Having sketched the skull repeatedly I've noticed I'm not only quicker at drawing the basic head shape but also far more comfortable with the positioning of the facial features from a variety of angles.
With the practice I can quickly render the head but I realise I'm still lacking in my knowledge of the muscles of the head and neck.
This understanding of the muscles is imperative when forming facial expressions and so my ability is still greatly limited by the gaps in my knowledge.
The reference materials I have made studying the spine a challenge, they are not entirely clear and nothing beats being able to draw from direct observation. But I can still glean a lot of information just by trying to re-create what I see, my mind has to analyse how the bones may fit together.
I'm keeping in mind a concept for a future sculpt so really getting to grips with the form and structure of the spine is going to be important.
Having a variety of sources of reference can help piece together what you may not automatically be able to see. One source I try to use are picture reference books that contain photos rather than other people's drawings, so as to limit working from someone else's interpretation.
So now I have another go at putting the skull on top of the spine. I'm not sure how anatomically correct my sketch is at this time but my drawing's become more confident!
Next time I shall go back and look at the muscles in this part of the body and try and establish a better understanding of the bones that make up the top part of the spine. But in the meantime I'm noticing I have a far more comfortable approach to sketching than I had when I first started the blog. By trying to instill some discipline in sketching on a regular basis, and committing to putting the results up on the blog, I'm definitely seeing the benefits within the first two weeks.
