thumbnail for each of the reference photos. I was working on a personal project (making a little comic) this month but I went back to this project every now and then. I've been taking oil paint classes since september and I've been putting this 'thumb nailing' into practice there! See the last two photos for my first oil paint portrait incl marker thumbnail. Fun to apply all the puzzle pieces of this course to my own projects :)

Five minutes in and I'm like, 'yes those details got me again'. Haha! Anybody else?