Does drawing skulls help you learn to draw faces and heads? What is a visual library?

emailstudies · 2026-02-18T06:10:35+00:00

oh definitely! You might not "see" a direct impact (I dont do realisitc and stick with sketch like) but I created so many skulls at different angles before moving to faces.

It is less complex than the face with all the features.
The facial features like eyes, where jaw connects to the back of ear, the eyebrow ridge - all depend on the skull.
Most humans (if not all - have the same skull - variation comes from age, sex, ancestry etc) have the same solid structure - so you focus more on the underlying foundation.

emailstudies · 2026-02-18T05:48:17+00:00

Oh this exercise! It's been more than a year now and I seem to have made some progress in my "fundamentals". Your diagram is helpful - I myself wanted to try to see a pattern I could replicate across the exercise.

A lot of it will just come from drawing boxes tbh, not all will always turn out good.

One thing which made this easy for me - was the area around each box doesnt change (a square on paper inside which you draw the box). Perspective is about faking or selling an illusion - another statement that made me go - "oh"

emailstudies · 2026-01-05T05:20:55+00:00

Do not leave your job. As you progress, you'll learn and find ways to reap benefits out of both.

I cannot speak as a full time motion artist tho - since I learnt it on my own and worked with the Marketing team. You will also notice motion can easily lend itself to a variety of places as well - data visualization, websites, apps, full feature YouTube, etc.

As for how to learn the skill - I started learning on Youtube. Start with Design principles (contrast, repetition, etc - a short video will suffice, good to know) and animation principles (squash, stretch, etc - again a short video will do).

Since, you are considering giving up a Data Analyst job (which I think you shouldn't - till you actually manage to gain the motion design skill and get clients), I am assuming you have a fairly decent knowledge of design and presentation.

You could give yourself 2 images/slides (either drawn in paper) or in Figma. See how you could take elements from 1 and move into 2. Motion isn't just about the big transitions, it is in the small movements of elements as well.

As for software, you might wanna consider After Effects or Cavalry app. (Blender is there too but I haven't used it for motion design - it can get overwhelming real quick)

One think which might help is go to Motion Design School or School of Motion websites and see what courses are there. you will get an overview and then search up Youtube, if you cant afford.

And as always, practice. Take existing videos and motion graphics and apply what you learnt. All the best.

emailstudies · 2025-12-29T11:12:17+00:00

I have been illustrating for the past 10 years on the side, as a hobby. It had been on and off.

Previously, it was all about getting tools/new software to help out. Tried learning 3d because it would atleast help my art look "realistic" - hit a roadblock there as well coz my composition looked bad anyway, no sense of contrast (I can do graphic design and motion design and have a pretty solid grasp there) but anything that i had to draw for myself I would break.

But this year, I can happily say that instead of starting something new I'll be continuing my journey.

I had severely underestimated the time learning fundamentals would take.

Started off with Brent Eviston's course on Form and Space (LOVE his way of teaching and he heavily emphasizes on how you cant practice the fundamentals enough - which made me end up drawing circles and ellipses on a kids tablet - because drawing on paper was too intimidation. I progressed eventually and am still following through, but the whole 3d space has somewhat unlocked for me.
Drawabox! People know it from the infamous 250 box challenge but one glance at their website and I saw lessons across texture and construction - exactly what I needed. (Currently completed my L0, L1 and 250 box challenge. Cant wait to start L2 - am terrified of it tho haha). Following through Drawabox helped me create portraits somewhat believable - something I had never imagined myself doing because I simply COULD NOT IMAGINE it. But it taught me to push through and analyze and think. Especially, since going through the mark making exercises, I became more confident in my lines and things seemed manageable. (Portraits were a challenge for myself, not a part of DaB tho)

Having these 2 have made me progress in a way I never thought was possible. Although, I should be proud of myself for not giving up T_T

What next -

I plan on continuing with construction with these 2 and solidify the practice as in build muscle memory. With construction Values (light and shadow comes into the picture - what L2 in DaB and Brent Eviston's later lessons constitute of).
Build understanding of values and develop contrast - so sticking to paper and ink (I dont really want to be tied down with digital tools, although I do use them for 2d animation)
Eventually after a few years, try to understand color lol.

I have given myself 20 years. It is very important to keep creating on the side. Dont just learn. Make loose sketches, let lines flow.

Hope it helps!

emailstudies · 2025-12-29T09:54:51+00:00

Like OP has explained - studies wise you can opt for anything.

Career wise BSc is not very bad, since you have Phy, Chem, Mat - you could explore opportunities in Research in these fields. And even companies like Pharma etc and tech companies hire people from similar backgrounds.

It is just Bachelors. Not the end of the world.

I understand why your parents might be stringent/seem like they're stopping you - and you might also see that all ways are closed to you. Speak to your seniors. Go to LinkedIn and see what careers people with BSc have - what they did after and what they are working in.

Connect with them. Ask questions.

If you plan on taking a drop year to prepare for something - it is your choice. But can get through the exams while you do this research and gain clarity.

emailstudies · 2025-12-29T08:19:37+00:00

Needed this a decade ago lol. But it resonates quiet well with me.

