The sprite practice thread.

[shadowfighter]

Soooo, I've started trying my hand at spriting, and I made eight different colored Pygmy eggs.

 

 

Any tips? Critiques? General stuff?

[ArendaBluez13]

Sketch by angelicdragonpuppy

I'm not a huge fan of the wings, but I'm not sure what it is I don't like about them. (My sprite, not the actual sketch)

[GunGhost]

I've never sprited before. So.. I decided to sit down and power through it. I didn't really follow too many rules. I figured this was just for fun and early practice. I can try to keep in a certain style later. *Ahem* Yeah. Anyway. Soo, with that in mind, what do you think?

 

 

I call it the Pale Pillow, haha. It's a polar climate dragon. But not something I've submitted anywhere. Just for fun. I may try to make sprites of its other forms. Its coat changes with the seasons, like an arctic fox's (a short, dark summer coat. Maybe an intermediate stage to represent growing it in or shedding it out). That could be fun practice, as well--different coat types and colors. I'd really like try the short, dark coat.

 

What should I keep in mind if I decide to do that?

Edited June 8, 2015 by GunGhost

[herobrine745]

I did these freehand.

Crits? I know the hatchie is bad, I'm gonna redo it soon.

 

Gray variant

 

Egg:

 

I'm making sprites for a DR concept of mine that isn't posted yet.

Edited June 9, 2015 by herobrine745

[Anavi_Ivy]

After longer pause, I tried to sprite again.About to have these guys for new project ^^

 

So, lines and base color.Also, I tried making some gradient between blue and green.Sketch is by me.

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Edit: Added some shading, there are still things to be done

Edit2: Added more shading, working on wings

Edit3: I have no idea what to do with wings...

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Edited June 22, 2015 by Anavi_Ivy

[Sundew]

If the people above still want thoughts I can give them but I don't want to type stuff out if they're no longer looking. :3

 

Made this guy originally for a personal project, but he's not close enough to what I had in mind, so I'll probably just shade him quickly for some practice.

 

I tried a lot of things for the first time in these lines, so crits are greatly appreciated. ^^

 

[cbussiere]

Some of these posts are pretty old but I'm just going to crit everyone who didn't get crit. Bear in mind that I don't know much about pixel shading.

 

Lindy - The near thigh looks segmented where it connects to the body with that dark line, like those plastic toys with interchangeable limbs. There should be some of the gray midtone connecting the thigh to the flank, rather than the shading going all the way through. I love the pose and the little feet, he's very silly and cute.

 

shadowfighter - I like the hue shift in the blue one's shading. Most of the other ones look like the colors only shift in brightness, but making the highlights and shadows different hues makes it look much more lively and realistic.

 

ArendaBluez13 - I'd avoid having your brightest highlights on the edge of an area unless the light's coming from the direct side to behind. That said, you don't seem to have a coherent light source. In most areas it seems to be coming from above, but there's also what looks like light from underneath on the upper neck and knee. The feathers and switch also don't have any definition. There's a gradient but the individual feathers and tufts of fur should have shading between them. The far shoulder also protrudes farther than it should, I know it's not your sketch but it's rather noticeable.

 

Gunghost - I like the bluish shading and big sharp tufts of fur, he looks cool. The shading on the far hind leg looks messy, it kind of blends with the shaded tuft on the near leg. Try lightening the blue and adding more of a clear gradient to the far leg? If you try different coat types you should do lines for a bald one first to give you something to work off of.

 

herobrine745 - The lines look rather stiff, particularly the wings, I'd recommend doing a loose sketch first and then shrinking it to sprite size and tracing it. The wings also look like half wings, the whole tip of it is missing. Look at pictures of real bird wings to see what I mean about the shape. They should be more triangular at the end, rather than having a square edge. Put some darker shading around the eye as well, the light color gets lost in the highlights on the head.

 

Anavi_Ivy - The secondary feathers on the wing should be longer, as they are now they wouldn't catch the air. I'd make the feet a bit smaller too. Beautiful colors, by the way.

