Celebtastic?
So I decided to take part in another drawing jam.... which I guess is most always a girly celebrity topic. I'm so of a mixed mind though when it comes to participating in drawing jams. I have long thought of the DrawingBoard site as a cool place for artists to get to know each other and I think it's great to have to draw things you wouldn't normally choose to draw.... but hmmm. Drawing stuff based on photos still feels like big time cheating to me, even if I'm changing proportions/simplifying stuff. And it seems like there are more people on there literally tracing the provided photos than finding original ways to draw them.I think if I were to draw this again, I'd want her head more 3/4 down, regardless of the photo.
Anyway, here's the photo we were given to paint;
I curious to know everyone elses thoughts on using photos for reference. Good idea? Bad idea? Can you still call it your original art when it's based so directly on a photo?
Comments
First off..its a beautiful drawing.
Nice take on the picture.
second.. bravo for actually coming out and saying you do that.
In my experience, i see a lot of concept artists, expecially for games, who inspire themselves greatly from pictures.
BUT..all of the ones I know can draw like nobody's business straight out of their heads.
I think,for people who know how to draw, it could be an improvemnet, a study of some sort.
For others, I think it might be a cruch , that would not necessarily help them improve.
In short.
It's like a tool.
It won't make you better, won't make you worse.
It depends how you use it
I do think the subject matter would get very boring very quickly. There's got to be more interesting subjects to work from than airbrushed celebrity portraits.
Tools are funny things. Some people can use a screwdriver like nobody's business, and it's true that such a person can be called great. But that still doesn't change the fact that they're going to have trouble if they get into a situation where they have to use a hammer instead.
I really hope nobody thinks I generally draw using photos like this or advocate it. But even though I dislike painting photos, from time to time it's probably a good exercise. It's always beneficial to refresh that mental visual dictionary with new information about light, colour, shapes and so forth.
Jeremy
Here's my 2 cents.
$0.01 - A photo is a hack. Meaning a shortcut to a solution. The problem is representing reality. If you've studied physical objects you should be able to represent them in a reality. If you don't have time or motivation to study the object, hack it with a photo. just understand the parts that are visible on the plane.
$0.02 - A photo is like an archeological dig. Not all the details are there, and as a good scientist (artist) you have to piece that back together. You don't care about the bones, but about the person and times they belonged to.
So basically I approve the use, but I don't use them for the most part.
:)=
As a person who paints and draws entirely as a hobby (and who is still waaay down at the base of the learning curve), drawing from a photo is, for me, good practice. Not as good as drawing from life, but it's hard for me to arrange to draw people from life, and drawing people is something I enjoy doing.
I like drawing from my head, but I still have a lot to learn about light and form, even just basic things like anatomy and proportion, and drawing from photos has been a big help to me so far.
Tracing, of course, is no help at all. Drawing with grids and such also seems, to me, to be taking it too far. The point is to understand why things look a certain way, so I can do it right when I don't want to make a copy of something.
$0.02 from the peanut gallery.
Anyways -- refrences are very helpful if the object you need isn't right in front of you or it's difficult to find anyone to pose for you. So they can be helpful .. so long as you change it enough that you aren't sued (cause who really wants to deal with court?).
Personally -- I prefer taking my own pictures to help myself with getting poses figured out etc.
I do have one painting a lot of people seem to really like -- and originally in the magazine it was back and white -- but I drastically changed it so she has colors and .. well .. it really didn't look that much like her -- but it was very helpful (especially before I learned how to actually draw humans haha).
So it depends on how you use it. If its copying the image directly - thats just down right pointless - now isn't it? :) Unfortunately some people do that -- fortunately - most people can tell the difference. (Example - I've been told by my art friends that there are students who copy drawings out of manga .. and color then and make them look pretty - then turn them in as a portfolio for colleges. They are of course turned away -- thank goodness for those of us who are trying to fairly get in to art school haha.)
Anyways -- thats all I had to say! :)
And thanks for the comment on the animals -- I drew them (and a lot more!) at the San Diego zoo!
<3 Jessie
I agree with the rest of opinions. There's nothing wrong in taking references from pictures, or other drawings or paintings.
You've got your style, and you are free to take these references and make it on your own, using them like a tool, just like you use a pencil or a brush.
I think it's part of making art. And your art is really amazing!!
that said, i think photos are good refference and can be used as such. kinda like what pascal said.
i know the jam you're talking about and if i was going to participate in it i would do what you did and figure out how to simplyfy the photo in to my own style.
though i'd probably just get frustrated. :)
I just checked out the site and saw the variety of takes on the photos. I think that's it....to see, study, learn how others percieve photos. So many styles and techniques to make a caricature. Some use simple strokes and they capture the image...and some with mind-blowing details along with the same emotion in the photo. Now that's hard to do! All in all...it was a great exercise. I think you should do more - you're awesome.
For realistic artwork you should always have photo reference because you can't make up all the subtle details in a human body.