Review: 21-Draw Character Design Course by Kenneth Anderson

Review: 21-Draw Grapheme Blueprint Grade by Kenneth Anderson

ReviewsDigital Painting Disclosure: This post may contain chapter links. That means if you buy something we get a modest commission at no extra price to yous(learn more than)

Graphic symbol pattern is a specialization in illustration used in everything from TV shows to video games. But information technology requires a far more circuitous process than simply drawing a cool looking character.

A character needs to be brought to life and given human qualities in order to appear disarming to an audience. And then every little detail needs to be advisedly considered in order to flesh out a lifelike persona.

Jobs in this expanse are highly sought later so it's a skillset worth learning too.

A professional approach is crucial in order to get an edge over the contest and break into the industry. That's where this new course comes into play.

Kenneth Anderson is the creator of the Graphic symbol Pattern course which is bachelor on the 21Draw platform, and he has freelanced for Disney and the BBC among other clients. He's got the groundwork and the chops to know what he'due south talking about.

And he'due south put together this course which promises to reveal the unabridged process he goes through as a working professional in the industry.

Check Out 21-Draw Character Design Course

In this review I will go through each stride of the class and give my feelings on whether information technology succeeds in its goal, plus my thoughts on whether the 4+ hours of video content is worth your time and difficult-earned cash.

So without further ado let'southward get started!

Character Blueprint: An Overview

The course is divided into 8 sections which intend to replicate the professional process of creating a grapheme from first to finish.

Tasks are given at the finish of each chapter which are voluntary, so you can follow the design process while creating their ain unique graphic symbol if you'd like to.

Or if you lot're like me you can just follow along and accept lots of notes, and so follow up with the practice lessons subsequently.

The videos vary greatly in length with the final half of the course making upwardly the bulk of the runtime.

Y'all commencement off with a realistic cursory and some information on how to arroyo the character inquiry aspect, then follow the process through all of its stages until you take completed the last grapheme.

Kenneth provides narration throughout while showing you lot his drawing process at 3x speed.

This gives him aplenty opportunity to explain each little design pick while providing insights on different aspects of the job.

I constitute the stride of the videos very comfortable to follow and was hands able to make out what was being done on screen without getting lost at whatsoever bespeak.

If information technology were any slower it may take dragged a footling so the speed was just correct in my stance. If y'all're make new it may go a teensy flake too fast, but this shouldn't be a problem since yous can always suspension and rewind.

At first I plant his tone of vocalization and delivery a piffling monotone to exist honest.

Just as the course progressed I soon warmed to his personality. Kenneth comes across as very down to globe and passionate about his craft, and the fact that he is not constantly cracking jokes for entertainment value means rewatching the videos should not exist difficult.

It's but straight down to business organization.

For me, seeing the working process of a successful character designer who has Disney on his resume held a lot of weight.

And although my way and taste differs from this drawing-based style, I was fascinated to see his creative procedure and the insights he had to offer from a working standpoint.

There is certainly a lot to learn hither for any creative who'south interested in amusement art working to a brief.

Course Layout

If we accept a closer wait at the layout it's like shooting fish in a barrel to encounter the full general outline.

The 8 sections are structured every bit follows:

• Introduction
• The Brief
• The Story
• Research
• Thumbnails
• Refining
• Refining Part two
• Terminal Image

As mentioned to a higher place, the bulk of the action comes in the latter one-half of the grade which is the where the actual drawing part comes in.

In reality you would spend a lot more time planning and researching but for the purposes of this course what I really want to run into is the creative person in his element: in this example it'd exist the nitty-gritty of designing itself.

There is a very short introduction before nosotros move directly onto a professional-style cursory, presumably mirroring the mode of brief Ken himself encounters in his working life.

But in this item case it is for an undead pirate grapheme for usage in a children'south TV show.

The story department so details ways in which we should flesh out the character and add together depth by imagining it as a real living entity.

In that location is a lot of thought that goes into this because the character you are creating may one 24-hour interval end up having its own action figure or plushie(if the series gets big plenty!). This is why every petty accessory needs to be aligned to the character's personality.

So moving forrard we are then given some useful tips in the Enquiry department on how Ken sources his visual materials and forms his mood boards, along with some possible pitfalls to avoid when formulating the character.

I won't give too much away but in that location is a lot of extremely skilful advice here.

And rightfully then, as this is the stage where you lot fan the initial flames of your inspiration.

The real action though begins in the Thumbnail section where we are treated to the fascinating procedure of developing a series of different character concepts that are constantly adapted, chopped upwards, re-sized, and shuffled effectually as ideas evolve.

This is where we get a sense of the way a professional freelance graphic symbol designer quickly iterates through thumbnails to detect exactly what they want.

Naught is left to mystery then information technology is easy to pick apart the writer's procedure and incorporate it into one'south ain methodology.

I imagine other professional person graphic symbol designers would too find this office useful to run into and compare how a boyfriend creative person goes about his work.

In the Refine section nosotros learn exactly what the name implies.

It shows the procedure of refining those initial ideas from the Thumbnail section by adding colour and details.

