Mephiston: An Mtank Drawing

[Mtank]

Made this drawing not long ago, of Mephiston from Warhammer 40k. (The Chief Librarian of the Blood Angels)

I rather liked how it came out, But I'm looking to make some improvements in it, using Photoshop. So suggestions are welcome.

There's actually more to the drawing, on the left side of it, but the scanner wasn't big enough. So here goes:

http://sigs.kupatrix.org/mephiston2.jpg

[GenocideAlive]

Hmm...Ex Libris Mortis..."From Books Comes Death"?

Anyway, the eyes and mouth need some work--you've got some shading or proportions going on that are kind of difficult to discern. The head overall seems to long (from top to bottom) and the chin really juts out there to an excessive degree. Obviously with pencil and shading work you want to minimize the amount of "extraneous" marks because it has the effect of muddling the clarity and overall quality of the work.

The armor is fucking great, very well drawn. I like the design, the good lines, the layout, and the proportions. The eagle on the skull at the bottom is a bit too flat for the skull, but otherwise I enjoy that best. There's not a damned thing that could be said bad about it aside for taste.

[pixels]

impressive. i envy handdrawn art very much, especially of this style.

[Mtank]

Hmm...Ex Libris Mortis..."From Books Comes Death"?

Anyway, the eyes and mouth need some work--you've got some shading or proportions going on that are kind of difficult to discern. The head overall seems to long (from top to bottom) and the chin really juts out there to an excessive degree. Obviously with pencil and shading work you want to minimize the amount of "extraneous" marks because it has the effect of muddling the clarity and overall quality of the work.

The armor is fucking great, very well drawn. I like the design, the good lines, the layout, and the proportions. The eagle on the skull at the bottom is a bit too flat for the skull, but otherwise I enjoy that best. There's not a damned thing that could be said bad about it aside for taste.

I don't know Latin, but from what I gathered, 'Ex Libris Mortis' means "from the Library of Death". Although my source could be wrong. I actually though it meant something else, and so I put it in the drawing, thinking it apt. By the time I found what it really meant, it was too late, so I decided to keep it and hope not too many people I showed this to knew latin.

The shading may look a bit much because the image is darkened in photoshop. Yet it is a problem that can easily be solved using PS. I'll get on it.

You're also right about the proportion problem. In fact, it has been a recurring issue that has haunted me ever since I took up the pencil. I didn't notice the problem with the head before, but now that I do, it only underlines further the need for me to take some kind of drawing class soon. I guess that's why I keep drawing characters from themes such as warhammer; drawing armour seems much simpler than drawing a proper human form.

[Kazansky]

He looks STRANGELY like Krovin (http://www.deviantart.com/view/30423541/)... but he's a bookworm. Krovin's a black knight.

[Black.Ice]

The drawing is excellent. I love your dark style of images, and it looks really good. As mentioned earlier, I think the face is a little too long. Other than that, it looks great. I love your attention to detail.

Great job.

[TranquilNightElf]

Looks great MTank :D
Tell me, the pencil shading, does that come as you draw or do you do most of it afterwards?
must take nearly as much time as the drawing

~TNE

[Mtank]

Well, I start off with the basic shape of the thing I'm drawing using lots of light strokes. After that I make the outline using darker strokes, then shade.

The shading, of course, goes through a series of stages. In this particular drawing, I did the character bit by bit- not a very smart technique if you want to keep your proportions right, but at first I didn't think this drawing would turn out like it did. So After I'd finished the head completely, I went on to make the armour.

Though the face is roughly like what the Mephiston of Warhammer 40k looks like, a lot of the armour is my own design, such as the skulls in the centre, the shoulder pad on the right, the iron halo, and little details like the symbol on his collar or the blood marks on the skull.

Of course, now in many of my drawings I don't shade at all. Instead, I scan them and try to colour them in Photoshop. I have, currently, 3 drawings in the works while I try to develop my digital colouring technique.

[TranquilNightElf]

Well the armor, as has been already said, is amazing too :).I can see the problem with proportions regarding the head, but overall it's great.
Hopefully you can get your coloring technique down and we can see a full color version ^_^

~TNE

[kongurous]

Sexy picture. The face, as previously stated, is a bit long... don't know too much about proportions. Anyway, good job with it. Better than anything I've ever made. Just remember to venerate the Immortal Emperor, and there is no such thing as innocence, just degrees of guilt.

[Duddits]

Drool! LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

I should post some of the picture my girlfriend draws, you guys have the EXACT same kind of drawing style, with the dark heavy lines and everything.

[ranjanforever]

hello mtank.
all that needs work is the face. looks kinda 2d. your attention to detail was always good.