Post by MsBig on May 5, 2005 6:07:38 GMT -5
This is a guide to how to find a good base figure's head to use for characters that don't already have a head sculpt.
Philosophy
If you look at fine art portraits of people they are hardly ever smiling (when they are trying to smile, they get to be world famous)!
One reason for this is that, if the portrait is from life, the subject can't hold the same smile for 2 weeks. The really big reason is that smiling completely changes the shape of a person's face: eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks and chin. The artist knows how hard it is to capture a likeness that way.
Choosing the Head
Find several good close-up photos of the subject where they are not smiling or at least not grinning (i.e. showing teeth).
Look at the shape of the nose and the shape of the cheeks/jaw/chin. These are the most important. You should be able to alter the mouth and eyes with paint.
Altering the Head
I recommend always removing the hair and resculpting it, even if the style is close. This way you obliterate the original likeness of the base figure and give a fresh look.
If you need to alter the shape of a mouth, you can use a brown pen to draw a faint line through the middle to the corners. The lips can then be painted or drawn in fleshy pink.
With the eyes, look at the line of the top eyelashes. Do they go up on the outside corners (like Anya) or down (like Buffy)? Getting this line right is very important to the likeness.
Also the colour and shape of the eyebrows. Buffy's eyebrows are straight and near her eye. Cordy's have an arched point in the middle.
Also, overall, look at the distances between the features. You can exaggerate slightly to get the likeness, when the figure is so small. Are the eyes wide-spaced or close to the nose bridge? Is the mouth equidistant from the nose and chin? How far above the eyes are the eyebrows?
Big Tip
Don’t expect to get it right immediately. Just keep practicing. When you can see what went wrong, you know how to improve it next time.
Philosophy
If you look at fine art portraits of people they are hardly ever smiling (when they are trying to smile, they get to be world famous)!
One reason for this is that, if the portrait is from life, the subject can't hold the same smile for 2 weeks. The really big reason is that smiling completely changes the shape of a person's face: eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks and chin. The artist knows how hard it is to capture a likeness that way.
Choosing the Head
Find several good close-up photos of the subject where they are not smiling or at least not grinning (i.e. showing teeth).
Look at the shape of the nose and the shape of the cheeks/jaw/chin. These are the most important. You should be able to alter the mouth and eyes with paint.
Altering the Head
I recommend always removing the hair and resculpting it, even if the style is close. This way you obliterate the original likeness of the base figure and give a fresh look.
If you need to alter the shape of a mouth, you can use a brown pen to draw a faint line through the middle to the corners. The lips can then be painted or drawn in fleshy pink.
With the eyes, look at the line of the top eyelashes. Do they go up on the outside corners (like Anya) or down (like Buffy)? Getting this line right is very important to the likeness.
Also the colour and shape of the eyebrows. Buffy's eyebrows are straight and near her eye. Cordy's have an arched point in the middle.
Also, overall, look at the distances between the features. You can exaggerate slightly to get the likeness, when the figure is so small. Are the eyes wide-spaced or close to the nose bridge? Is the mouth equidistant from the nose and chin? How far above the eyes are the eyebrows?
Big Tip
Don’t expect to get it right immediately. Just keep practicing. When you can see what went wrong, you know how to improve it next time.
