This digital painting and demo video was recorded live during a long pose workshop @ Concept Design Academy. Approx. 2 1/2 hours from the model. Scroll down to watch the digital painting tutorial videos (playlist).
“Rajiv From Life, 2/13/13″. The final image. Drawn and rendered in Photoshop.
VIDEO PLAYLIST:
This tutorial demonstrates a rhythmical and gestural approach to laying in and drawing a head in 3/4 or side view. We will use the major thrusts, or gestures, and basic geometric shapes, like the “pie shape” to capture the head. This tutorial will show you how to add a lot of life, movement and dynamism to your head drawings.
There are 3 demonstrations in the video. The tutorial will take you through the entire head drawing process from start to finish. Topics include gesture drawing, construction and shading.
This approach is inspired by the work and teaching of Steve Huston, with a touch of Reilly Method. The static, text version of this tutorial can be found here:
http://www.freshdesigner.com/how-to-draw-the-head-in-3-quarter-or-side-view/
A common approach to drawing the head from 3/4 or side view is to use a 2 step construction approach. The first step is to draw a ball for the cranium, followed by drawing the frontal plane and jaw. Below is an example by Andrew Loomis (Fig. 1).
This tutorial will introduce a more fluid and gestural approach to drawing the head. The focus is on the major gestures, or “thrusts” as Steve Huston refers to them, and their relationships to one another. We’re also want to keep our lay-in simple, by using geometric shapes. The first shape we will use is the “pie”.
Quick sketch is a short, 3-5 minute drawing used for the study and practice of key drawing fundamentals. The techniques used in this tutorial are derived from the Reilly Method. Generally, quick sketch is done using charcoal on paper, but ballpoint pen makes a good substitution. Being able to draw heads well is a vital fundamental skill to have, so let’s get started.
The subject of our demo will be “Beat” Takeshi Kitano, the legendary Japanese filmmaker. This picture works really well for this demonstration because of the high contrast lighting and clearly defined shadow pattern. We’ll get into shading later, but first let’s start with the basics.
Step 1: Beginning the Lay-in
OK, so this is pretty much how ALL of my head drawings start and how a lot of artists approach head drawing. At this stage I try to observe the key landmarks that will guide the construction of our drawing. For more info on some of the key landmarks of the head, check out the last portrait painting tutorial.
A slideshow video of the last portrait painting tutorial. Video has text comments on my thought process and general tips on creating beautiful portrait paintings. Cool soundtrack provided by Japanese DJ Group Nujabes, feat. Fat Jon.
A step by step tutorial demonstrating my process in creating a female portrait in Photoshop. The process is similar to traditional painting in oils and acrylics. I rely heavily on solid art fundamentals, especially head drawing. Since drawing is so important, we’ll explore that first.
STEP 1: “Laying-In” the head
A head ‘lay-in’ is the foundation drawing. It is used to describe and lay-in the basic structure of the subject’s head and the placement of the facial features. An accurate and effective lay-in is critical to the success of the portrait.
