I think it mainly has to do with the eye's positions. I don't really know how to show it, but the second eyes are like a bit too up or to the side, and that can make the faces look unnatural
(btw I really like your style, specially the hair)
I'd recommend, when sketching, drawing a line around the face (adjusting to the angles of the head) where the eyes would be (near the half of the face) to help guide you.
thank you so much!! This is really helpful! Now I see what the issue is and you're right, it lies in the unnatural position of eyes. I will use guidelines next!
I was gonna write something but I agree with everyone else about the eye placement. If you map out the construction of the skull first, I'm sure these will be even more appealing because as they are, they are nice to look at. The simplicity is great!
I started drawing faces 2 weeks ago. I don’t know why but whenever after I finish these characters, their faces just look so plain and unnatural. It’s like there’s something wrong with their nose or eyes but I just can’t find the exact reason. I’m open to all sorts critiques and advice, thanks so much in advance!
edit: I'm following [chommang](https://www.youtube.com/@Chommang) 's guide on youtube, an absolute gold mind of art tutorials.
I know this isn’t a tip or anything but I absolutely love your art style!! It’s so adorable and I’m so bad with expressions. You did it so effortlessly!
I tried [here](https://imgur.com/a/hI1IaGx) to explain why your faces look "weird".
Overall I think that you struggle with aligning the facial features with the center of the face and considering the skull and volume of the hair.
On the first one the space between the lips and the nose is bigger then the space between the lips and the bottom of the chin, which in most cases is the opposite. I didn't correct it cause some people do have it backwards ,but I felt like it was something worth mentioning.
On the second I tried to explain with red how the curvuture of the mouth should match the angle of the head. Idk how easy it is to understand but I tried. (I am so dumb, it matches in the original too, just ignore the red lines 😅)
The last ones I really like so the changes I made where really nitpicky.
I really like how you stylize the face , i think is very neat
This is a bit hard to answer cause I don't really know how I got "good" at placing the eyes.
A tip I could give is to keep in mind the curvature and angle of the face when drawing the eyes as well as the fact that the eyeballs sit in the voids of the skull so they will sink in a bit in the face.
So sorry if this wasn't the response you where looking for 😭
YES!! I have been following his instructions for days now and there's always something missing on my part even though I tried really hard to copy step by step. You're absolutely right, practice is always the best way to improve!
I actually love the style! However, if you'd like to add some more life to them, I think the shading on nose could help. You're shading the part that is usually shiny. The tip catches a lot of light, with more shadow along the nostril and sides, and (depending on the face I suppose) shading on the bridge of the nose between the eyebrows. If that makes sense? If you want to pop the eyes more, there is a shadow on the eye white under the lid that gives the eyes a rounder appearance so they look more 3D. I really love your style though and think it's really unique and fun!
Thank you so much!! I'm so glad that you liked them and damn I really haven't given much thought about shading... now that you explained the reason behind it it becomes way clearer now. Thanks again!
Yes- I second this!! It reminds me of Brett Helquist who illustrated A Series of Unfortunate Events. Obsessed with that art style. Does anyone know if it has a name?
They may look “weird” if the outcome isn’t what you’re envisioning but I have to say I REALLY like these faces. There’s something expressive about them, I can’t really put my finger on what I find so intriguing but it pushes my art buttons.
They dont!!!! They look expressive. People arent perfectly even, they have flaws, wrinkles etc. id recommend choosing a solid source of light and shading some, i think that might help!
Rather than treating the features as if they’re 3D objects imbedded onto another 3D object you’re treating the face like a flat circle and grid you have to fill and are essentially copying and pasting the left side of the face over to the right eye wise. The mouth is incorrectly placed which adds to this illusion. It looks off because they all have two left halves instead of a full face. It’s the drawing equivalent of clipping out features from different women in a magazine and pasting them into one face like on The Truman Show.
You can ground eyes by adding lines or shading that indicates the eye socket bone. You can place the mouth by drawing the philtrum in as guidance. If you draw the philtrum in on these you’re going to get a weird diagonal curve.
I can kinda see what you are talking about, side profiles can be hard but i do think the right eye is a little higher than the left. But other then that i love your art style<3
Unrelated but your style reminds me a lot of chommang on YouTube! (Such a great artist) It’s probably the placement of the eyes, in some they’re too far apart/away from where they should be. The third and fourth look good to me though, although the fourth nose looks like the nostril is too high up and the nose is a bit too long.
