Critique Request looking for pointers on what i am doing wrong

[tkelch]

This is the most complex design I have tried so far. I have been drawing the other letters in this font of my last name. I want to do on a sign later on. I know there are a lot of errors and my shading needs a lot of work but any pointers would be appreciated especially with the owl and lion never tried any thing like that before.

 

[Tim Wells]

You gotta be kidding me, finish shading it. There's not a thing in the world wrong with that practice plate.

 

[Beathard]

Not charging enough?

 

[tkelch]

Thanks for the compliments I had to take a break from this to work on some coins for my reserve unit and I am going to finish it. I really think there are part that could be better like the owl.

 

[Beathard]

The owl is a little off, but the rest is impressive. I don't believe that the average person would notice.

 

[didyoung]

a suggestion......when cutting the backbone of the scroll try to keep it nice and round.
in order to shade something you must first understand what you want the leaf to look like.
you have done well making a copy of this.
you might try starting out with simple designs.....learn how to draw them and shade them.
once you understand how and why something is drawn and shaded you will be able to improve from that point.
learn the basics.
you have good graver control....now learn the basics of how to form a good backbone and leaf structure....things will improve by leaps and bounds then.

 

[tkelch]

Thank you for the advise. I am tiring to practice my drawing but am getting confused in some areas with the leaf structure it never seams to flow like it should.

 

[Southern Custom]

Great advice from Didyoung. I wish I had spent much more time drawing early on than engraving. Somewhere along this journey, I realized that all the graver control in the world means nothing if I don't understand leaf, scroll design and shading. I learned the hard way and now I spend more than 3/4s of my time practicing and studying these things, and the balance cutting. It wasn't until I did this that I started to come into my own as an engraver.
Great job on this plate. Finish shading and learn what you can from the experience.

 

[rod]

I am with Shawn here,

Your drawing is pretty good, but your basic geometry is not, the main scroll has a major flat tire, and is a bit bloated.

I would say, sketch your design ideas as rough as you like... at the idea stage. Then lay out your backbone lines and major flow as a skeleton, and go no further till the back bone form is perfect.

If your eye is not immediately seeing the geometry flaws, I think it is better to practice simpler scroll designs until you are blue in the face, and can spot geometry errors immediately. Then go for this complex design, but the original you are copying is way too low resolution, so you are inventing your own shading from what are basically smudges on the original. There are a ton of well shaded examples on the forum from Shawn, to Sam, to any number of fine engravers.

You have chosen a complex design that will have to have perfect shading to be successful.

On the positive side, looks like you have good instincts, so with a few friendly pokes in the ribs, you will surely be on fast track progress.

Well done!

rock on!

Rod

 

[Ed Westerly]

Heed well the advice of Rod, Didyoung, and Southern Custom. They are putting you on the right track. You are right about your owl. you have made him look as though his has been hit hard on his left ear, and had his head caved in. Your shading is quite good, however, and I commend you for the courage to try such complex designs. You will probably be well advised to stick to simpler ones for a while, though, to increase your skill level without a lot of pain.

 

[tkelch]

thank you all for the advice I am going to try to do a lot of drawing and really focus on my basics for a while. When you are doing a design do you draw it to scale of the piece that you will be engraving on or if you do it larger how do you enlarge the item to get the same scale. I hope that makes sense.

 

[tkelch]

this is not simple and basic like you guys advised to practice but I already had this one started