Reference info~ Not really necessary to read. Any kind of critique is appreciated.

Soooo I just picked up the old tablet and dusted it off because I REALLY need to get back into practice before school starts. This is just kinda a rough/stylized self portrait that I plan to layer in some Art Nouveau influence when it comes to the background and fancy frame BUT until then I need to fix the face. Because o.C 1.1 will not let me add anymore layers and I want to make sure it's perfect before I combine anything and make it impossible to fix.
The image is a bit large because I find it is easier to add detail at a larger size and then I will re-size to something apporpraite when it is finsihed so thumbnail:

I haven't started on the eyes really, though I think I am almost done with the lips. They need a little cleaning and I hate how they seem a bit pixelated, but at the moment I'm afraid of over fixing them. (I do that a lot and it ends up worse XP) Really my main focus is the shading on the face, I think I need to go darker to add some more depth, but I think it already looks a little fat and manly (lol though it is a self portrait) but I need to fix the "5' O'clock shadow" look it kinda has right now XP and I feel like adding more shading is only going make that worse at the moment. I do really need to work on defining the neckline where it meets the chin and that will probably help a bit, but I can tell that's not going to be the only thing I need to do to fix it. I am messing up in where I'm defining the cheeks. Also ~ Noses ~ Rawr... they never look right to me.

Also The hairs.... Like I said I wanted to add some of the Art Nouveau influence and I have always loved the curls and flowing hair so I was attempting to do that but went WAY overboard ( lol I'll do that if I am working zoomed in and forget to balance the whole picture till I zoom out) So I did one that is basically realistic and I'm thinking about adding in like three or four curls, around the face and at the ends. Speculate?

Okay, sooo..



This is what I did so far. It's really important to have a ref picture because thinking out of your head will cause you to have a lot of mistakes. I say this because my teacher really drilled this into our heads for perspective. Also, refrain from rendering at all until you having everything to your liking, it'll save a lot of time (even if this is for your own pleasure) and it's a good thing to practice so you won't get too attached (in case something bad happens).



The eyes seem a little far apart. Because the face is turned, the farthest eye should be slightly disappearing behind the bridge of the nose. This is where ref would be helpful because it'll help you know how things looked turned. Unfortunately, the mouth is drawn flat, so you would..have..to fix that. (Sorry!)

The upper lip protrudes more than the bottom (even if the bottom is bigger), and my teacher described the corner of our lips as donuts. If you feel that area, they puff out, so as her face turns away from the light, you would see it puff out where as it looks flat. It's a good thing to touch your face in case you're struggling with something.

So, this pose isn't a profile shot, therefore the other nostril would still be seen but barely like how I badly put it in there. I drew in the neck how it'd be posed and I tilted the shoulders because I actually tried her position, and with her shoulders leveled with a tilted head is really uncomfortable. (Ref!)

I can help with shading too but it's like 5AM and I must sleep. I can explain more things when I come back too. Sorry for rushing!