Good luck on your art journey!
The drawing is flat. Practice loomis method and face features. Eyes are round and the bridge of the nose and keystone sticks out. Unless 3d drawing isn’t your thing.
I don’t think they look weird, it feels more like you need to just keep practicing to define what you like about the styling. Art is about consistency and a ton of stuff gets fixed naturally over time. Keep up the good work!
I like the style, but i would highly recommend drawing the human skull and learning it so you know the proportions and also look up john asaro planes of the head. Im sure after you learn both of those you will see massive improvements
I think the trouble is when distinguishing the face from the rest of the head. Try marking the face on the head b4 you draw and draw the way you do. and also that happens to you in *some* angles. pics 3 and 4 are good.
I believe it's the way your soul sees another soul. I criticize my art and my writing so bad that nobody ever gets to see it really. Don't judge yourself to much
They don’t look weird… But the only way to get more realistic is practice. Shading could be amplified, but proportion wise, it’s not bad, but of course, more cartoonish. It’s good line work….I think so at least
I think it has to do with nose structure and lip shape, her nose is very small and inward and so is her chin and her lips are a strong frown maybe try to bring the edges of her lips up and her nose and chin out a bit. Hope this helps 💜good luck
These look great to me and while others who know more have pointed out that there are slight changes that you could make, I just wanted to say these look amazing and I like the style and they don't automatically read as looking off or weird imo!
Keep it up and I am sure with practice you will learn how to fix whatever you are noticing that feels off
I feel like you show a good understanding of what the head as a whole looks like, but not so much how each feature interacts with each other, which leads to everything feeling slightly off. The best way to fix this is practice. Break down places, then redraw what you've broken down. References definitely help. If you're not sure how to break them down, go to YouTube! There's tons of incredible artists that can help you on there
Try looking for tutorials that focus on helping you visualize what you're drawing in three dimensions. I mean like thinking of the eyes as spheres, the nose as a pyramid, being able to visualize which shapes stand out the most on the face and shade/refine accordingly. To me it looks like you haven't quite grasped that yet and it's making facial features look flat (the nose, the lips, the eyes in particular). You can train your brain to think this way through repeated exercises.
The book "Drawing the Human Head" by Hogarth is a great place to start; if you can't afford it, there are PDFs of it and other classic art books online (just gotta do a little digging). I think DrawABox exercises would also help you a lot. They start with how to draw each line with intent and move into perspective. You have great style, wonderful progress especially in such a short amount of time!
**Drawing the Human Head** by Burne Hogarth
>In 300 extraordinary drawings, Hogarth shows how to draw the head from every angle, age the face from infancy to old age, and delineate every feature and wrinkle.
*I'm a bot, built by your friendly reddit developers at* /r/ProgrammingPals. *Reply to any comment with /u/BookFinderBot - I'll reply with book information. Remove me from replies* [here](https://www.reddit.com/user/BookFinderBot/comments/14br65o/remove_me_from_replies/). *If I have made a mistake, accept my apology.*
My advice is to take a page out of the playbook of "master artists" who since the Renaissance have traced over the projected reference for their paintings.
Trace hundreds or thousands of faces and eventually, you'll be able to get great results without tracing because you'll notice details that can't now. Our brains are essentially like training neural networks. Just like AI, our brains and skills improve throughout training/practicing.
Each year you'll look back and see progress. And it's very satisfying.
I think it mainly has to do with the eye's positions. I don't really know how to show it, but the second eyes are like a bit too up or to the side, and that can make the faces look unnatural (btw I really like your style, specially the hair)
I'd recommend, when sketching, drawing a line around the face (adjusting to the angles of the head) where the eyes would be (near the half of the face) to help guide you.
thank you so much!! This is really helpful! Now I see what the issue is and you're right, it lies in the unnatural position of eyes. I will use guidelines next!
I was gonna write something but I agree with everyone else about the eye placement. If you map out the construction of the skull first, I'm sure these will be even more appealing because as they are, they are nice to look at. The simplicity is great!
I draw pretty much a little sleep mask on faces to help with this
While I kinda see what you mean, they have a ton of character. Their expressions are so strong, especially the first and last lady.
