Book Review: Comic Artist’s Photo Reference
So, after my last book review, I’m turning to my bookshelves in my craft studio to see what other books I’ve found particularly useful. And frankly, none have been used by me nearly as often as my Comic Artist’s Photo Reference books by Buddy Scalera. Having some kind of reference is indispensible when trying to create realistic drawings, especially when it comes to body postures. But there isn’t always someone handy to strike that cheesy pose you want for your fantasy, sci-fi, or comic drawing. These books solve that problem easily, each one filled with multiple models in all sorts of action poses. They each come with a CD as well, for even more photos. You might not always find the perfect photo for what you need, but chances are, you’ll find something close.
The three books I have in the series – People and Poses, Men and Boys, and Women and Girls.
A couple of years ago, I was involved in an online art project called “Artgrind.” It was a challenge to create a drawing a day, all of one character, for three months. In that time, I really saw my technique improve. But when I got these books to work with, they got even better.
There are tips and tricks in each book as well, small tutorials from various artists. They are useful, but the most useful parts of these books remains the photos themselves.
One photo from People and Poses.
Combined with another photo reference, and my character Morgan picks a fight.
Sometimes, Morgan was on the losing side. This one was done using a photo on the Women and Girls CD.
Posted on July 4, 2012, in Book Review and tagged art, body postures, book review, character, comic, drawing, illustration, photo, realistic drawings, reference. Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.
Nice work and I like how you share your insparation. Very awesome! Keep growing!
Thanks so much! I do try to keep growing and improving, and I hope by sharing resources like this I can help other artists grow, too.