#universal-anomaly

Hello! I’d like some help with anatomy again, specifically with the creature on the right. I tried to make it look like he has crooked limbs but the pose just feels awkward and I can’t figure out how to fix it. Thank you!

Submitted by universal-anomaly

Redlined by Mod Future

Alright! Thanks for submitting again; you look like you’ve really improved! That’s great! :D 

I’ll start with the human form: There’s a little chunkiness that makes the overall form a bit off. Your proportions look good! I would focus on making appealing linework now. Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s something I can teach! It comes from observing other artists and emulating things you find appealing.

For the creature, I guess it looks awkward because of the way they’re standing. There’s not much of an action going on. It makes you ask: “What are they supposed to be doing?” So I made a pose that’s sort of like they’re tensing up to run or to fight. 

Personally I wouldn’t make their limbs too crooked in idle, standing positions. In action poses, like if they’re crawling through trees or something, you want those limbs to have an inhuman amount of dexterity, to add to the creepiness. 

I’m not sure if you wanted to keep the musculature so I didn’t change much, except for the limbs. I would recommend making the fingers/toes more spindly and lanky if you want the creepy off-putting effect. 

Here is a link to a piece of Sonic fanart that does this effect really well (WARNING: Body horror, elongated limbs, creepypasta esque stuff!) : https://twitter.com/FromHappyRock/status/1126251317825945600

Hello! I’ve always had difficulty when it comes to poses where two characters are hugging, and even when it’s one character hugging the other as shown here. Advice on how to make the pose look more natural and proportionally accurate would be greatly appreciated!

Submitted by @universal-anomaly

Redlined by Mod Future

Hello! Awesome character interaction! The first thing I always do before executing a complicated pose is to draw stick figures doing it first! Then, I search for references using google images or other stock photo sites. This way you can build a more accurate picture of it inside your head. 

The major things I noticed were the legs of the left figure were too small in comparison to the rest of their body, and the legs of the on one on the right made them look off-balance. 

For the left, it probably looks skewed because of the big coat obscuring the majority of their body. Drawing a guideline for the body underneath before layering the clothes on top can help ensure your character stays proportional. For the right, I improvised a bit, as I couldn’t find many goat leg pictures.

Hugging scenes like this usually involve a lot of interlocking and overlapping. The more interaction you can add to this pose, the more 3D and alive it can look!