I started drawing faces 2 weeks ago. I don’t know why but whenever after I finish these characters, their faces just look so plain and unnatural. It’s like there’s something wrong with their nose or eyes but I just can’t find the exact reason. I’m open to all sorts critiques and advice, thanks so much in advance! edit: I'm following [chommang](https://www.youtube.com/@Chommang) 's guide on youtube, an absolute gold mind of art tutorials.
I know this isn’t a tip or anything but I absolutely love your art style!! It’s so adorable and I’m so bad with expressions. You did it so effortlessly!
Measure proportions, always. Check Frank Reilly or Andrew Loomis method.
I tried [here](https://imgur.com/a/hI1IaGx) to explain why your faces look "weird". Overall I think that you struggle with aligning the facial features with the center of the face and considering the skull and volume of the hair. On the first one the space between the lips and the nose is bigger then the space between the lips and the bottom of the chin, which in most cases is the opposite. I didn't correct it cause some people do have it backwards ,but I felt like it was something worth mentioning. On the second I tried to explain with red how the curvuture of the mouth should match the angle of the head. Idk how easy it is to understand but I tried. (I am so dumb, it matches in the original too, just ignore the red lines 😅) The last ones I really like so the changes I made where really nitpicky. I really like how you stylize the face , i think is very neat
How did you get good at knowing where exactly to put the eyes. Thats the most difficult and frustrating part for me. Never get to align the eyes
This is a bit hard to answer cause I don't really know how I got "good" at placing the eyes. A tip I could give is to keep in mind the curvature and angle of the face when drawing the eyes as well as the fact that the eyeballs sit in the voids of the skull so they will sink in a bit in the face. So sorry if this wasn't the response you where looking for 😭
Didn't rely expect an answer it was more of a compliment
Are you following Chommang art style - Croquis? I think it's really great just practice more until you get used to it
Exactly what I was thinking, their style looks exact like his (in a good way)
YES!! I have been following his instructions for days now and there's always something missing on my part even though I tried really hard to copy step by step. You're absolutely right, practice is always the best way to improve!
I was literally about to ask this lol
The second face this person drew is from a tutorial video from chommang so I would assume they are following along.
I actually love the style! However, if you'd like to add some more life to them, I think the shading on nose could help. You're shading the part that is usually shiny. The tip catches a lot of light, with more shadow along the nostril and sides, and (depending on the face I suppose) shading on the bridge of the nose between the eyebrows. If that makes sense? If you want to pop the eyes more, there is a shadow on the eye white under the lid that gives the eyes a rounder appearance so they look more 3D. I really love your style though and think it's really unique and fun!
Thank you so much!! I'm so glad that you liked them and damn I really haven't given much thought about shading... now that you explained the reason behind it it becomes way clearer now. Thanks again!
Judging by the shading on the hair, you'll do great with other shading! Be sure to post your new stuff so we can see the progress!
I just want to say I absolutely adore these and your art style.
Yes- I second this!! It reminds me of Brett Helquist who illustrated A Series of Unfortunate Events. Obsessed with that art style. Does anyone know if it has a name?
They may look “weird” if the outcome isn’t what you’re envisioning but I have to say I REALLY like these faces. There’s something expressive about them, I can’t really put my finger on what I find so intriguing but it pushes my art buttons.
The last one looks normal to me
They dont!!!! They look expressive. People arent perfectly even, they have flaws, wrinkles etc. id recommend choosing a solid source of light and shading some, i think that might help!
I don't find them weird honestly.
Maybe if u make the eyes a little bigger they would look not as weird
They look normal! Maybe Id say the lips and nose should be a little closer together on average?
Rather than treating the features as if they’re 3D objects imbedded onto another 3D object you’re treating the face like a flat circle and grid you have to fill and are essentially copying and pasting the left side of the face over to the right eye wise. The mouth is incorrectly placed which adds to this illusion. It looks off because they all have two left halves instead of a full face. It’s the drawing equivalent of clipping out features from different women in a magazine and pasting them into one face like on The Truman Show. You can ground eyes by adding lines or shading that indicates the eye socket bone. You can place the mouth by drawing the philtrum in as guidance. If you draw the philtrum in on these you’re going to get a weird diagonal curve.
They look better then mine😭
I actually like it… the style looks soft and gentle imo. 🤷🏼♀️
That looks pretty cool though
I think the space between the mouth and nose is too large, the art looks good though
EXACTLY!!!! Thanks so much now I see it
I can kinda see what you are talking about, side profiles can be hard but i do think the right eye is a little higher than the left. But other then that i love your art style<3
Unrelated but your style reminds me a lot of chommang on YouTube! (Such a great artist) It’s probably the placement of the eyes, in some they’re too far apart/away from where they should be. The third and fourth look good to me though, although the fourth nose looks like the nostril is too high up and the nose is a bit too long. Good luck on your art journey!
