Blackavar's stuff

[Blackavar]

I used to have a few topics in the spriting and art boards on FESS, but I wasn't very good about updating them. I've finished my college applications now, so I'll try to update this one more often.

Just so you know, I think I'm already my own worst critic, so if you're giving critique, don't worry about it sounding too "harsh". :)

Starting off with the basics, these are some pieces I did in my art class. In the future I'm going to try to do more pieces on my own and maybe get around to taking lessons outside of class.

a grasshopper in pencil--18x24. I decided to approach this one from several angles. Originally it was twice this size, but I cut it in half so I could meet the deadline (though the original composition didn't look any better). Composition and proportions/accuracy are two big weaknesses of mine. >>

close up--I tend to avoid blending when using pencil because I like seeing the pencil lines.

the grasshopper in chalk pastel--18x24. First time using chalk pastel. In addition to having awkward composition, the drawing doesn't seem to taking advantage of the color of the paper, which is a really nice yellowish color. I would like to completely redo this one in the future with different composition and coloring, so if you have any suggestions, they would be appreciated greatly. ^^

pinecone in oil pastel--18x24. This one is over a year old now.

pinecone in cut paper, 3 color schemes--9x12 each, I think. This was supposed to accompany the pinecone above. I should probably get more practice in this medium because it looks great if it's done right.

close up 1--Just to show that the paper does have dimension, though everything's peeling apart right now. The colors are much less vivid in real life.

take-out boxes in hi-fi marker--18x24. Also from last year. This was my first (and so far only) time using these markers, but I'd like to experiment with them more in the future. The bottom boxes and table in the background were clearly rushed to meet the deadline, and the table wasn't drawn with a ruler. I think I might have liked the box on the top if I hadn't butchered the metal handle. :(

I have a deviantArt account that hasn't been updated in a year, though it should be updated soon whenever I finish the Secret Santa for an FE club on dA.

I also make GBA FE-styled sprites in my spare time, though I'm currently working on other sprites outside of that style.

These should be in the order of oldest to newest:

Chiki battle and face sprites, based on FE trading card art.

From this point on my face-sprites are all full custom unless I specify otherwise.

FE5 Linoan and Galzus. I recently went back and made a few minor edits on Linoan. As for Galzus, I like how the fur turned out, but I think the chin and neck area might still need some work.

Divine Dragon battle sprite. I notice that some of the shading might not look FE-styled enough because the sprite is based heavily on the FETCG art.

Someone's original character for his rp. I made some edits to this sprite, which I like for some reason.

A sheet for FE4 Eltosian. Technically this is older than the other ones in this post, but I kind of consider it new because I keep going back to fix things in this sprite. Right now I'm wondering whether I should make him a little taller and add more detail to the hair because the sprite looks a little plain alongside the FE8 ones. I essentially kept the face from the original splice, though now I think that some of the angles don't seem to match up.

Ashnard WIP--He's at more of an angle than he is in his FE9 sprite so that he'll fit within that gray box. It's not necessary now, but I kind of want to fix up this one and finish it...

Lucas, my favorite character from Mother 3. I think he's officially 14 years old, so he should look that age in this sprite. I went back and gave him a more determined expression, but the hair and body really bother me.

Some Kirby battle sprites that I quickly threw together. In case you're not familiar with the series, they're supposed to be Hammer Kirby, Cutter Kirby, and Normal Kirby.

(references)

Fury, my newest face-sprite. I like the face on the left more, though it probably has more shading problems. In addition, most of her references and the official sprites seem to suggest giving her bigger eyes, but then it doesn't remind me of Fury. I also prefer the yellow shade used on the right, though the armor trimmings on both sprites look kind of messy.

[Phoenix]

Once again I'm looking at damn near flawless FE6-FE8 Style sprites. *sigh*

Good job B)

[Judge Judy]

Yeah nice collection there. The Sprites are awesome.

[Loki Laufeyson]

i was shown some of your sprites before..those are some pretty killer works! cant wait to see more!

[Fox]

I remember your series of Fire Emblem fanart that you posted back on FESS. I still can't quite do that with colored pencils just yet.

