@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.

@joosterwijk great work of art! Love the idea. I've been reading people's feedback about the mural and colours focal point. I know I'm late to the game here, but I don't think it's the colours that need to be reviewed but the values and contrast. You should be able to use any colour if the values are correct.

Have you checked the piece as greyscale and also zoomed out so the piece is very small on your screen? When you do that, are the values between the child and its background contrasted enough for it to be the focal point?
Check out Marco Bucci's videos about values on YouTube. They're excellent!
Looking forward to seeing more of your artwork.

@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

@sam-draws Hi Sam, good job with the drawing.

The only feedback I would offer at this stage is to ensure you are drawing more from the shoulder, as is demonstrated in one of the early curriculum classes. Maybe that's required less when drawing fiddly details, but certainly with the longer lines.

Simply drawing more will improve your line quality and you'll be getting plenty of practice in the coming classes, so I wouldn't worry too much about that right now. You'll be putting into practice everything Jake discussed for the rest of your life! Ha ha!

As for your other questions, I'd say that the idea is to get comfortable with the techniques Jake has discussed, and then move on. If that means to find more images online then so be it. But don't spend too much time looking for things to draw. Just draw anything. If you can get outside into the fresh air and draw things in the world around you, then great! However, the techniques really are about how to draw everything so they won't be specifically referenced in upcoming classes, although you will be expected to be comfortable with the techniques then.

Hope that helps.

Keep on drawing!

Adam.
UK

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.

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

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!

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

@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.

@sam-draws Hi Sam, good job with the drawing.

The only feedback I would offer at this stage is to ensure you are drawing more from the shoulder, as is demonstrated in one of the early curriculum classes. Maybe that's required less when drawing fiddly details, but certainly with the longer lines.

Simply drawing more will improve your line quality and you'll be getting plenty of practice in the coming classes, so I wouldn't worry too much about that right now. You'll be putting into practice everything Jake discussed for the rest of your life! Ha ha!

As for your other questions, I'd say that the idea is to get comfortable with the techniques Jake has discussed, and then move on. If that means to find more images online then so be it. But don't spend too much time looking for things to draw. Just draw anything. If you can get outside into the fresh air and draw things in the world around you, then great! However, the techniques really are about how to draw everything so they won't be specifically referenced in upcoming classes, although you will be expected to be comfortable with the techniques then.

Hope that helps.

Keep on drawing!

Adam.
UK

@KathrynAdebayo Thanks very much Kathryn.

@Nyrryl-Cadiz Thanks very much Nyrryl. Yes, isn't it funny how, as soon as you post something asking for feedback, you suddenly notice lots of things wrong with it! And I thought I'd looked at it enough - probably too much!

Yeah, the boy should have legs. I just realised that he looks like he's been cut off at the chest! He's supposed to look like he's leaning onto the bed. I think I need to show his back behind him a bit and perhaps do something about how his chest is sitting on the bed.

Also, I noticed that the girl's left arm looks like it's separated from her shoulder. Her left elbow is too far away from her body!

I'm sure there's more.

Thanks again!

Adam

Hi folks,

I've just got near the end of this piece and I'd be really grateful for comments. If you have anything constructive in mind, please don't hold back. How do you think it can be improved upon.

Thanks very much.
Adam
(Cambridge, UK)

Hi Emily,

Welcome to the forum! I hope you enjoy participating. I'm from the UK, near Cambridge. I'm not sure about any UK groups or courses though as I do all my training online. Maybe other Brits will be able to help you there.

SVS has one or two classes by Marco Bucci. For my needs and personality, Marco is one of the best art teachers out there and I highly recommend anything by him. He has a great YouTube channel and he also has a fair few premium courses that are well worth it.

Everyone here on the forum is really friendly and helpful, so do feel free to post any WIPs (work in progress) or finished pieces and ask for comments - that is, if you want comments of course!
Joining SVS is one of the best things that I have done, so I do hope you get the most out of it. Have you started with the Foundation Curriculum? I trust you also know about the 3 Point Perspective podcast?

Best wishes,
Adam

@shelleywebbart Hi Shelley,

Great painting! Good job with the water droplets on the leaf - that's not easy.

The only considerations that I would offer are about your values and shadows.

The light source is clearly top left. It ust be a fairly strong light because the lower right of the leaf is quite dark. However, there is no shadow from the leaf on top of the character's head. So maybe look at that. Although you have put some shadow on the coat, I think you need more, particularly on the front right of the coat (from the character's perspective) where the cast shadow would be darker. Also, add some cast and occlusion shadows and dark accents under the coat, on the character's body, created by the shadow of the coat because the character is facing away from the light source.

Regarding the overall values, If it's a story about the coat, then fine. But if not then I would adjust the values of the coat (darker yellow) and the character's face (lighter) because the brightness of the coat is currently making that the focal point.

What do you think?

@joosterwijk great work of art! Love the idea. I've been reading people's feedback about the mural and colours focal point. I know I'm late to the game here, but I don't think it's the colours that need to be reviewed but the values and contrast. You should be able to use any colour if the values are correct.

Have you checked the piece as greyscale and also zoomed out so the piece is very small on your screen? When you do that, are the values between the child and its background contrasted enough for it to be the focal point?
Check out Marco Bucci's videos about values on YouTube. They're excellent!
Looking forward to seeing more of your artwork.

@Katherine Hi Katherine, thanks for posting these. I think they're really good. I particularly like her unkempt hairstyle! You can do a lot with that in your storytelling.
For consistency, I would definitely include a chin when in profile view (I'm looking at the picture where Gretel is with the rabbit), as you've clearly included it in your other drawings. It would bring more appeal too. Only needs to be a little child's chin.
Also, perhaps allow her spine to be more flexible to enhance her range of gesture.
What do you think?

@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.