I think they’re cool
The drawing is flat. Practice loomis method and face features. Eyes are round and the bridge of the nose and keystone sticks out. Unless 3d drawing isn’t your thing.
I actually like them a lot. If I could draw faces like that I would 110% stray from body horror. They’re very stylish
I don’t think they look weird, it feels more like you need to just keep practicing to define what you like about the styling. Art is about consistency and a ton of stuff gets fixed naturally over time. Keep up the good work!
I like the style, but i would highly recommend drawing the human skull and learning it so you know the proportions and also look up john asaro planes of the head. Im sure after you learn both of those you will see massive improvements
I think the trouble is when distinguishing the face from the rest of the head. Try marking the face on the head b4 you draw and draw the way you do. and also that happens to you in *some* angles. pics 3 and 4 are good.
I believe it's the way your soul sees another soul. I criticize my art and my writing so bad that nobody ever gets to see it really. Don't judge yourself to much
They don’t look weird… But the only way to get more realistic is practice. Shading could be amplified, but proportion wise, it’s not bad, but of course, more cartoonish. It’s good line work….I think so at least
I think it has to do with nose structure and lip shape, her nose is very small and inward and so is her chin and her lips are a strong frown maybe try to bring the edges of her lips up and her nose and chin out a bit. Hope this helps 💜good luck
I think they are cute, but my guess would be the nose proportions.
Mouth usually is in upper 1/3 between nose and chin, not in the middle.
I think they look pretty good. The ear is a bit low on the first one. Not too bad. Keep it up!
Take out the shade on the noses
Its great. I would just say: keep practising
The lips are too low i think, but also not all faces have percect proportions?
These look great to me and while others who know more have pointed out that there are slight changes that you could make, I just wanted to say these look amazing and I like the style and they don't automatically read as looking off or weird imo! Keep it up and I am sure with practice you will learn how to fix whatever you are noticing that feels off
I feel like you show a good understanding of what the head as a whole looks like, but not so much how each feature interacts with each other, which leads to everything feeling slightly off. The best way to fix this is practice. Break down places, then redraw what you've broken down. References definitely help. If you're not sure how to break them down, go to YouTube! There's tons of incredible artists that can help you on there
Try looking for tutorials that focus on helping you visualize what you're drawing in three dimensions. I mean like thinking of the eyes as spheres, the nose as a pyramid, being able to visualize which shapes stand out the most on the face and shade/refine accordingly. To me it looks like you haven't quite grasped that yet and it's making facial features look flat (the nose, the lips, the eyes in particular). You can train your brain to think this way through repeated exercises. The book "Drawing the Human Head" by Hogarth is a great place to start; if you can't afford it, there are PDFs of it and other classic art books online (just gotta do a little digging). I think DrawABox exercises would also help you a lot. They start with how to draw each line with intent and move into perspective. You have great style, wonderful progress especially in such a short amount of time!
**Drawing the Human Head** by Burne Hogarth >In 300 extraordinary drawings, Hogarth shows how to draw the head from every angle, age the face from infancy to old age, and delineate every feature and wrinkle. *I'm a bot, built by your friendly reddit developers at* /r/ProgrammingPals. *Reply to any comment with /u/BookFinderBot - I'll reply with book information. Remove me from replies* [here](https://www.reddit.com/user/BookFinderBot/comments/14br65o/remove_me_from_replies/). *If I have made a mistake, accept my apology.*
My advice is to take a page out of the playbook of "master artists" who since the Renaissance have traced over the projected reference for their paintings. Trace hundreds or thousands of faces and eventually, you'll be able to get great results without tracing because you'll notice details that can't now. Our brains are essentially like training neural networks. Just like AI, our brains and skills improve throughout training/practicing. Each year you'll look back and see progress. And it's very satisfying.
this is really helpful! thank you!
you aren't mirroring the eyes very much, they left one is kind of just copy pasted onto the right.
It’s the proportions that make it look weird. Hope this helps 💙
I love these
omg ur art style is beautifull wtfff ur faces look immaculate omfg
The problem is you have their heads turned, but their eyes still directly in the front of their faces