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Nalusa — 'Thundering to Battle'
Published: 2009-05-12 21:04:47 +0000 UTC; Views: 1601; Favourites: 42; Downloads: 0
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EDITI finally got this scanned. I had to do it in pieces, scan, flip, scan, flip...that horrendous process. I'm quite happy to actually have it scanned though. It might actually do some justice to how hard I worked on it.
As I wrote below, it took about twelve hours from the layout of pencils to the inking, over about a week and a half. It is probably my best example of metal, fabric and stone.
I also hope it portrays my love of ink as a medium, be it pen, india, brushed, calligraphic pen, colored inks, washes.
The photograph of the finished image has been moved to scraps, and this is intended to take its place in my gallery.
This is the finally finished piece from ashhenson.deviantart.com/art/C…
I have posted details of the image: ashhenson.deviantart.com/art/T…
I never did mask the edges, I got too caught up in working it. I'm incredibly proud, the Rocks are a vast improvement from anything I have done before. The barding actually looks like metal and fabric, and the axe as though it could be of stone iron or bone.
This is WoW fanart, its a Paladin charging down from the closed Gates of Ironforge set into the vast mountain range of Khaz Modan. She is in Tier six, with the Soul Cleaver axe from the Burning Crusade expansion (I've always been a raider more than a PVPer so naturally I drew my preference of gear)
Its taken many hours, though not an obscene amount. Id say it took me twelve over the span of a week and a half.
The paper is Bristol 14x17" Strathmore 400 series vellum, and the ink is all Pilot Precise V5 extra fine.
I love to listen to music while I draw, and this is some of what I listened to while working on it:
Blue Man Group: Rods and Cones
Savatage: The Storm
In Flames: The Jesters Dance
Dethklok: Bloodrocuted, Awaken & Thunder Horse
Lots of Slipknot, Disturbed and Godsmack
LAIR OST-
Firestorm
Rhons' Theme
Ravine of No Return
Diviners Battle
I worked very hard on this, and would encourage a thorough critique if possible. What did I do well? What did I fail at? How could I improve?
This will be the last of my fan-art spree for quite some time.
I would also like to add that I do not in any way, shape, form or in part own World of Warcraft or claim credit for the design of the class or gear or mount armor. I do however retain copyright and ownership of this image. It is not for use without my express permission, consent or submission by ANYONE.
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Comments: 26
First of all, her expression is great, and the forward-moving dynamic energy of the "riding to battle" theme comes across beautifully. The real strength of the piece is in its details: there's a lot of effort put into the hatched shading and the beast's barding (especially on the hooves). You've also achieved a really great leaning twist on the part of the rider, which is pretty challenging.
However, there are some areas that need improvement. I may be wrong on this since I don't play WoW, but I'm assuming the beast she's riding is similar in construction to a horse or another ungulate (although if it's not, feel free to disregard the anatomical tips). It's clear that you're going for a breakneck gallop in its pose, but even in a really extreme perspective its neck wouldn't look so squashed, nor its spine through its midsection so shortened. Check out photos of horses in motion to get a good idea of how this looks in real life. In a similar vein (and if I was wrong about the beast, you can start paying attention again here e.deviantart.net/emoticons/s/s… " width="15" height="15" alt="
The last thing I think I should mention is the castle behind her. Even though there's no visible horizon in this picture, or even more buildings beyond this one we see, this flat doorway still needs to be angled away from us, because right now the illusion of depth is being hindered by how close and flat it is in relation to the rider and beast sprinting forward from the picture plane. Just angling it away a little bit would help with this.
In spite of these comments, this is still a really successful piece. It's the small things that make it: the hooves on the ground, the bit and reins in the mouth, her shoulder coming forward as if she's bracing herself. Even if there are structural concerns, all these details combine nicely to make the piece believable and real. Structure can be learned and practice, but an eye for what makes a piece substantial is a more elusive quality, and you're showing it very well here. Cheers!
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Thanks a ton! Allot of these things you pointed out are things I never quite noticed before and will help greatly in the future.
I really appreciate you taking the time to point out what can be improved and providing suggestions on fixing them.
And you are correct by the way, it is a Horse (though some of my friends have taken to calling it 'the unicorn from hell'
Thank you again for the thoughtful and helpful critique. It is always a pleasure to have another person take the time to evaluate the pros and cons of an image one has worked on.
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I'm so glad you got something out of it. I love helping where I can, and knowing it helped at all makes me feel like I actually know what I'm talking about.
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lol this is like the best charger "drawing" ive seen so far, very good work on the stone as well
I did notice that the paladin looks rather...odd in that her armor seems abit 2D, maybe you could have took a little more time with her
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Hehe, yeah, I did get a bit bored with her and rush it there in the end.
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Love the detail and shadeing
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Thank you! I find it really comes down to being sure to do a few rough-drafts to get something the way you want it, instead of just trying to jump into a finished version.
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Nice
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I'm glad you like it! She's based on a class called a paladin, which has one of the coolest mounts (and most uniqe) in the game. She herself was kind of an afterthought to the horse, lol.
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I think it´s a wonderful piece. I love this style of art. My only criticism is that the head looks kinda strange comparing to rest of the picture.
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Thanks! Do you mean the head of the horse, or the head of the woman?
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women´s head
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Absolutely gorgeous. I love seeing works in ink, they come across as rather dramatic if done right. Wonderful motion and energy in it as well!
+fave!
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Thank you for such a kind comment & fave! 
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The amount of work that must have gone into this is astounding! It makes me want to take more time with my stuff. Keep up the amazing work!
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Thanks! Sometimes it really is worth it to take it slow on an image.
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This is fantastic. So much movement in the poses and lines, and the detail is breathtaking. Well done!
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Thanks! Once it got rolling it was a labor of passion,
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i'm surprised no one commented on this. i think this looks great. i'm not very good at drawing. but i try. at any rate, i think the leg looks kinda awkward. it's hard to explain. the way it's oriented, it reminds me of someone sitting on a bench. but then again, the way the rest of her body sits, it doesn't seem out of the ordinary. still really good, i love how the horse was drawn. the hair, the expression on it's face.
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Thanks! This is actually a re-post of it, the original post was a photograph of the work, and was moved to scraps when I actually got off my lazy bum and scanned this in.
Her leg does look quite a bit off, and to be honest I probably should have had more of her foot hidden by the shoulder-plate on the horse, because it makes the foreleg look a little pinched.
Thanks for the compliments, It really makes it worth it when people enjoy looking at what I make.
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you're welcome. i enjoy going through peoples drawings rather than peoples photographs. esp something like this. when someone spent hours on an idea, and completing it. it's more appreciable. take care
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