Project - Portraits in Perspective

Lesson by

149K

Mark as Completed

Assignments 603Lesson NotesDownloads 6

Project - Portraits in Perspective

Lesson by

Stan Prokopenko

in Drawing Basics

149K

Mark as Completed

Assignments 603Lesson NotesDownloads 6

In this project we'll practice applying perspective to organic forms. Heads, while organic, adhere to the rules of perspective similar to boxy objects, so we'll start by constructing 3D heads. Look for clues of the angle of each axis such as angles from brow to ear, the vertical center line of the face, and the horizontal side to side angles of the features.

I've prepared a range of portrait photos for you to work with, that you could find in the downloads tab under the video. You'll notice each photo is numbered. Please label your drawings with the corresponding photo you're drawing to help me and the community give you a critique. Otherwise it would be very difficult to know which box matches each photo.

Level 1: Basic Box Construction

Draw a box representing a simplified version of each head.

Try to match the orientation and dimensions of the head in the photo
Rely on your intuition to imagine each head's rotation and dimensions
Iterative process: Redo and refine as needed

Level 2: Head Construction

Start with a small box representation of the head, same as Level 1. Then add linear head construction with accurate perspective.

Use primarily straight lines to draw, emphasizing plane changes
Find angles in the organic shape that correlate with the simple box (ex: top and back of the head)
Observe, analyze, then draw
Avoid drawing tiny heads; aim for at least 4 inches in height

Deadline: Submit by 1/15/2024 for a chance to be in the critique video!

Natasha Johnson

•

18h

I have no words , funny i loved the 1 point perspective . But I just couldnt see the vanishing points on some those faces . I guess my eye is not trained to see it YET . The faces that it was clear it took 30 secs . On the harder ones 10 min ( yeah i know)hope you guys had fun 😎

Carlo Julian

•

First three attempts. The boxes were very helpful for the first two. For the third one I really only used the centre line to position the features of the face and then drew from observation. The guy's hair is so puffy it was hard to think of it being in perspective.

Carlo Julian

•

ahhhh... I just realized I missed the "draw with straights" part of the assignment. Will try it again.

@makartsy_24

•

16d

Demo - Portraits in Perspective - Level 2 Need Critique on this

Em Wilkins

•

19d

This is my result from the level 1 basic box construction around heads 1-19 - all feedback welcome!

Michael Koch

•

30d

@solobo

•

1mo

Four attempts at level 2

Rachel Dawn Owens

•

1mo

Looking great! Thanks for sharing! I know this assignment isn’t about anatomy, but I think this could benefit your drawings. Overall, great stuff! Keep it up!

Evan Wray

•

1mo

First four attempts pre-demo. Sort of level 1.5, just for fun.

Evan Wray

•

1mo

@sknight

•

1mo

Totally blanked on uploading these. When I check them against the photos it seems that I will get the proportions right for the face and head individually, but sometimes the face will be too big for the head, or the angle will be slightly off, etc. Any other critiques welcome.

Thien Minh Pham

•

1mo

here is mine little attempt pre demo. What can I improve? I especially have problem with picture 3 the line is blurry I dont understand it any help would be great. I have a little critic for myself too, but i don't know if the critic is right.

Melanie Scearce

•

1mo

I think the issue with #3 is that we see the top of the head instead of the bottom of the chin, which is more visible in this pose. This is how I would draw it. Hope that helps!

Amu Noor

•

2mo

Lvl 2 project with demo. Any feedback appreciated!

Rachel Dawn Owens

•

2mo

Wow!!

Melanie Scearce

•

2mo

Agreed with @Brandon. These are amazing, keep it up 👍

Brandon

•

2mo

not much to say, your line quality and shapes have their own charm, glad that u re keep improving, same comment for your yesterday post, keep it up

@solobo

•

2mo

Level 1, started to get the hang of these about half way through after watching the demo.

Amu Noor

•

2mo

lvl 2 project. Any critique would be appreciated! This was fun but I really struggled with the back angles.

@savagenomad

•

2mo

Luke

•

2mo

This exercise was great, I feel like I have a much better grasp of how to put a portrait into perspective.

Melanie Scearce

•

2mo

Wow, great work!

