Mandarin WIP - Negative Space and Proper Positioning

Gah, forgot to move that snot drip under that kid's nose. Well, I've done that by now, but still, you know, woulda liked to have that for this shot.

But yes, this is "Mandarin" with its improved composition. The previous version had its merits, as I suppose everything does, but one issue with it was that it read as flat. Here, it's remedied. The subjects are layered, creating the illusion of depth. The subjects aren't all fully in frame, making the setting seem more organic. And you can see how much overlap is actually going on. Kids had to be shuffled around as well. For proper balance, you know. Didn't want to have both kids facing away from us in the same vertical line. Also, I didn't want two kids with similar leg poses on the same plane or in the same line.

For my own visual confirmation, I highlighted the major areas of negative space in red. There's a fair amount of balance. There's something of a ring around the main subject, Gretchen, plus there's that kid looking at her. Honestly, I might be able to get away with scooting them in even further. This is fine for now, though.

Also, the pencils, the black lines, and the red squiggles - they look kinda cool.

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Snot in place. Victory has been realized.

These are the flat masks of "Mandarin." Now, with all the rugrats filled in and solid, you can see the depth in play.

I'm wondering something... I wonder if I should draw a kid in that big space that looks like an offset propeller. That would be more work, though not much. It would add a bit more depth and might draw our eyes closer to Gretchen, our main focus. I dunno. I'll think about it.

The blue and the red squiggles looks neato-burrito~

#babies #mandarin #lineart #cartoon #wip