SEPTEMBER Prompt WIP

MichaelaH

@noah-albrecht Looking great, one thing I would change is, that the girl holds the sword, but the point of the sword is on the floor, because it is soooo heavy or the viking is helping to hold the sword.

noah.albrecht

@MichaelaH Awesome feedback, thank you so much! I think maybe the girl with a smug look on her face and arms crossed, leaning on the Viking, while he's holding the sword, maybe propped on his shoulder.

TwiggyT

This is such a cool concept. I like the idea of making the girl smug and the sword heavy.

I'd play on making the viking even more imposing. I feel like his head needs to be a little bigger, too. All the teachers and kids have oversized heads, so the viking looks a little out of place in that respect.

I really like your drawing style. Very fluid and nice.

noah.albrecht

Thanks @TwiggyT! Great points there, I could increase the head size a bit, and thank you for the kind words!

noah.albrecht

Hey guys, thanks again for all of the feedback! Here's my second pass on the loose pencil phase...

Let me know what y'all think!

Thanks!

Kat

Really fun idea, and I love the kid with the glasses having a blank expression. Like he’s too shocked to speak! I’m a little confused about the girls eyebrows, tho. She looks worried, sort of. Maybe just tweak the shape or placement of them, and her attitude will change. I love the Viking!

MOO

@noah-albrecht I like vikings!

holleywilliamson

@noah-albrecht looks really cute. I like your characters and expressions. I do think the Vikings head should be as big as the kids heads. If you want to keep his proportions you could just make him bigger all together.

noah.albrecht

Based off the feedback, I just did a sketch in my sketchbook for a reimagining of the large Viking (and little girl). What do you guys think?

MichaelaH

@noah-albrecht Better

Shara Mills

Yup, loving it all the way. The texture, characters, proportions, expressions. Love, love, love!

I see where the eyebrow and head size comments are coming from, but I actually like the girl and Viking in the second drawing better. Their relationship. Her pose. I don’t even mind the eyebrows, but I can see a subtle shift being possibly stronger. And with your fun stylization I don’t mind the head size differences. She’s a smaller girl and has a smaller head than her peers. That says to me that heads vary according to individual character design in this illustration. I’m totally fine with that. Vikings are more brawn and a big heart than brain anyway, right?

I cannot wait to see the final illustration!

noah.albrecht

@Shara-Mills Thank you so much for the great feedback, and kind words! I'm looking forward to getting the final done! ^_^

chrisaakins

@noah-albrecht I like the simpler version. It's fun and she is so happy with herself. However one of the things that our fearless leaders keep bringing up in their critiques is how it tells a story. A pose might not tell us it is a school or that others are shocked.

Annaaronson

@noah-albrecht This is completely adorable. I love the way you draw children and the energy of your sketching style. I think your composition is really strong here. I can't wait to see the finished piece.

noah.albrecht

@chrisaakins Thanks Chris for the great feedback. Great point! I'm attacking the final with better storytelling in mind. ^_^

noah.albrecht

@Annaaronson Thank you Anna for the kind words! I'm having fun with this and can't wait to finish and post the final!

noah.albrecht

Hey y'all, so in true WIP spirit, here's a composition sketch I did in my pocket Field Notes sketchbook (which I highly recommend btw). I wanted to drive home the story in the image, and I think the classroom setting is key. I really value all of your feedback, so let me know what you guys think :

demotlj

@noah-albrecht I'm really enjoying your development of this. I would move the girl a little off center because, as Jake, Lee, and Will have pointed out, you want to be careful about the crotch area

Kat

I love this! Great happy posture with the girl, and I love the totally bland expression of the Viking. Can’t wait to see it finished.

theprairiefox

@noah-albrecht I like the classroom and being able to see the teacher's face. You might want to think about the children. With them faced away from you the viewer will not be able to see their response to the Viking. If you rotate the angle I think you might be able to get a lot more bang for your buck.