Rachel Dawn Owens

•

2mo

Attempted my own version of this assignment. Was really great practice for perspective, which is not my strongest skill. Learning a ton.

Martha Muniz

•

2mo

Awesome!

I did not Want to see that

•

2mo

Alright, this was a pretty mixed project for me, I liked it, but at the same time it also gave me a little frustration. All in all, I am not sure how I did for this project. The first image is prior to the demo and the one following is after, so that concludes level one. The level 2 assignments following those are all prior to the demo, and I will be doing some more after watching that. I threw a digital one in there, because I am actually drawing more since I got my wacom. When I study I usually go to the library. So I would do 5 hours of japanese and like 3-4 hours of drawing. Usually I go home after I am done and since my wacom is at home I do a little more, but just some passion projects/ all the warm ups from this course for now. I am still of the opinion that traditional drawing is a wise thing to master as well. But letting go of all of that, if there are any point of improvements or something I could have done better, or should keep doing letting me know does not go unappreciated!

Rachel Dawn Owens

•

2mo

These look great! Especially the traditional drawings.

@julia52

•

2mo

Here's my attempt. Went alright struggled quite a bit, especially with 3,6,9 and 12. Any advice would be appreciated.

Amu Noor

•

1mo

Your perspective looks great! As @Melanie Scearce mentioned, I think using some lighter, looser strokes would improve your line quality and make these even better. Try using that tapered stroke that Stan describes in the line section and try to ghost in your strokes before executing them. Overall, beautiful work!

Melanie Scearce

•

2mo

I think you nailed it. I did notice that you seem to be pressing pretty hard on the pencil (can see indents from the opposite pages). Try to lighten up -- drawing tense like that can lead to unnecessary difficulty. Don't be afraid to use a few light searching lines to find the right angle before you commit fully to a line. Stay loose and keep doing these perspective studies, it will get easier :)

ANX804U

•

2mo

noicceee, I think you did well, only critique would be draw more frequent and post more frerquent.....

Sean H

•

2mo

Here's my level 2 attempt! I like portraits so I'll for sure continue doing these with more references. Most of these I did before watching the level 2 demo so I perhaps was thinking too mathematical with trying to fit the head into an actual box. While some forms do match well, it gets tougher around the face since the head tends to taper a bit toward the front. I was also trying to map in planes I learned from one of Andrew Loomis' books. Maybe a good exercise but I realized I wasn't really observing the actual model sometimes! As with my level 1 drawings, I mapped the box to just the height of the face as it's easy to split into thirds that way. However, going forward I think I'll map it to the entire head as blocking in the whole shape seems like it'll be more useful, especially when moving on to full figures. That way I can also use the info that the head is (on average) as wide from the side as it is tall (going by Loomis). Again though, that may be being too mathematical instead of relying on observation/intuition haha Anyway, the last four here were done after watching the demo. For these I tried to draw more organically while still adhering to the perspective of a box. I think they came out better as a result :)

Rachel Dawn Owens

•

2mo

Looking great! I think you did really well with the portraits. The faces look solid. I know this assignment isn’t about necks, but maybe you will find this demo I made helpful for understanding a bit about the under plane of the chin. You did great. Keep it up!

Vili

•

3mo

Hi ! Something looks weird but i cant figure out what is making them weird 😭

Vili

•

3mo

I tried lvl 2 during almost 1 hour, starting with the box and on a second layer draw inside to keep proportions in the cube I think my initial box was a bit off...

Melanie Scearce

•

3mo

Since you're working digitally, once you finish a box you can check your work by overlaying the box over the reference image. Some of your boxes are a bit too long or too short for the head, but overall you found the right angles!

Jack H

•

3mo

This project really was quite the step up from the one-point perspective project! For level 1, I found it hard to determine the proper relative proportions for the box for its front and side plane. For level 2, it was rather difficult to convert the box into a decent portrait. I wasn't sure how to exactly use the box to build the head, especially the jawline where it transitions from front to side. Any critiques or feedback will be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

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Stan Prokopenko

Founder of Proko, artist and teacher of drawing, painting, and anatomy. I try to make my lessons fun and ultra packed with information.