Lost in the Dark...

[mbeckett]

...that's how i feel on this one!

me thinks if i am going to do convincing dark shadows, i will have to work bigger. the hatching looks a little crude here. its hard to hatch fine enough at a small size. i was working smaller to keep my clumsy hands off the drawing so i don't smear the ink. i had to invent the lighting here and i don't think its very convincing. ah well... <sarcasm>the next one will be perfect!</sarcasm>

C & C welcome on this one!

fountainpen on 6 x 9" Bristol Vellum paper

 

[Lazarus]

Awesome.

 

[Balaji]

The sketch is a nice one but I agree with you that the hatching is not fine enough. I think the problem is with the pen and not your skill. In this sketch I see line weight variation but for a sketch of this size yu need a nib (or point) that produces even finer lines.

 

[drizzlewither]

Teach me about fountain pens! My main associations are negative ones from school hahah. Clogging up so "giving it a drink" by taking the cartridge thing out and sticking the end of the nib in it. Is the ink you use permanent and if so how do you keep the pen from getting clogged?

I think more lineweight on outlines might help to make the shapes pop. I would have a thicker outline on the hand and the lantern to make them come forward into the foreground. But that might be too "comic-y" a look for what you are doing.

 

[Queen Bee]

I agree with Blah. Ink is not my medium so I can't really comment from experience.

 

[ams]

I agree that the problem is the pen, not your skill. I have only done pen and ink with pigma microns which can be pretty fine with 005 and a light touch. Maybe the diluted ink wash that drizzlewither used might work or a mix of permanent and water soluble inks that can be softened with water after the fact.

 

[Artyczar]

You mean that one isn't perfect? Well, I love the crosshatching, I think it's pretty amazing in my book, but I can't really pull that kind of stuff off. I don't usually have the patience these days.

 

[mbeckett]

The sketch is a nice one but I agree with you that the hatching is not fine enough. I think the problem is with the pen and not your skill. In this sketch I see line weight variation but for a sketch of this size yu need a nib (or point) that produces even finer lines.

i am not sure if i can get a fountain pen much finer (unless i spend a fortune!) i can use fine liners but i want to stick with a fountain pen... for no apparent reason other than that's what i decided on lol. but i can 1) work bigger; 2) (i thought of this after the original post) use smoother paper.

 

[mbeckett]

Teach me about fountain pens! My main associations are negative ones from school hahah. Clogging up so "giving it a drink" by taking the cartridge thing out and sticking the end of the nib in it. Is the ink you use permanent and if so how do you keep the pen from getting clogged?

I think more lineweight on outlines might help to make the shapes pop. I would have a thicker outline on the hand and the lantern to make them come forward into the foreground. But that might be too "comic-y" a look for what you are doing.

yes i could do that. will keep that in mind. honestly, i was thinking of this a an experiment and didn't have any particular "look" in mind. maybe therein lies the problem!

 

[mbeckett]

I agree that the problem is the pen, not your skill. I have only done pen and ink with pigma microns which can be pretty fine with 005 and a light touch. Maybe the diluted ink wash that drizzlewither used might work or a mix of permanent and water soluble inks that can be softened with water after the fact.

yes i was looking at drizzlewither's drawings enviously! that is definitely on my things to try list!

 

[mbeckett]

You mean that one isn't perfect? Well, I love the crosshatching, I think it's pretty amazing in my book, but I can't really pull that kind of stuff off. I don't usually have the patience these days.

thanks Arty. i have improved the hatching overall. should have seen it when i started!

I agree with Blah. Ink is not my medium so I can't really comment from experience.

I agree with Blah. Ink is not my medium so I can't really comment from experience.

thanks QB!

 

[mbeckett]

Awesome.

thanks!

 

[Enyaw]

I could live with the hatching but more light needs to emminate from the light. Great lines

 

[mbeckett]

I could live with the hatching but more light needs to emminate from the light. Great lines

yes i agree. i couldn't figure out how to solve that as her clothes behind the lamp would be lit from the light as well, and did a poor job of bringing the light forward. i've written the issue off as a composition problem. i need a redo (or not, i'm lazy )