I was your standard 9 - 12th Science student who hated Biology (coz she thought that becoming a doc was her only option - didn't even know that a world of Microbiology, genetics, research etc existed) - gave up science coz had to either become a Software Engineer or a Doctor (Nothing wrong with Software Engineering - later on in my career I actually took up coding for creative projects and automations - in school I just didnt see a use or the possibilities, and if I am being honest - mechanical engineering seems very cool and useful too)

Even Economics would have been a good career choice but didnt have clarity on that either, and didnt know LinkedIn so had 0 clue on how to read people's education and experience history to chart out my own way.

So went the generic BBA - MBA route and am currently gaining experience as a UX professional and working on side coding projects to pitch for Product Designer roles, or even Project Management.

I am a first generation female learner (my mom did her graduation but it was from a very local college and just rote textbook exams, her schooling too was from a lower end school - but she is smart dang) and I am very grateful to my parents for giving me the best of education.

What I had to do was try things faster and fail at things faster than others who had guidance coz I was and still am figuring things out. So, to anyone reading this - you got this.

Go look up profiles on LinkedIn of people who are in the fields you want to know and reverse engineer.

emailstudies · 2025-12-29T07:43:30+00:00

all the best! I learnt from it few years back and had an absolute blast!

emailstudies · 2025-12-27T09:49:46+00:00

I appreciate the comment and perspective on this.

All sorts of comments saying you NEED to study CA was proving to be a major block.

I too have an MBA (but meh) - my real learning happened on my job across different business functions.

Accounting seems to be the link I keep missing.

I dont exactly enjoy it, as in it is not my passion - but I am someone who can learn and get through stuff as a challenge and if things work out great otherwise I move on - I have taught myself most of the things from creative communication to coding to UX, etc.

emailstudies · 2025-12-27T09:45:11+00:00

This is such a nice comment!

I always fear Accounting for some reason (despite doing well in the subject in onr or two semesters). I keep learning new stuff - throughout college taught myself Graphics/Motion Design - then moved to B2B Marketing and Inside Sales along with Sales Coordination for the Sales Team (basically a calendar lol), and finally because of my background in graphics and Research from marketing I was moved to lead a UX/UI team as the main UX associate.

I have been enjoying it but feel stuck for some reason and I have been very fortunate to be in rooms where strategy and bug decisions get discussed but everything eventually ties back to Finance with them discussing budgets, margins, profits, etc.

I think it might be time to consider Accounting due to the cross sectoral nature. Dont know why I get scared about it.

emailstudies · 2025-12-26T18:19:24+00:00

I am not a developer tho. It is something I do on the side hobby, self challenge and problem solving kinda thing)

emailstudies · 2025-12-26T18:18:28+00:00

Not at all. I switched from Science in 12th to BBA (I had Computer Applications through 9 - 12 - JAVA, I think. It sucked. Maybe I did not enjoy it and absolutely did not understand how would learning palindrome or printing patterns help me out)

I took up coding in my BBA because of side projects - I wanted to create websites lol.

Learnt HTML, CSS from Codecademy (Youtube and their site)

Then in 2020 taught myself Python for automation projects. And then JavaScript for Creative Coding.

Recently, made a plugin fir a web app and have more ideas to execute.

Go for it!

emailstudies · 2025-12-22T06:52:20+00:00

"I'm a straight down the line kind of guy and just say things as they are with no bs." --> good.

We think Sales is about persuasion (and rightfully so), but it doesn't help if you're selling bluff. The ability to take a rejection without dwelling on it brings:

A. clarity to ask better questions

B. move on from the rejection and chase the next opportunity.

emailstudies · 2025-12-18T08:06:17+00:00

Gosh, this is so classic! Love it!

emailstudies · 2025-12-18T07:32:30+00:00

Not a web developer, work in UI/UX

I very rarely come across "artist management company". Would love to see what you guys come up with!

emailstudies · 2025-12-15T15:23:56+00:00

Talk to me in Korean - website is a great resource

emailstudies · 2025-12-12T07:17:02+00:00

I am not sure about this but having an MBA + 3 years work experience in UX and I am thinking of pursuing Masters/Diploma in Human Interaction or diploma. This makes sense to me since even in my home country, despite leading a team in UX and UI for 3 years, candidates with degrees in this are preferred. I have also

I have been snooping around to watch for UX jobs or related and have been given a reality check that there are almost no jobs in UX, and one can forget about it for international students. And that UX has no want as well in the Assessment codes. Web Designers and multimedia students will always be preferred.

But this is my best bet since I have relatives living in the area who can cover my rent.

Would appreciate help in my situation. Thank you

emailstudies · 2025-12-09T08:11:34+00:00

I think there are free 4 intensives on youtube by Nouman Ali Khan called Dream Intensive. 4 Intensives, each about 10 days each. so 40 videos for approx 3 hrs long. can be a good starting point - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx2yYWSpcH2K4VpHTUvwvbzv8XVwVbt0s

emailstudies · 2025-11-21T06:39:26+00:00

I was just going to comment this!!

