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comment by Cedar
Cedar  ·  3186 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Can I get some no nonsense honest critique of some art?

I like it, but here's my critique: It's difficult to tell where the light source in this is, it looks like it's front on as if the viewer is holding it (a candelabra?) and you could play off of that by putting in some highlights and reflections on the glass objects and defining more distinct shadows such as for the vertical supports and the skull at the top.

The lighting is also confused by some of the objects being shaded inconsistently, a good example is the books at the top left suggest the light is off the to left, but the books in the middle show it as being off to the right. Pick where the main lightsource is and then work from there outwards.

I like the wood texture you've come up with, though would suggest you look at some pictures of wood planks and rough cuts to get an idea of where rings should be moving and how knots can be placed. At the moment your knots are all very consistently sized and pretty regular, which can happen, but you may be able to get a more organic feel by roughing those planks up a bit.

Still, I like it, good job and don't let that self-hating stage get to you. I cannot count the number of things I've thrown away over the years because I've hated what I've made. It takes a lot of skill to create something this good, and it's only from practising and later reflecting on your work that you can develop it.





Kerbobotat  ·  3185 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Thanks for the honest critique! You're totally right about the lighting/shading. I went into the image with a plan in mind but broke it in a few places without realising (I was in the 'zone') and it soiled it.

Cedar  ·  3185 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Don't be disheartened! You've done something many wouldn't be able to and now you know where you can improve for next time. Keep us posted as I'd definitely like to see more :)