random whining

[ratcreature]

Gah, I hate clothing folds so much. Maybe even more than foreshortened limbs, though it's a close call. Also, why did I bother to waste ages trying to arrange these limbs and body parts correctly when it's all buried beneath all this cloth anyway? I have resorted to draping rags over a wooden puppet to see how folds may fall, and it is not even helping.

Comments

[tazlet.livejournal.com]

It takes a lot of time to work that one out -- I found that crumpling up soft paper bags or soaked sheeting (soft hankerchiefs) and drawing those before working with the draped figure worked best -- I developed a visual vocabulary for folded fabric without without being intimidated by the model. Also, if you have a wooden figure, you can start by draping wet fabric or soft wet paper over that.

[ratcreature]

Hm, making it wet hadn't occurred to me. Maybe I'll try that.

I think my main problem is that I'm trying to draw Snape's robe, and being a robe thing it's loose and draped, but since he is moving forward and arms and legs both stretch it in this pose, so it is pulled at the same time, and I while I can sort of deal with the folds that result from pulling or the folds that result from draping, I have a really hard time to figure out how to make this kind "hybrid fold" from overlapping both kinds of folds look vaguely realistic.

I'm starting to really appreciate the superhero approach to clothing however. I mean sure, the thin skimpy spandex may not be realistic or practical for crime fighting, but at least you don't have to fake your way through voluminous drapery.

[tazlet.livejournal.com]

...it's loose and draped, but since he is moving forward and arms and legs both stretch it in this pose, so it is pulled at the same time...

Can you create the volumes with light and shadow or are you restricted to line work? Closer tends to be lighter and more detailed -- further back might be softer, darker, less precision.

[ratcreature]

It's going to be my usual style, i.e. colored lineart eventually, acrylics as I still haven't been able to replace my chewed on tablet. So there is going to be some shading, and it is not that close. Actually the scene in the story I'm illustrating takes place at night in a dark alley, but I'm probably not going for those lightning conditions, since I want them to be more visible than as dark blobs... (Though I guess just drawing an entangled silhouette would have saved me a lot of trouble, then again with their positions you wouldn't have seen much.) *g*

random whining

[maxinemayer.livejournal.com]

You'll get it eventually! Hugs you.
Love, max

Re: random whining

[ratcreature]

I hope so. I just need to vent sometimes. *g*