 

ab613 - The technique on the lines looks good, I would thin the line on the second finger of the near wing and remove the couple of connecting pixels between the first and second fingers. As for anatomy, the proportions on the far hind leg are off. Compare it to the near leg, the tibia/fibula are very short and the metatarsals are much longer. His deltoid looks like it goes a bit low, I'm not totally sure but I don't think it should go below the chest. The front feet are higher than the hind feet. Also, is he supposed to be flightless? Because if not, those little wings wouldn't be able to carry his bulky body. He's very cute though, reminds me of a happy bulldog for some reason. I like the little hook claws on the toes as well.

 

 

Alright, this is the first time I've ever colored/shaded a sprite and I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't like how it looks but I'm not sure exactly what's wrong with it. Too much dithering? Not enough contrast? I'd like criticism on the coloring and shading, I did the sketch quickly just to have something to practice spriting so excuse any anatomical errors (I know I forgot the propatagium, haha) and the bland design.

Edited July 3, 2015 by cbussiere

[Sundew]

cbussiere-

 

Thanks for the crit! He's definitely flightless, and the front feet were intentionally placed higher than the lower. (He's shaded now, and I don't think I'll be making any changes, since he was intended primarily for practice.)

 

Your sprite is excellent for a first time pixel shading. My only real complaint would be the wings, which look... off. I'm not exactly sure how to phrase it. The shading looks more like a stiff piece of paper than a flexible membrane. I feel like there would be more folds in the wings at that angle.

[Sketch]

How does this hatchie look for the Marksman Vipera request I'm working on?

Critics and thoughts? I'm a beginner spriter and I haven't been doing too well with past sprites but I think that hatchies are more me. I also got an S2 done but it isn't shaded yet. It's just a flat color with scheme bars.

[Sundew]

I think I've given you similar advice on a different sprite, but you need to keep in mind the full scope of a dragon when spriting it. Light is not just going to hit the face of the little guy, it's also going to light up some of his back and a bit of his hind legs.

 

Here, I made a very quick mock up of where the brightest/darkess highlights/shadows might go, with red being more normal light:

 

The belly is also lined oddly. I think it'd be much more flat than it is, unless it has a pot belly. :3

[Sketch]

I think I've given you similar advice on a different sprite, but you need to keep in mind the full scope of a dragon when spriting it. Light is not just going to hit the face of the little guy, it's also going to light up some of his back and a bit of his hind legs.

 

Here, I made a very quick mock up of where the brightest/darkess highlights/shadows might go, with red being more normal light:

 

The belly is also lined oddly. I think it'd be much more flat than it is, unless it has a pot belly. :3

Ah yes, of course. I can see now where light would be hitting. Thank you very much and I'll be sure to fix up it's belly.

Edit :

Wow! That looks so much better to me, I've gotta say! Thanks so much for the help, ab613!

Edited July 9, 2015 by HopSketch

[Draconiusultamius]

Just wondering because i want to practice spriting for my dragon requests... Do I resize the sketch before the redlining, or after? (Probably a stupid question)

[Obscure_Trash]

Just wondering because i want to practice spriting for my dragon requests... Do I resize the sketch before the redlining, or after? (Probably a stupid question)

Resize first. Otherwise when you resize your sprite will come out blurry and you'll have to re-do it anyway. =p

[Stellaluna22]

This is my very first sprite!

 

Its a Mossy Log Amphithere, one of my dragon suggestions. Stage 1 hatchie.

 

The red thing on its head is an ear and the thing on its tail is a leaf bud.

 

Drawn using Pixly on my Samsung S5 phone. I don't have access to a computer.

 

[Eclipseheart]

Been working on some things and I need critic eyes~

 

Also, these are the first things I've ever sprited ^^;

[Stellaluna22]

Been working on some things and I need critic eyes~

 

Also, these are the first things I've ever sprited ^^;

Those look amazing for first try!

