JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 008: Common Mistakes Over the years, I’ve given my share of portfolio reviews, and there are certain mistakes and problems that I see again and again. Not every mistake is common—some pioneering souls manage to stumble into problems that are unique to their personal corner of the artistic universe—but there are several classic […]

JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 007: “Meanwhile, back on the ranch…” When you’re in the midst of drawing a scene in a comic, it’s often easy to imagine the next image in the sequence. The script says, “He cooks breakfast,” so you draw him cooking breakfast. Next it says, “He eats breakfast,” so you draw him […]

JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 006: Judging Criticism Criticism! The artist’s bête noire! Whether you’re a hobbyist or aiming to draw professionally, the criticism your work receives can help you improve. Some artists flatly avoid reviews of their work, worrying that praise or criticism will throw them off track … but this is like a marksman refusing […]

JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 005: Photo Reference: When To Use It Suppose you’re nearing the end of a day drawing comics. You’ve only got one panel left to draw: a panel featuring a llama. You’ve never drawn a llama before, but you might be able to wing it. Or not. Do you have time to […]

JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 004: Learning By Comparison It’s often instructive to compare different artists’ approaches to the same subject matter. Sometimes, this shows how one approach works better than another. Other times, it may reveal two approaches that work equally well in different ways. Or, in some cases, both artists will use the same […]

JESSE HAMM’S CAROUSEL Carousel 003: Drawing From Observation There are all sorts of ways to improve your drawing skills—reading articles, practicing in your sketchbook, taking a class—and each method will add its own unique arrows to your quiver. But above all, I’d say the most effective route to improvement is drawing from observation. That is, […]