Lesson 1: Lines, Ellipses and Boxes

5:32 PM, Saturday May 15th 2021

Lesson 1 Homework - Album on Imgur

Direct Link: https://i.imgur.com/04jBUJv.jpg

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I've been searching for something like Drawabox for so long! I've been "self-taught" for a while, but my skills haven't improved as quickly as I might have liked because I never had a real structure or knew what to study, so I really appreciate this (and the fact that it's available for free!)

As for the homework, I really struggled with funnels and the organic perspective exercises. I definitely need to work on being more patient and thinking through things more. Anyway, thanks for any feedback!

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7:01 PM, Saturday May 15th 2021

Superimposed Lines: You have a nice variety of lines, however your lines are fraying on both ends and they're wobbly. Remember to always take your time when setting down you pen and confidence over accuracy.

Ghosted Lines: Nice. I'm not too concerned with the lines missing their mark. But I am worried about the wobble and curves though. Never sacrifice a smooth line for a more accurate one. Accuracy will come with time and practice. Keep in mind that Drawabox tries to instill in you that each line should be carefully considered and that their are consequences for putting down said lines. We should not be correcting lines in this early stage of learning.

Ghosted Planes: Good. Two pages filled to the brim with a nice variety of sizes and angles. And you plotted all of your points, Nice! Again, though, I'm concerned about the wobble. Your wobble is not that bad but it's still shows sometimes. Be sure to rotate that page, ghost the lines as many times as needed, and in one smooth stroke put down your line. We would rather have straight lines over accurate lines at this point. Again, try to avoid correcting your lines as this builds confidence in your line work.

Table of Ellipses: The angles could use some work, imagine the major axis of the ellipse and compare it to the others next to it. Your positioning is great with minor errors like overlaps and ellipses shy off the border. And your line work is wobbly but by drawing through you ellipses we get that smoothness that we're looking for. Keep the angle consistent. Remember to use your entire arm when doing these exercises.

Ellipses in planes: Good. The ellipses are all drawn through but some overlap the planes. Noticeable wobble but it will improve over time and remember to use your arm, resting the side of your palm (Not too hard) on the paper.

Funnels: Very Good. The ellipses are all properly aligned, touching with minimal overlapping and the minor axis cuts them in half neatly.

Plotted Perspective: Close to perfect. You have good line weight control but apparently you need to use the ruler for hatching.

Rough Perspective: Good. The boxes are drawn through and you used a straight edge to create guidelines back towards the VP. Line quality needs work. Plot your points and focus on that smooth ghosted stroke that we've been practicing. Try to free your mind of any other concerns when you making those lines. Also keep in mind that the straighter your horizontal and vertical lines are, the sturdier your boxes construction will be.

Rotated Perspective. Very good. However, the rear face of the box should also follow the vp of the front.

Organic Perspective: Good. I've noticed your perspective is off at times. Just remember to use the "Y" method so you don't get confused and to keep your vp's consistent. We will learn more about the "Y" method of box construction and working with 3 point perspective in the 250 box challenge.

Overall Thoughts: I'm noticing your line work has curves all of a sudden, just remember to use your entire arm and take your time ghosting your lines but by in large the work has been completed and the majority of the instructions have been followed. Keep practicing that ghosted strokes by revisiting these exercises and in the 250 Box challenge. Also, Nice handwriting dude! Please take note that I am a beginner like you, take this critique with a grain of salt as it is based on my thoughts, this guideline (https://pastebin.com/dYnFt9PQ) and other critiques.

Next Steps:

Good luck on the 250 box challenge!!

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7:08 PM, Monday May 17th 2021

Hi, thanks for the detailed reply (and for the compliment about my handwriting haha)!

Yep, I definitely struggled with wobbling lines throughout the exercises, so I'll keep in mind to focus on those.

I will say some of the areas where it looks like I was correcting lines was because my pen would randomly start and stop inking, and I re-did them so that it was more consistent. I think I've gotten better about holding my pen just right so that this doesn't happen, but I'll be more conscientious about it in the future.

Should I start the 250 box exercise immediately, or do I have to wait until I get the official completion badge? I'm not entirely sure how this all works, haha.

10:55 AM, Tuesday May 18th 2021

Yeah my pen does the same too, don't worry about it. The 250 box challenge is basically the organic perspective exercise but drawn through. It focuses on the "Y" Method and ghosting towards the VP. I feel like the 250 box challenge is definitely gonna improve your weaknesses. Your line confidence and accuracy will improve through ghosting and your boxes will look more solid through a consistent VP. Remember, each point of the "Y" should go towards the VP since your boxes tend to taper inward. I'm guessing thats because of inaccurate lines, an inconsistent VP or your placing your VP at the wrong side. I feel like most critiques are the same, they always talk about line confidence. However, if you feel that you aren't ready then you can wait for more community feedback or compare your work to submissions that have been critiqued by uncomfortable and drawabox assistants (https://drawabox.com/community/homework/G3SI84C/00101/1).

Next Steps:

250 box challenge. I believe in you! You can do it!!

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9:04 PM, Saturday May 15th 2021

Hi!! Congrats on completing the lesson 1! I hope you keep doing the other lessons, improving and have fun in the process!

  • About your lines, some wobbled but overall they got better as you did. About being more patient and analytical, as you said in the post, I don't know if you have the habit to draw things fast and intuitively but I think it's something that needs to be fixed right now if you have, since if you draw fast you'll be capable to do confident and straight lines, but they will be random and difficult to do it right, so, try to find the best way to do a fast but not so fast line. Some of the ghosted lines arched too, remember that you can consciously arch in the opposite direction to achieve the straight.

  • About your ellipses, they got confident as you did too, and you kept it to a maximum of 3 passes, overall they are ok. You won't really need it right now for the next Draw a Box lesson but remember to keep practicing it in warmups.

  • About your boxes, remember that in perspective, the width will always be parallel to the horizon line and the height will be parallel to the line perpendicular to the horizon line. Don't worry about struggling with perspective because it's a little hard and was just an intro and you'll tackle it right now doing the 250 boxes exercise!

Next Steps:

Go to the 250 boxes exercise, remember to always warmup before doing the boxes and to be patient and analytical doing it, it's really important to understand the drawing in a 3D space. Have fun!

This community member feels the lesson should be marked as complete. In order for the student to receive their completion badge, this critique will need 2 agreements from other members of the community.
7:12 PM, Monday May 17th 2021

Hi, thanks for the reply! I look forward to the future lessons and exercises!

I'll definitely work on getting the right balance when it comes to linework and doing ellipses exercises. Thanks again :)

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