Please help!

[MOO]

I'm trying to get this man to look right running. Is it the angle or am I just really bad at this? I'm probably supposed to be using some kind of perspective skills I haven't mastered yet....I'm finding it very hard to draw a running cow too. I can get the body pretty well but adding appendages that don't look wacky is proving difficult.

[TessaW]

That is a tricky angle. We are looking down at him from above, right? I think the problem is that the pose makes him look like his torso and his thigh are touching. If you look at even olympic runners, their knees never touch their torsos when they are running, except maybe at first when they are about to take off. I think if you were meaning to exaggerate the pose, it might work at a different angle, but from this perspective I think it just created confusion about the pose.

Here's a reference pic I took of my daughter's doll. Sorry for the naked doll bum, but I think it might help with your drawing.

[TessaW]

from a slightly different angle

[WithLinesOfInk]

Oh man, this is a difficult pose at an incredibly difficult ange. I had to find a lot of references and watch some people running to figure it out.

You're really close, actually! it mostly looks odd because this is a strange angle to look at someone running in- the silhouette is all muddied up. I thing @TessW demonstrated that pretty well.

The first thing is the pose. If you watch someone run in slow-motion, run full-tilt like they're being chased by a horde of maniacal chickens, that right angle on his front foot would never happen with his hind leg extended the way it is. See example:

Second, I'd push the angle of his back/spine a bit more to help the silhouette tell the story a bit more.

Finally, it's really really hard to run full-tilt with both hands extended in front of you, without falling down. So I'd throw out outwards or behind.

[MOO]

@tessw That helps a lot. I actually have a bunch of dolls on my window sill...I should have thought of that! Oh, except their legs don't bend. That's a big help. I think I was trying to exaggerate too much. It almost looks like he's crawling across the ground to me I'll probably leave the arms out though, even if it isn't natural. it makes it look more desperate or something. Kind of like Yogi Bear or Fred Flinstone-type running

[MOO]

@withlinesofink Thank you! Very helpful points and drawings. Maybe I can turn him a bit so he's not at as odd of an angle. I seem to choose extreme angles for these things...maybe to get a more dramatic effect or something but they never work out too well The cow is my next redo challenge.

[NoWayMe]

@withlinesofink Love that pose! But I would switch the arms. Usually (as in the reference you posted) you put your opposite arm in front for balance

[WithLinesOfInk]

@marsha-kay-ottum-owen Choosing extreme angles is a good thing- you're thinking outside of the box and your images will never be boring! Sometimes it's just a matter of playing around within that extreme to get the right read, too. I have the opposite problem, so I really enjoy seeing your work!

[TessaW]

I think if you add a cast shadow that doesn't connect with him, it might also help to show that he is sort of leaping in the air as opposed to doing a yoga pose or something.

[MOO]

@nowayme Noted! Thanks for your input! I always appreciage it NoWayMe

[MOO]

@tessw I was thinking that too. I am just going to work on that running man again and see if I can improve upon it. One thing is I should probably do it when I'm not half asleep in the middle of the night Ha! Thanks again!

[WithLinesOfInk]

@marsha-kay-ottum-owen One of the things my teachers always emphasized what the value of those last-minute or half-conscious drawings. They may not be great technically but the tend to be way more creative or exciting than your studious full-focus ones, and thus can be tweaked to make something way more exciting than hours of wide-awake focus could ever do.

[MOO]

How's this look? Before I add the rest of the chickens...

[TessaW]

This is a tough one. Don't kill me, but I went back to the first image, because I think the overall gesture was working better than this latest version. I tweaked his legs a little and added a shadow and motion lines.

[MOO]

@tessw I promise I won't kill you Ha! Hmmm....I know his legs are still a bit funky but I kind of like this one. I might tweak the legs a bit more. Do you think the arms look better forward? It sounded like I was breaking the rules if I did that. I'll work on it and post again so you can tell me what you think. I appreciate your help Tessw. I would never kill you

[MOO]

I have a preference for the first one. I actually took some pictures of my son (which I don't know how to upload without posting them on facebook and I don't think he'd be happy with me if I did because there is a little plumber action going on He posed as best he could without actually running. probably needs a little more tweaking her and ther but basically, I feel pretty good about this one right now. I need to go get ready for a camping trip.....so I might not be able to do much more right now. Thanks for your input!

[TessaW]

These latest versions are working much better! It's funny how tiny tweaks can make a big difference. That chicken is cracking me up, btw. Oh, and thanks for not killing me.

[MOO]

@tessw Your welcome Thanks.

[MOO]

More tweaking..tweeking...isn't that a drug term? ha! Not doing that kind . I think this looks better. What do you think?

@tessw

[aska]

@marsha-kay-ottum-owen iam joining at the end, as this was a difficult one;) i think the first version looks better, but it seems to me (could be totally wrong tho, as its just an instinct) that his right knee should be more to the right (at least pararel with his left arm) and his left feet needs to be bend (look at naked bum doll's feet;)