 

However, on the first egg, the lightest part of the shine seems to be a little bit odd as it transitions into darker colours. Its a little bit, like, bit too much of a contrast?

[Eclipseheart]

This is my very first sprite!

 

Its a Mossy Log Amphithere, one of my dragon suggestions. Stage 1 hatchie.

 

The red thing on its head is an ear and the thing on its tail is a leaf bud.

 

Drawn using Pixly on my Samsung S5 phone. I don't have access to a computer.

 

I like the concept and it's a very good sprite, great job!, but something about the hatchling is throwing me off? Perhaps it's just a little big?

[Eclipseheart]

Those look amazing for first try!

 

However, on the first egg, the lightest part of the shine seems to be a little bit odd as it transitions into darker colours. Its a little bit, like, bit too much of a contrast?

The shine is too light, you think? o:

[Stellaluna22]

The shine is too light, you think? o:

I don't think its the shine. I think you perhaps need another colour between the lightest colour and the next colour. Ive taken drawing classes specifically about shading, and I think its a bit too...I don't know..contrasted?

 

And my sprite is a little longer than an average hatchie sprite since its an amphithere But thanks!

[Eclipseheart]

I don't think its the shine. I think you perhaps need another colour between the lightest colour and the next colour. Ive taken drawing classes specifically about shading, and I think its a bit too...I don't know..contrasted?

 

And my sprite is a little longer than an average hatchie sprite since its an amphithere But thanks!

No, I know, I watch your Mossy Long request, I like it ^^ I'm just saying in general, it's on the large side, and not longwise. Perhaps it would look just fine being filled and colored, to be honest.

 

I actually have many colors in between ^^' Perhaps if you leaned in close or zoomed in on it with your phone? If not, let me know, I'll still try and fix it. I copied and pasted though in between adding the cracking sequence.

[Stellaluna22]

Ah now I see *woops*

 

Its just from far it looks bright keep it up!

 

As for my sprite I'll try to make it smaller. I can't colour worth saving my life, though...*ulp*

[Eclipseheart]

Ah now I see *woops*

 

Its just from far it looks bright keep it up!

 

As for my sprite I'll try to make it smaller. I can't colour worth saving my life, though...*ulp*

I PMd you about coloring, thank you for the support on the eggs~ c: I'm thinking they'll be part of a concept of mine, perhaps not the coloring exactly ^^;

[Obscure_Trash]

This is my very first sprite!

 

Its a Mossy Log Amphithere, one of my dragon suggestions. Stage 1 hatchie.

 

The red thing on its head is an ear and the thing on its tail is a leaf bud.

 

Drawn using Pixly on my Samsung S5 phone. I don't have access to a computer.

 

Hatchies are typically 40 x 40 at biggest. Even the Colossi are 45 x 45. Yours is 60 x 40. I would definitely make this guy smaller.

 

The actual lines look great, though. I'm super impressed you did this on your phone!

[Stellaluna22]

Thank you guys :3

 

Well, I'm going to move away from trying more difficult things like dragons and move to something more simple...

 

...such as this first-time-I've-ever-shaded potato sprite.

 

 

[TehUltimateMage]

Thank you guys :3

 

Well, I'm going to move away from trying more difficult things like dragons and move to something more simple...

 

...such as this first-time-I've-ever-shaded potato sprite.

 

potato!

 

My only critiques would be that you can't really see the shading unless you look hard enough. Try increasing the contrast between your lightest shade and your darkest shade, while keeping in mind the grainy, spuddy texture of a potato:

 

 

I whipped up a quick example to show what I mean. Amazing how a few dark pixels can do! The random dark and light flecks convey the bumpy surface of the potato. I've also made the outline two colors to help it blend better.

 

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Also, save your sprites as a PNG. JPG file format wrecks sprites and makes the colors all funky (it's not really noticeable on your potato, but when I zoom in I see those JPG compression artefacts -- compare your posted picture with your raw sprite file).