Overcoming insecurity in drawing/inking

[joyce_carmo]

Hey, guys! Maybe the discussion I'm about to start is really dumb, or had already been discussed here, but here it goes anyway.

I just finished watching Jake's class about inking yesterday (it was a blast and really enlightening) and one of the things that caught my attention was how he emphasized the fact that we should not rely on a fine and detailed drawing underneath, and that we should be able to come up with solutions for things while inking.

This is something that has bothered me a lot for some time now, how I'm dependent on a refined sketch for inking, and that is for everything, from characters (that I consider myself a little bit comfortable when drawing) to everything else.

I've also noticed how I'm unable to see things in perspective, and how I need to draw every single line when I'm trying to make an environment and objects, even when trying to block things in thumbnails. I've come to realize that this is for now my biggest challenge when trying to make a big scene with background and characters interacting.

I know that probably if I was working on a digital medium, I wouldn't bother that much, and maybe I would even do better, since I have layers, undo, etc, but traditionally I feel blocked and unable to do so.

Now, the thing is, how could one overcome this block and insecurity? I would like to hear you guys, and if any of the tutors would be able to talk a little bit about it as well I would really appreciate it.

And if this has already been discussed before, sorry about that.

[shinjifujioka]

That stood out to me as well in his inking class. I think because he has a lot of experience with drawing, he has the flexibility to lay down general lines and shapes as guides and then kind of come up with an inked drawing on the fly. Similar to a musician that has played an instrument for so long that they are able to have an impromptu jam session with just a random group of people. We're just in different places along the drawing spectrum. If we'd like to get to a point similar to where he is at, I think it helps to go slightly outside of our comfort zone and maybe not make as refined a sketch as we're used to and see what the end result is.

With that being said, I'm sure there are many artists that continue to use refined sketches because for their style it results in a better end product. I kind of land in that group, but I have been wanting to evolve my approach and watching Jake sketch/draw/ink gave me some ideas to try. The thing that really stood out to me was that he said that part of the fun was discovering the drawing when going from a rough sketch to the inking process (at least that's what I think he said). And I wanted to know what that "fun" was, so I tried it with my last two Inktober sketches. While my sketches where definitely not as loose as his, it was looser than what I was used to. And I was pleasantly surprised when things emerged from the sketches that I liked (and of course there were things that I made mistakes on, but I had no choice but to move on). It was kind of nerve-wracking, to be honest. But because of that, I almost felt like my brain tried to kick itself up a notch, and I found myself thinking a bit more in depth about how I approached the shapes and lines.

I'm sure the more inking practice we get under our belt, the more comfortable we'll get. Sorry for the novel.

*side note: during the whole sketching/inking process, I continually felt the urge to hit Ctrl+Z, or lasso and resize, lol.

[Sarah LuAnn]

Honestly, I think this is the whole point of inktober. You lose your insecurities about doing something when you make yourself do it, over and over, until you are comfortable. And as @shinjifujioka said, I think baby steps are the key. Maybe start by making your drawing just a little less detailed than usual, and then work up from there.

[joyce_carmo]

@shinjifujioka said:

Similar to a musician that has played an instrument for so long that they are able to have an impromptu jam session with just a random group of people. We're just in different places along the drawing spectrum.

This makes a lot of sense.

@Sarah-LuAnn said:

Honestly, I think this is the whole point of inktober. You lose your insecurities about doing something when you make yourself do it, over and over, until you are comfortable. And as @shinjifujioka said, I think baby steps are the key. Maybe start by making your drawing just a little less detailed than usual, and then work up from there.

I really agree with you, Sarah! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, guys!

I think that maybe alongside with insecurity I also do have a lot of anxiety with me here, and the urge to make things perfect really fast, you know. But man, Sarah said everything baby steps are the key!

[Steve Young]

The idea for us to use inks is for us to be braver with our strokes. Define what you want to draw with simple clear lines. But the most important thing is to have fun.