Customer Reviews

Drawing Dynamic Comics

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Another handsome volume on drawing comics from Watson Guptill. And Kubert School graduate Andy Smith uses this book to take you through the basics of drawing comics figures and arranging them in panels. What you make of the book will be determined by your tastes and drawing level.

Though it claims to be for any talent level, I don't believe this book would be useful for a complete beginner. While drawing heads and figures are well-represented, he mysteriously omits instruction on hands and feet. As these are the two major stumbling blocks for tons of aspiring artists, this omission is a bit puzzling.

Smith's style is the heavily exagerated muscle style that some desperately want to emulate (I'm not one of them, myself, but that hasn't affected my rating). There are only a few examples of other artists' styles, and many of them are from Bart Sears, who makes Smith look restrained in his depiction of the heavily muscled. It would have been nice to have a discussion of different ways of representing the super-heroic musculature ranging from cartoon simple to ultra-powerful over-realistic.

The section on inking is helpful, but only if you know how to use the tools already. Though the user is encouraged to use a brush, there's no mention of the correct manner of holding the brush. You are told it takes a great deal of practice to use a brush, but not how to go about that practice.

On the good side, there are great discussion on panel layout and flow, using reference materials, drawing the face in different ways and in different ages and a very good guide to the different facial features. The writing is clear, the art well executed and the teaching style encouraging.

For someone serious about drawing comics, this is a worthwhile addition for your bookshelf. But don't start here. I'd personally start with Christopher Hart's How to Draw Comic Book Heroes and Villains, which covers the same ground as this book while including most of the omissions I mentioned above. And for working on your figures, I highly recommend How to Draw Anime and Game Characters: Basics for Beginners and Beyond (don't be put off by the manga base for this book, it will benefit anyone interested in comics).

Granted this book isn't particularly special and covers pretty much the same sort of basics, fundamental principles, etc, as a lot of the other 'how to draw comics' books out there - it's a bit different and somewhat better by comparison. It's extremely tough to find a good 'how to...' book out there that covers both basics and more advanced areas which is also helpful and satisfying for most people with different needs for it. I have searched many bookstores and I found pretty much the same sort of thing every time. In the end I thought of which one was more informative, precise and practical without being overly stressful, repetitive or boring. One that didn't rely on flashy colourful examples or reference material that looks great but doesn't really guide you in the right direction. I thought this one was one of the better ones, if not the best. I thought some of the other books really focused more on the finished product and work which was appealing, slick and contemporary-looking - but there wasn't much of a guideline for how to achieve those sort of results. They sort of suggested that most serious comic-drawers draw in the same style. This one isn't really an exception in that way, the same sort of old-fashioned aesthetics and ideals apply. However, I felt this book covered most areas further and the points were not as strict or stubborn. Anything you learn from this book can be loosened and applied to your own individual style. I also felt that this book was easier to understand, adventurous and fun. This is one of the best 'how to...' books so far. It explores most areas further than the other books and introduces new themes. It's probably not what some comic-drawers are hunting for but it's better than most the others
(that are more accessible) and it's also excellent for those who want to recap a lot of things.

Some nice samples of comic art, with basic 'how to draw people' info. Unfortunately the author never really shows a direct connection between the two. Something about exaggerating motion and form would have been helpful.

About 1/4 to 1/3 of the book covers developing a complete comic, that is finally inked in B/W. But nothing about using color. Nothing about getting work 'camera ready' and / or how to digitalize it.

I think some of Burne Hogarth timeless books would be a much better investment

Helping my friend wither her online comic got me interested in drawing people, too. I read through Bridgman's Anatomy and tried my hand at it, but the classical style - beautiful as it is - didn't quite click with me. That's why Andy Smith's book was such a find. I've drawn animals, plants, fantasticals, etc all my life and starting out with people was really intimidating. They rank with horses for difficulty, but this book breaks it down into simple steps. The clear cut instructions make human anatomy all the more attainable.

Some valuable lessons in anatomy are skipped, but that's forgiveable b/c it really is too much for a comic book guide to cover. Besides, there are plenty of resources out there that can supplement these lessons. It's probably helpful to have more than one book anyway, since it gives you access to a wider range of styles.

Another helpful part was the way he had a wide variety of angles on the torso and waist boxes, then used these examples with the musculature. It really helps the reader follow along with the process.

A lot of people have mentioned this book isn't good for beginners, but this is my first time drawing people and I'm really liking the results. Then again, I've had a lot of practice and prep with drawing...so yeah, just another POV. Smith's book supercedes Lee and Buscema's How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way since it incapsulates a lot of what their book covers along with more in-depth lessons on faces and inking. A sort of two for one - although HDC the Marvel Way has a lot more examples of foreshortening and gesture drawing this book could benefit from. For someone who already has a collection of these How-To's going, some of this book could be redundant (or they could be helpful! who knows?), but for a beginner like myself, it gives a concise overview of the basics that is extremely helpful.

Many people have given this book fewer stars, citing it's ommissions as the reason. I feel this is unfair as this a book intended to teach the reader 'HOW TO DRAW DYNAMIC COMICS', not just 'HOW TO DRAW'.

It may not be a book for a complete beginner (even though it does cover many basic drawing techniques), but someone who has a modicum of artistic talent and wants to know how to develop his skills for the comic book genre will find this book invaluable. As for the ommissions such as hand drawing and digital colouring, these are topics that deserve an entire book to themselves, and to try and cover either (or both) of them in a manual of this size would only have done both subjects a disservice.

For subjects such as hands, animals, and vehicles, the reader would be better served by looking at the works of Burne Hogarth (Dynamic Hands), Jack Hamm (How to Draw Animals), and Christopher Hart (How to Draw Fast Cars, Monster Trucks, & Fighter Jets). Once you've got these skills, turn back to this book to see how to use them in the creation of a comic book.

Andy Smith has written a book that promises to teach us how to draw Dynamic Comic Books. It does exactly that, with entertaining text and many superb illustrations. He talks about tools, techniques, and style, and covers everything from basic anatomy, figure construction and posing, to perspective, panel layout, and inking.

Drawing Dynamic Comics delivers the goods. What more can you ask?

This would be a great addition to anyone's how-to library.

Andy Smith has put together a truly solid reference for those who are looking to improve the quality of their comic book artwork. The sample characters he uses to demonstrate figure drawing are excellent examples of the "modern superhero/superheroine" style.
Using basic form-blocking methods to establish proportion he shows how to then add the sleek and well-defined musculature typical of the most popular comics today.

Other areas of instruction include light and shadow, 1,2 and 3-point perspective, page layout, choosing "camrera angles" for panels, composition and visual pacing/flow through a page. Other sections detail scripting and script types, inking techniques/tools, and an epilogue page about breaking into the industry.

All in all, this book is a pleasure to work from. I highly recommend it as a desk reference for anyone starting out and also for those who want to return to basics and rediscover what makes the difference between great comics and those that collect dust on the shelf.

This book is a great new look at drawing your own superheroes villians ect..But, beware this book is not for most beginners it goes over the subjects in the booka little to quickly. Andrew Smith assumes the reader has a pretty good understanding of what he talks about. SO, if your a beginner I would stay away from this book till you have learned the basics. I gave this book 4 stars because I already had the firm understanding of what he talks about. This is a great book overall and helped my drawing ability greatly.

Normally I don't but into "how to draw" books. Drawing skill comes with practice, not by reading. I heard this was a good one so broke down and bought it (with a few others) they all collect dust on my shelf.

This is a good book to learn the skill of drawing from. anyone that is interested in drawing comics should buy this book

This is a great item to get into my collection. Definately a buy that is well worth it.