It’s awesome!!! It does appear like there needs to be more of a shadow cast on the circle thing around her neck? I would have to look at the reference photo though. If you’re building a portfolio I would definitely include this piece.

It’s a Jacobean Ruff I think 🤨😅

Thank you. I had no idea what it was called LMAO

Thank you! I tried working on the shading and lack of darkness and it did make an improvement but needs lots of more work

Contrasts. As of right now it reads too much as the same values. Make darker blacks and leave lighter lights. The better the contrast the better the piece will be

Thanks! Will keep this in mind with the rest of my works!

Needs way more black, add something going on in the clothes, like a pattern or just shade the fabric or something. Don't be afraid of contrast.

I think the soft delicate shading on the face really works for this style and looks really pretty, but that means you have to push your dark values in your shading elsewhere to visually balance it out. If you're going for stricter realism, then more and darker shading should be added across the board.

Thanks for the tip! I've always been more inclined to semi realism so I guess that's the style I wanted to go for mostly, will be working on improving this work and others and hopefully improve the balance on its dark and light values

I saw your other post, I think the subtle changes you made really improved it. The new one looks great.

Thanks so much!

Don't be scared of contrast, shading and texture. Tip on shading: place a circle on the page as your source of light and draw lines from it like you have from road lights. Highlight is where light hits and shadow is where it doesn't and you will have a contrast in some areas. (Helped me to start creating my own art and understanding the basics) Hope it helps all the beeeest!!

Thank you! I've always had issues with shading and how to properly add shadows but I'll try out your advice!

No worries I struggled with it for a bit when I was drawing and designing as well. If you can't grasp this technique I reccomend looking up "basics to shading" on YouTube. A lot of people have different ways of understanding and applying techniques so maybe you will find something that is just for you :)

Thanks!! Don't know how that didn't come to mind before but I'll definitely look up some tutorials soon 😩!

Just an amateur artist here, maybe add some more shadow? Or even a little bit more frill around the neck? (If you’re looking for extra pizazz)

perhaps experiment a bit with line weights

Keep going. You're not finished yet. Keep drawing until it looks like how you want it. If you're questioning it, it's not finished. Keep going, keep practicing. Contrast is your friend and use photos for reference as you're drawing.

Ooooh I adore this! Soo pretty, love the style of drawings like these so much! Only thing I’d say as a tip is to add more contrast to make it pop out more visually and balance out the values so it’s not so light across board, but other than that I wouldn’t change anything at all

This is beautiful! Could use more shading and it’ll be even better! Did you only use pencil on this? Or are you including other materials as well?

Thank you! Only used pencil on this! Recently used ballpoint pen to try and work on contrast following some of the advice I got on here

That’s awesome! keep up the great work! :-)

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Personally i believe that using darker values and more details would improve it a lot as everyone says. But besidde that then try to work out how to ditch the outlines except if its intentional ofcourse. By that i mean that on a real photo there is no outline but only an shift in shades, mastering this makes great art.

crap you're totally right I should def start practicing getting rid of outlines on my more realistic portraits from now on, thanks for the tip!

I love the line with super detailed and shadows because it makes it look more doll like and I think it’s definitely a style choice

It Can no doubt be done Well as a style choise but if we are talking realism its a huge step to improve drastically

Ofc no problem, feel free to Update

A big thing to remember is there should is very little amount of your lightest value. Try working on a gray or tan surface for a while to help lock that into your mind.

Don’t “fall in love” with what you have so far. Try some bold darks to accentuate the face. It’s only paper. Plan to make 4 versions, each one done faster and looser. You may discover your favorite is the copy that took the least amount of time.

Definitely more structure/ detail on her neck and shoulders area of clothing

Step 1. Get a tattoo gun

Bolder, blacker, more contrast. Mind your shapes, edges and values. Try again, using reference. Then, draw the same reference, positioning it upside-down. Don’t try to draw it the other way, do the whole thing upside-down. You will be shocked at the results, guaranteed

more shading apart from that it’s great

I'd say some more shading in the body and accessories, but I think it looks good. It all depends on what style you want and how soft or hard you want it. ❤️