[The Blind Archer]

I say, it's about dang time you got around to this. I've seen a bit of your work before, and I'm not lyin' when I say it gives me something to aspire to. Of the sprites you've posted so far, here's what I'd like to comment on.

Divine Dragon battle sprite. I notice that some of the shading might not look FE-styled enough because the sprite is based heavily on the FETCG art.

I can agree with you on the shading and how it doesn't look entirely FE styled, but that's what happens when the only real shading references for something like this are Fa/Fae from FE6 and Myrrh from FE8. That doesn't detract from the overall image as a piece of pixel art, however. Some parts of this jump out to me as pseudo-lifelike, especially the wings; they're shaded in a way that at first made me think I was looking at part of a photograph, for instance. That's impressive on it's own.

Lucas, my favorite character from Mother 3. I think he's officially 14 years old, so he should look that age in this sprite. I went back and gave him a more determined expression, but the hair and body really bother me.

I'll admit; this caught me a tad off guard; I'm used to Lucas' appearance in SSBB. XD

Anyways, the hair is probably bothering you for a couple reasons; if memory serves, it has more volume in his SSB art, by comparison (though, I'm aware that you weren't aiming to mimic the SSB/Earthbound style), so I'd try making it a bit bigger; push the limits of the limit box, or go beyond it if you want to try for accuracy over size. Also, the crescent-shaped strand of hair in the middle of of his do sticks out a bit too much, as if it were just resting on his hair instead of being part of it. For the body... dunno what to suggest; I don't dabble much in the casual/modern manners of dress in GBA FE portraits often... but the GBA FE cast has its share of people around the age of 14, a couple villagers as well, possibly. They'd work for good proportions references, I'd think.

And since it's your newest one...

(references)

Fury, my newest face-sprite. I like the face on the left more, though it probably has more shading problems. In addition, most of her references and the official sprites seem to suggest giving her bigger eyes, but then it doesn't remind me of Fury. I also prefer the yellow shade used on the right, though the armor trimmings on both sprites look kind of messy.

Ah, armor and trim. Something I'm good at working with, but bad at critiquing. D: Well, lets have a looksee at these...

On both versions, I think a lack of contrast with the armor color is what's making it hard to see the trim clearly, mostly just in the circled area below

It's not as bad on the breastplate, but the small plate of armor between that and the shoulderplate has some issues with contrast; the trim seems to blend into the color of the armor. Contrast can be harder to work with in FE6/7 colors, but I've found that to be your preference when you work on GBA FE mugs, so I'll try to work with ya on this. Do some work on contrast to help the trim stand out more; I'm not saying that'll solve your problems, but it's an idea.

I'm only vaguely familiar with some characters in FE4 (only through working on mugs for FE4 Advance), so I don't know much about Fury's character... though something about the mugs on their own makes me prefer the eyes on the right, but again, I don't know the character as well as most, so I'm simply speaking from a designers standpoint.

On another note, the way you have her near shoulderpad shaded... I don't recall seeing that in any GBA FE mugs, off the top of my head, though that comes from mostly using Kent and Sain as my references for shoulderpads. It looks nice, definitely, but it's not what I'm used to seeing from the FE style.

Edited January 6, 2009 by The Blind Archer

[Doom103]

Personally I love the sprites to em they look amazing!

[Blackavar]

I guess I'm really slow at updating now.

I remember your series of Fire Emblem fanart that you posted back on FESS. I still can't quite do that with colored pencils just yet.

I remember those times too. I think a wider variety of people used to post in the art threads back then.

This isn't fanart, but I do have this. It's over a year old and the proportions/angles are definitely off, but I kind of like the coloring. This was an original character whose design I wanted to draw out.

