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Cataclysm-X — Tutorial: Proportions
by-nc-nd
Published: 2009-02-06 20:29:13 +0000 UTC; Views: 294972; Favourites: 4469; Downloads: 5069
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Description
As promised, because I love you people:My proportions tutorial!
Since every drawing is unique, I explained the techniques I used. It's up to you to practice them, yay!
You know... sometimes it makes me wonder why I keep posting tutorials since there are still a couple of people out there who say "I give people false hope" or "everything's fake anyway".
But when I read all the comments of fellow artists, e-mails of art students or people who just happened to come across my gallery and private notes of people who are happy to see my tutorials and find them really useful, I just melt!
And you know what? Even some art teachers are using my tutorials for school assignments after they've asked for my permission, lol!
What a strange world we live in.
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It's a shame I just don't have the time to publish my art book yet, but someday I will...
Have fun everyone and keep up the good work!
If there are any questions left, please feel free to note me about it!
Watch my other tutorials here!
1. Eye tutorial
2. Nose tutorial
3. Hair tutorial
4. Shading & Blending tutorial
5. Drawing Progress tutorial
6. Detailed Hair part 1
7. Detailed Hair part 2
8. Editing Drawings <-- got a Daily Deviation!
9. Drawing Materials
10. Male Lips tutorial
11. Female Lips Tutorial
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Comments: 492
lol but the lines technique don't requite a lot of time
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hehe really? ok ok XD thanks!
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that was pretty helpfull :3 thank you for making this.
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cool stuff
when i was still doing my hand drawings and sketches i barely used shapes but i did do mirroring ALOT...maybe too much lol
and i literally turn the paper upside-down as well ^^
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aww yes that is a great way to check the proportions too, totally forgot about that!
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Thank you so much for all of the hard work that you put into this! I really appreciate how clear you are able to make your instructions.
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thank u. i was expecting something helpful, but this was just a little more than i saw coming 
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Don't listen to those people Cataclysm! Your tutorials really do tutor me! So thanks so much, you've really impacted my drawings!
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There're no better tutorials than yours
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Wow, you're really inspiring. Do you ever try colored pencils, because I fail at that! Thank for the tutorial!
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Thanks
yup I recently posted a partly coloured drawing of the Impala
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Once again, thank you for putting this together. Though I don't draw as often as I should, reading these certainly helps improve ... I should really practice this, though.
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This is a great tutorial! Thank you for posting this.
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Thank you for uploading this. 
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well 3 was a bit hard to explain, so it's better if you get used to 2 then
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Ah, I see. Okay.
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I love it. I cannot bring myself to use any of those techniques.. I'm always a free-hander no matter what I'm doing. I have checked my drawings with a mirror on occasion and I think next to free hand, that is my second fav. technique. I envy people who can spend 5 or more hours on a drawing- All of mine must be complete within 2-3 hours or I burn out and my inspiration is completely gone.
Thanks for sharing, your art is amazing as always!
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This is great, very nice work putting it together
I use the shapes technique most of the time, and never used gridding for some reason.. I think the mirroring will come in handy though, I never though of that
Keep up the good work, your portraiture is amazing to me, and definitely inspirational
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This is very helpful to many ppl~!! Thanks~!
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I used the gridding technique in highschool. Actually another one my art teacher told me was to draw the picture upside down. That way instead of focusing on the face as a whole it is easier to focus on the shapes and proportions. It totally worked too...my picture ended up looking exactly like my reference image.
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yup, your teacher is right! It's a technique not a whole lot of people know and it works basically the same as mirroring. I'm glad it works for ya, keep it up!
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great tutorial, as always!!!
wow, dat moet een eer zijn, dat zelfs leerkrachten jouw hulp nodig hebbenXD
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Thanks!!
lol ja soms krijg ik een mailtje van een student of leraar of ze mijn tutorials mogen gebruiken/uitdelen op school. Bizar eigenlijk, want aan de andere kant heb je weer van die mensen die zeggen dat mijn werk nep is 
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idd bizar.
ochja, ikzelf heb nooit aan gedacht dat jij nep zou zijn,
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Yay for tips! I've been painting quite a bit recently, but mostly wildlife and organic things--things like people and man-made objects are quite difficult because of the proportions, I find, so this is very useful! Thanks so much for taking the time! ^^
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Geweldige tutorial .. jij zou docent moeten worden, volgens mij kun je dingen supergoed uitleggen en overbrengen.
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Dat zou ik geweldig vinden om te doen 
Bedankt voor de lieve complimenten
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Ahh.. toekomstdromen zijn ook belangrijk natuurlijk
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thank you for this.
however, a technique i have used that has also been helpful, is to turn the reference image upside down and cover it partially. so you draw the image upside down and start with for example a 2 cm broad stripe. and then move the cover as you progress. by doing that you trick the brain into believing it is just a 'mass of lines' that you're copying. i've had far better results with this than attempting to draw freehand.
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Love the tutorial its really helpful, cause lately I have been getting into more realistic based art rather than anime and manga styled.
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Very useful!!!! thanks for this!!!... Im will try on the tecnics explained here.. Until now I jus try free-hand...and the results aren't so good, but well with more practice it will be better... and thanks again for take the time to do this tutorial
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Nice tutorial! This should help a lot of people and convince the nonbelievers that you're the real deal.
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wow that's a nice technique too! I'm glad you found your own way in drawing proportional drawings
Yes I know, though I wouldn't be surprised if there are still people who say my work isn't real. Oh well, their problem, not mine
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Yeah, those kinds of people are probably either envious of artists with your kind of talent, or they're just trying to sound cool or something. 
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I always grid for my realism drawings. For everything else, I take the paper, hold it up to the light, and look at the back which is a version of mirroring I guess.
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that is a different version on mirroring indeed
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It technically is flipping the picture and it works good enough for me.
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An amazing tutorial! Thanks for sharing with us all!
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thank you
my pleasure, really
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I love your tutorials. Even if I don't always use the techniques you show, It's awesome to see how other artists work their magic, you know?
I usually use a combination of two techniques. Most of the drawing is freehand, but I'll sometimes use the edge of another copy of the reference pic (smaller so the detail is clearer and less pixelized) So I guess I am sort of incorporating some of the lines technique as well. I always do shading last.
Thanks for all your tutorials. They're great. I love your artwork. You're my inspiration for improvement.
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it's cool you use a combination! I've read several other techniques from fellow deviants. It's cool how we all try different things to achieve the same result
Thank you so much for your beautiful comment
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Any time
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Nice one!! I've never used mirroring!! Can't wait to try it. lol.
Another technique is to turn the reference picture upside down...then draw it like that.
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I just tried that flip horizontal trick on a sketch I was working on, and by golly it works! I noticed mistakes I would never have been cued on had I not done it. It's crazy how much difference a simple change of perspective like that makes.
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I'm glad it works for you too!! Quite funny how your mind can play tricks like that, don't you think?
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