@Shelley-James-0 Hi Shelley, you ask an important question and I see that others have commented on what they do. I hope you have been able to draw some inspiration from their replies.
But surely only you will know the answer to, ultimately, what is a very personal situation. It's not just about schedule but also about the quality of your life. For example, how much rest time do you currently have vs. how much you need right now? How robust is your mental health, to be taking on even more than you already have going on?
If you can take your art work as a form of relaxation, then great! Although, be good to yourself in the process.
Adam.

@Valerie-Light Hi Valerie, I'm not sure about the numerical association of the values - it was a chart that I screenshot from one of Marco's videos. But those numbers look like they would fit the values.

I love your idea about the different age groups! That would be really useful to me too - especially with my children's book illustrator career aspirations!

@Freya-Chakour
Hi Freya,
Beautiful piece - you've clearly put a lot of good work into it.

What are you trying to say with the piece - what's the message for the viewer?

There is a lot going on in the picture and I'm not sure where to look. So perhaps take another look at your values and consider which direction you want the eye to go around the painting.

What do you think?

Adam

@Asyas_illos Me too. Praying that it's going to be affordable!

Hi all,
It occured to me that I should put my computer desktop to good use, so I've started to create a prompts board, to remind me of the different things I want to keep in mind when doing my artwork.

This is obviously a work in progress, but you're welcome to it, if you think it'll help. It currently contains the size dimensions for figure drawing, the five different values you'll ever need (according to one of my heroes - Marco Bucci) as well as the four different types of edges.

I'll upload updated versions as and when. What would you put on the prompts board?

Remember to 'fit to screen' if you choose to use it as a desktop picture.

Love to you all,
Adam.

Hi Chris,

Great job for taking the plunge and posting your artwork for critique. That's a big step forward.

It's natural to compare yourself with others. But you're right that it's not really helpful. I would study close-ups of Will Terry's work and try and fail to work out how he did it. Do you have a copy of his new book? I was just studying his picture of the zombie and his subtle use of texture is amazing. It would make me envious, but I've learnt to consciously force myself to take it as inspiration, rather than comparison.

I really like your artwork, composition design and line work. I think a lot of our peers have said good things to you already.

My only input is to work on improving your use of light and shadow, and depth of field. So a bit more contrast between your lights and darks. And remember that hills and buildings on the horizon shouldn't be sharply in focus. I think Will, Jake and Lee were talking about that in one of the recent 3 Point Perspectives.

Keep it up pro!

@Johanna-Kim I'd like to 'second' Johanna's questions. I'm wondering the same things.

So how does it differ from the SVS course content? is it really worth happy SVS members to pay extra for this (I've just paid my next years subscription), even though we're aspiring to become a pro children's book illustrator, or it the CBP course aimed more at non-SVS members?

The tagline for the CBP course is "the most comprehensive course on illustrating children's books ever made", so is it more comprehensive than the SVSLearn content?

Thanks very much.

It's a lovely characterful painting. Great pleasing shapes.

@Freya-Chakour Hi Freya,
Yes, I understood perfectly. Thank you.

To help you further, may I recommend Marco Bucci's videos. He explains values, edges and light very well. Here is the link to a short YouTube video where he briefly explains: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTYGWfiZnMA&ab_channel=MarcoBucci

If you can get hold of Marco's Art of Colour and Light course, it is excellent! I completed it recently and it has helped me immensley.

Best wishes,

Adam

@Lee-White Thanks for your reply, Lee. Although, SVS's tagline has always been "Become a working illustrator. Prepare for a career in illustration with our online classes", which is my goal. So I'm afraid I'm still confused as to whether I should cancel my SVS subscription and buy the CBP course instead. Sorry if I'm being thick!

@Lee-White Thanks for your reply, Lee. Although, SVS's tagline has always been "Become a working illustrator. Prepare for a career in illustration with our online classes", which is my goal. So I'm afraid I'm still confused as to whether I should cancel my SVS subscription and buy the CBP course instead. Sorry if I'm being thick!

@Johanna-Kim I'd like to 'second' Johanna's questions. I'm wondering the same things.

So how does it differ from the SVS course content? is it really worth happy SVS members to pay extra for this (I've just paid my next years subscription), even though we're aspiring to become a pro children's book illustrator, or it the CBP course aimed more at non-SVS members?

The tagline for the CBP course is "the most comprehensive course on illustrating children's books ever made", so is it more comprehensive than the SVSLearn content?

Thanks very much.

@K-Flagg Here's the first one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrD_9ubX11Y&ab_channel=SocietyofVisualStorytelling

It's a lovely characterful painting. Great pleasing shapes.

@Asyas_illos Me too. Praying that it's going to be affordable!

@davidhohn Is that actually legal? So, you're being penalised for being paid your fee. I can't see how that could stand up in court.

@Shelley-James-0 Hi Shelley, you ask an important question and I see that others have commented on what they do. I hope you have been able to draw some inspiration from their replies.
But surely only you will know the answer to, ultimately, what is a very personal situation. It's not just about schedule but also about the quality of your life. For example, how much rest time do you currently have vs. how much you need right now? How robust is your mental health, to be taking on even more than you already have going on?
If you can take your art work as a form of relaxation, then great! Although, be good to yourself in the process.
Adam.

@Freya-Chakour Hi Freya,
Yes, I understood perfectly. Thank you.

To help you further, may I recommend Marco Bucci's videos. He explains values, edges and light very well. Here is the link to a short YouTube video where he briefly explains: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTYGWfiZnMA&ab_channel=MarcoBucci

If you can get hold of Marco's Art of Colour and Light course, it is excellent! I completed it recently and it has helped me immensley.

Best wishes,

Adam

@Valerie-Light Hi Valerie, I'm not sure about the numerical association of the values - it was a chart that I screenshot from one of Marco's videos. But those numbers look like they would fit the values.

I love your idea about the different age groups! That would be really useful to me too - especially with my children's book illustrator career aspirations!

Hi,

Yes, I recommend Adam's talks at the 'Adam Duff LUCIDPIXUL' YouTube channel. In fact, I've started to download the audio and listen to it while out for my long walks.

He's a lovely man and I find his calm inspiration very motivating.

Another thing that I would recommend is to look back through your artwork that you have done, particularly your early pieces, and see how far you have come. Sometimes I will look through my early SVS courses assignment work and I find it both motivating and educational. The time away from it, as I've worked on other areas, has allowed me to mature a bit more as an artist so that when I come back to old pieces I have fresh eyes and a greater understanding and ability. I find that motivating.

Best wishes.

Adam (a different one!)