Initially there were about 6 concepts, only through a procedure of emptying I run across them narrowed downward to the designs that both look the coolest and fit all-time with the brief.

Two sections are dedicated to this part showing how the majority of the determination making comes here before we move into the Final Design section.

In this part of the form, all of the elements that have been whittled down are combined into ane graphic symbol.

It is only when all the crucial pattern decisions have long been finalized that you actually bring the character to life with painstaking attention to detail.

Technical Aspects

I found the HD video quality seamless on my retina screen.

The experience was not hampered in any way by unwanted glitches or artifacts and then yous should be able to see with clarity every unmarried pen stroke.

Sound is likewise pristine so you can hear every utterance from the creator who incidentally hails from Scotland.

Fortunately his emphasis was not strong so his Scottish brogue needn't exist an impediment to those who may otherwise struggle to take hold of strong dialects.

The work is washed entirely in Photoshop so if you want to follow along in exactly the same format, just exist aware of what software you're using.

Although the indicate of the video is not nearly how to apply the software and I can absolutely adapt a similar workflow in other software.

The dashboard is very minimalistic with the video prepare to the left of the main menu while the creator's profile and course description sit underneath.

Each video is naturally made bachelor for download so yous can piece of work offline.

There are no downloadable templates because the point of the course is not to copy the technique, but to produce your ain work based on the principles you lot are presented with.

And so basically what you run across with this grade is what you go.

And What Practise You Get From This Course?

21-Draw's Grapheme Blueprint course sets out to give yous a feel for professional quality character design.

And having sabbatum through the process I can happily report that information technology does indeed accomplish that.

Rather than get too preachy and condescending, it is presented in a pragmatic, constructive, and informative way.

You go to watch the entire procedure from formulation to finalization and yous're talked through each thought along the way.

You are introduced to the realities of working for a client and the level of detail and thought that goes into creating a graphic symbol.

You're also given fantastic tips on how to find inspiration and avert becoming too clichéd in our output.

Most importantly for me, Ken is a talented and defended craftsman and yous are provided with valuable insights into his process.

With this course you become to run into him play with ideas, composition, and colour without ever losing sight of the initial brief.

Pricing & Target Audience

This course on its own sells for $49.99.

Simply if yous go for the 21-Describe package yous can become all 6 courses on their platform all at one time, for life, for $99.99.

I tin can't comment on every grade but if the remainder are as detailed every bit this one then I'd argue information technology'south far better to drop the $100 to get everything they offer.

Equally with everything these days, in that location is a lot of gratis content available both online and on YouTube. If y'all are just dabbling in character design so perhaps gratis content is acceptable simply to become your feet wet.

But for those with serious aspirations I would certainly recommend investing in this course equally a useful tool to fix you for work as a grapheme designer.

It won't take you all the way but it is targeted towards people who really want to specialize in characters.

Putting into exercise the knowledge and techniques being taught here will prove priceless.

Concluding Thoughts

If you are specifically interested in character pattern or cartoon-style animation so I think this class will be exceptionally useful for you.

I can absolutely recommend it for hobbyists, and probable for career-oriented artists too.

I went into this review with a salubrious corporeality of skepticism and immediately started to nitpick at the slightly monotonous narration.

Merely adequately soon into the course it became clear that the information was being delivered with assurance and conviction, and that this was a talented character designer passing his thoughts and approach in a logical style.

He as well seems to brighten up at points when he gets into his groove.

I recall all levels of artists could do good in some fashion from diving into the grade.

From a beginner's point of view it is essential viewing(in my opinion).

Post-obit the advice within will provide a great foundation and give you lot good habits from the start.

I would say the same for those with a little more experience who want some tips on how to accept their character skills to the side by side level.

Even for more experienced designers, I think this class offers a chance to analyze the working process of one of a successful peer up close.

We all develop bad work habits or fall into a rut every so often. It's good to step dorsum and see what our contemporaries are up to now and so, but to glean new tips/tricks/habits and to analyze our own processes.

In terms of layout, the course is extremely uncomplicated and easy to follow.

The working process is very ordered and clean which really helps for anyone new who might exist overwhelmed by everything.

I personally did not partake in the tasks every bit much as a total pupil, but I can encounter how it would be fun and even more than engaging to do this many times over just for practice.

My concluding conclusion is this: if you are merely interested in learning how to be more professional person in your work menses as a professional illustrator/character artist and then it is worth nabbing this course(or even the full 21-Draw package).

It is definitely worth the fourth dimension and cost if yous are serious about making grapheme blueprint your vocation.

If you have a petty skill at this signal, along with perseverance, and if you carefully follow the steps in this video series you should be pumping out fully-fleshed professional quality characters in no fourth dimension.

Check Out 21-Depict Character Pattern

---

Author: John Battalgazi

John is a freelance illustrator/artist and educator. He used to dabble in photorealistic portraiture while these days y'all're more likely to find him honing his digital analogy techniques. Check out his work at https://world wide web.behance.net/Johnkun

---

casepappinging.blogspot.com

Source: https://conceptartempire.com/21-draw-character-course-review/

Share this post