I'll admit; this caught me a tad off guard; I'm used to Lucas' appearance in SSBB. XD

Anyways, the hair is probably bothering you for a couple reasons; if memory serves, it has more volume in his SSB art, by comparison (though, I'm aware that you weren't aiming to mimic the SSB/Earthbound style), so I'd try making it a bit bigger; push the limits of the limit box, or go beyond it if you want to try for accuracy over size. Also, the crescent-shaped strand of hair in the middle of of his do sticks out a bit too much, as if it were just resting on his hair instead of being part of it. For the body... dunno what to suggest; I don't dabble much in the casual/modern manners of dress in GBA FE portraits often... but the GBA FE cast has its share of people around the age of 14, a couple villagers as well, possibly. They'd work for good proportions references, I'd think.

I'm afraid that if I make his hair too big, it won't look very FE-like (not to mention that I'm more used to fanart pictures of him than his SSBB art). I do agree with what you said about that strand of hair, though.

On another note, the way you have her near shoulderpad shaded... I don't recall seeing that in any GBA FE mugs, off the top of my head, though that comes from mostly using Kent and Sain as my references for shoulderpads. It looks nice, definitely, but it's not what I'm used to seeing from the FE style.

I think I saw a similar effect on a few FE8 characters, so I was trying to mimic that shading. I guess I misinterpreted how the armor was actually shaded.

Anyways, taking into account the advice on contrast, I added two colors to use it Fury's armor to contrast with the trim, as well as simplified the design. I also fixed up the face so it looks more Fury-like, but with less wonky shading.

Also, a Levin sprite to go with Fury:

references

The hand definitely needs to be redrawn in some areas. However, I'm not sure if it should even be kept there, since the sprite doesn't really remind me of Levin right now. I'd also like suggestions on how to improve the hair.

[The Blind Archer]

I think I saw a similar effect on a few FE8 characters, so I was trying to mimic that shading. I guess I misinterpreted how the armor was actually shaded.

*checks* Ah, I see where you're coming from there. It's probably another effect of FE8 having another light source. Anyways, I prefer the newer version myself. It's a bit more plain, but it doesn't combine two different light sources.

Anyways, taking into account the advice on contrast, I added two colors to use it Fury's armor to contrast with the trim, as well as simplified the design. I also fixed up the face so it looks more Fury-like, but with less wonky shading.

Definite improvements from the previous version. :D The trim is much easier to distinguish from the armor, and the detailing looks much cleaner as a result.

Also, a Levin sprite to go with Fury:

references

The hand definitely needs to be redrawn in some areas. However, I'm not sure if it should even be kept there, since the sprite doesn't really remind me of Levin right now. I'd also like suggestions on how to improve the hair.

Hrm... I really wish I could help ya out on the hand here; my experience with them is minimal, at best. Especially at an unfamiliar angle, such as that. The hair... lessee... I'm actually not finding any immediate flaws there. Is there anything specific about it that you'd like help with?

What I'm really liking at the moment is the scarf and headband combo; you're not half bad with stripes yourself. The detail on the... is that some sort of fur? The thing that's coming out of his headband in back; I can't tell if it's fur or a really big feather. Anyway, it's really well detailed; the shading gives it a wavy and flowing sort of feel, which I'm really liking.

Hm... zoomed out, his facial expression seems to be... insane and scheming, perhaps? He has something similar to this in one of your references, but the first two make him seem rather gentle. But again, I don't know the character, so I can't really make any calls here. ><

[Loki Laufeyson]

Blackavar, that drawing is very nice! the only porportion problem i spotted in it was his right arm...

[Eltoshen]

Yeah, I agree with The Blind Archer in that he seems to be scheming something. I think the smirky smile could be changed. Either that, or his eyebrows. They seem to be sloping down a bit more than needed.

I really love how you did the stripes and the plume thingie in the back.

[Agro]

The only recommendation I have for you is take a picture of your own hand and redraw it. I don't think there's enough distinction between where his hand "ends" (at the pinky) and where you can see his wrist.

In terms of likeness to Levin, I think he looks too smug as opposed to a little gentlier, wiser looking in his FE4 incarnation. I think you should wipe the smile off Levin's face just a little, and also try moving his eye away from its direction just by a pixel (see how that works out...).

For that matter, I'm not so sure I like Fury's face, either; she doesn't look like the strong, dutiful type - she looks more like Marisa (FE8) in that sense, and a little too "cutesy". Smaller, eyes.... perhaps?