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mcgrath800 — Bono
Published: 2014-01-21 16:27:16 +0000 UTC; Views: 3155; Favourites: 101; Downloads: 0
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pencil portrait on canson extra smooth paperRelated content
Comments: 57
cheers John, if I was ever to reach your league I'd be a very happy man....
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cheers, could be better but will get there...
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Better than me haha
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we're all at different rungs on the ladder but keep climbing and we will get there, like any skill, the more you do it the better you become.
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That's encouraging 
Still, have a long way to go
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lol, I dont doubt that, would love to have the eloquence in my words to write but sadly didn't ever apply myself. I see you are reading A Feast for Crows? I wonder as o your opinion on it? For me the first three stories in the tale rival anything in the genre I've read, including Tolkien's big one, however found "Crows" a little bit distracting, so much I went back and read the previous book thinking I'd missed something, the story seems to go off on sideway tangents rather than forwards, still enjoyed it, just needed a bit more faith to do so though. That said A Dance with Dragons is a fantastic read slamming back into gears! Enjoy.
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Haha well hey, you draw amazingly. I get what you mean with crows, it was definitely around the place. I think martin was trying to restore the wonder of the fantasy world, try to delve more into the lore and land. Plus, crows and dance with dragons are essentially one big entry in the series separated into the two books. Crows is more of a prep piece, guiding you into a more receptive reading state, then, like you said, he slams you with dance of dragons. I thought it was really well done. I especially enjoyed the journey brienne took to that crakehall place with the extra character. Added a lot of depth to the story
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I intend to work my way through all of them again soon, perhaps on my second pass it will be easier going. Could do with the author getting his finger out with the final two books though, notoriously slow I know but he is getting no younger and would hate to see it unfinished by his hands. Really enjoying the tv series too, everyone I know who watched it so shocked by Ned Stark, the Red Wedding etc, lol, plenty more of those moments to come.
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Right?! I actually watched the show before I read any of the books. It's good, but unless this next season is phenomenal, I'll leave the hype. I'm a huge fan of House of Cards and Community, and I really only want to follow a few TV shows
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thankyou, trying to improve as I go.
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Again the textures are stunning. The stubble and hair and the skin on his neck look amazingly realistic. You're definitely on the right path! 
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Thanks Danielle! Could'nt agree more, struggle a bit with my values but it a learning curve Im slowly improving...
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Indeed it's a gradual process. Just keep drawing, you'll reach a point where it will come completely naturally to you. You could try to use some stronger media for the shadows like charcoal and see what it does for your work.
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Im doing that very thing, been experimenting a bit between charcoal, graphite and now carbon pencils, there has been progress though a long way to go. When I look at the thumbnail of my charcoal drawing I can see this is where I want to get to with my contrasts etc to stand, its a matter of transferring that to full size now, Im thinking blending more carefully and possibly changing paper. Its as you say, a gradual process, but worthwhile. I hope. lol
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Yeah, it has a lot to do with experimenting and optimizing when it comes to charcoal beign such a hard to control medium. And a trustworthy fixator!
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Whoa!! Being Irish, he's like superman.
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Got to admit, I was never a fan, mostly because Ive never paid much attention, but I seen a drawing someone else did of him which inspired me to look out the original ref and have my own crack at it. After working on it I blind bought a couple of their concert dvds, have watched the Slane Castle show and while he may not have the voice of Sinatra or Elvis, I really did like the show and some of the numbers were excellent! So you can count me among the admirers now. Great band.
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Oh, Elvis is huge in Ireland!
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How true, even Bono is an Elvis man, yet another thing good about him.
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You're welcome… really incredible detail.
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when I get to your level of work I'll be a happy man, most impressive indeed. I'm very much just trying different things looking for that something that clicks into place, do feel I climbed another rung on the ladder with this one though plenty of ladder left to climb! Hopefully each one lets me get that little bit closer.
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My observation has been that people aren't patient enough to create such detail and subtle blending. Some artists will never get to that level since (I believe) part of the giftedness of an artist rests in their innate temperament to relish and draw in finicky details.
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Very good point, and I may have been one of them, lol, when I took up the pencils a little over a year ago I was taking around 20 hrs to do a drawing and [quite wrongly] assumed the better I got the quicker I'd get. Of course now Im finding the better I get the more time and effort it takes, and that, along with gaining knowledge of pencils and technique, has been the real aid in my drawing, if its worth doing, take the time and put in the effort, Im quite aways from where I want to be but have made progress and [hopefully] will continue to do so.
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Patience can be relative. I know that I often will get into the mindset of finishing work in a certain amount of time. Generally, if I have a drawing I plan to do in one evening, it will be finished in 4-5 hours regardless of how much time I could put into it to make it better. Once in a while I will take a drawing into a 2nd or 3rd evening.
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well you're both doing better than me, a drawing like this would take me a good 50 hours, great job by the way mcgrath
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Thanks for the encouragement, hairs a real weak point for me, but I think I know where I went wrong and will adjust my game on the next one. I've found a neat little trick for the values, as Im sure like me at times up close and drawing everything seems ok, after so much time staring at the same drawing it can be hard to be critical, I turned off my light one evening and the room had only street light lighting the room and with my ref pic sitting next to my drawing I spotted those value differences straight away, one of those eureka moments. Getting my drawings 'dark' enough has been a real issue for me but I realised its my contrasts that were the issue, the paper is the lightest value and you cannot change that but, you can have control over the darkest tones, get those down and all the midtones will then fall into place making the drawing stand out more. Im happy enough with my progress this past year or so, just got soooo far to go though lol.
...and that Bono drawing is simply awesome, if I get anywhere near that quality...ooooft!
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Thankyou, donotseeme,Its a learning curve thats for sure, had a look at your drawings and you are pretty decent yourself. So many things I need to work on in my drawing, on this one certainly, darker tones in the hair, smoother skin transitions too and overall values, right now though its the best shot my ability allows, in the future I hope to get there, its hard trying not to compare myself with waaaay better artists, for it can be discouraging, best to compare myself with my previous drawings and see the progress.
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thanks man, and yeah i know the drawing you took your inspiration from very well, it's all over the place here on DA.
but i actually think you did the hair extremely well! yes the other drawings hair is a good deal darker but the way you've done it has given it a lot more substance.
but i feel your pain on the overall values issue! i can never seem to get my drawings dark enough even when i force myself to go darker than i think i should!
by the way i think if you're finding yourself comparng yourself to those guys and girls (we both know who they all are around here) that's very encouraging! it means you know
you're catching up and will be there some day. i've not even been drawing 2 years and have improved vastly as i can see you're also doing from looking in your gallery earlier
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thankyou, most appreciated!
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Wow ! The hair is amazing ! And all the details... Very well done !
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thankyou, just plodding away trying to improve each time
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