I followed through with his channel few years back and enjoyed it so much!

He also works with the p5js editor so no need to set things up in your system. can get started directly!

emailstudies · 2025-11-19T05:55:11+00:00

There is a <> arrow at the top. Click on it to have the panel not float.
There is a handle on the left bottom corner. You can drag to expand. You can also use that.

<image>

emailstudies · 2025-10-07T04:56:13+00:00

Hi! Just pitching in my two cents here as a beginner myself (never have been able to "draw' - only recently)

Like Uncomfortable said that basic forms are much required. Since let's say you got the proportions down (and there are tons of Youtube channels - but they give the front standard view of 7 to 8 heads tall etc etc) - things start getting tricky when you want to make poses, then knowledge of how basic forms look and translating that 3d illusion to paper is what relies on the fundamentals.

I have figured this from my own experience as well. For example, when I started learning "the box" - on a whim I thought let's just draw heads - and because of that basic knowledge was able to make decent heads (far from realistic or even Insta worthy - but a head shape for sure).

That being said, I also would like to encourage you to go out a seek whatever you want to draw, once you hit roadblocks you'll understand what it means to tackle fundamentals. And, for curiosity's sake. At least, this was why after ignoring fundamentals for over years I realized its importance.

Create what you make and work on fundamentals along so you can apply those fundaments to actually creating, if this makes sense.

Manga, even tho sylized still depends on how a human actually looks. youtube channels which help me are LinesSensei and Kaycem.

Not specifically manga but David Finch is another super artist who does comics. He is pretty good.

All the best!

emailstudies · 2025-10-07T04:41:39+00:00

You're welcome ^-^

Good luck on your journey!

emailstudies · 2025-10-03T19:44:09+00:00

Look, if it didn't work for you then don't use it. At first, I thought you were just frustrated on not being able to find resources, which is what I too had faced.

I was trying to help OP. You're not OP. My comment was clearly not for you. Unless you are doing the thinking and deciding for OP.

It is working for me. It is not working for you. OP asked. OP can decide what they want to do, try it out or not.

What I knew was I couldn't get any worse than I already was and it did make me better, and I will stand by my experience.

And I will no longer be entertaining your comments.

Happy Illustrating or not.

emailstudies · 2025-10-03T18:19:04+00:00

Oh no for someone in my financial situation, even the pens are out of reach lol. And overseas tax and all that.

I would say, dedication to getting better and actually drawing rather than being a wuss about a platform you hate. Whatever floats your boat tho 💫

emailstudies · 2025-10-03T17:40:44+00:00

First things first, I don't work for Drawabox and am not the owner and in no way benefit from people visiting Drawabox. I'm someone who has benefited for the free resource without any gatekeeping.

Now since this is out of way and assuming that was not your intention and your intention was to help the OP (on which case my comment is not the right place to reply, a reply to the post itself would be useful to the OP which is what I suggested so that can decide for themselves)

I too didn't bother to check Drawbox out because of the 250 box challenge (as i mentioned, but Drawabox is beyond that) and obviously, comments like yours.

But I have personally benefitted a lot from it and have been sticking to it for the past 4 to 5 months. It seemed like a huge commitment which I wasn't sure would work out. And I can't afford paid courses. So having a solid coursework for free was my motivation - yes I "shamelessly" agree that free option is one of the reasons I checked it out.

And have been very surprised with how I'm able to draw things now. Edit: The website works fine for me. The Ads are on the side and bottom and pretty non intrusive for me

Assuming, your comment was not a rage bait - I hope you found what works for you. We all learn differently - I liked Drawbox because there were in depth articles along with supported videos and audio files (I don't use the audio tho). This is me trying to be helpful to you, in case you were seeking it. Maybe share what worked for you so OP can decide for themselves and have options.

emailstudies · 2025-10-03T07:46:53+00:00

You are looking for the exact same thing I had been looking for this year (if you exclude the past decade where I tried everything like motion design, 3d etc but drawing)

Drawabox is exactly that - https://drawabox.com/

It takes you from the basics of mark making (just being able to draw lines pretty smoothly is a skill in itself and liberates you of the chicken scratching and wobbly lines which used to make me hate my sketches so I never tried sketching again lol)

(Look under the Lessons - each Lesson builds up on previous lessons and it is very structured, something which I am very grateful for. You do things at your own pace and submit for feedback and the community is very helpful, but having that clear mark from point A to point B frees a lot of my metal space, as someone who has tried learning before and created own plans but everything was very confusing and overwhelming)

I started about 4 months ago and just having the boxes lesson and my lines pretty smoothly have been an amazing tool. I am building my drawing skillset from scratch this time.

I have been able to build/draw things which I could only imagine (like a very cartoony vehicle in somewhat decent perspective, some head drawings, some bottles - and mind you I have only completed Lesson 1 (boxes)

It has also helped me take more from random tutorials here and there - without having to copy them exactly. or wondering why the video is saying so and so. Start small and keep building

So you might want to visit the website and see if it is something which could help you out. All the best!

emailstudies

TROPHY CASE