you pic is very nice. your rendering of the shapes are perfect! i just love the hat...and the face is really well done. awesome on that, a lot of people have trouble trying to get noses.

what was this done in? it almost looks like pencil. either black colored pencil or more likely different gradients of graphite...ebony pencil?

some suggestions...darker shadows and lighter highlights will make it more 3-d. especially on the snake and it's corresponding arm. the snake is all the same color, and is the flattest thing on there. i would think that the snake would have the same highlights and shadows as your cowboy's face. also, it seems like there should be a much deeper shadow between the snake and the arm, so it shows that he is above it, rather than flat against it.

i suggest a white charcoal pencil. you can use it to brighten up and bring out the flesh in your cowboy's cheeks, the sparkle in his eyes...and the sheen on the snake. it's been one of my favorite tools.

other than that, i would smooth out the texture of the pencil strokes, but that's just my style. i really love your hat, and i would probably ruin it trying to do that. besides, i like how you used the vertical lines to show where the hat went vertically, and horizontal for the brim. very nice.

just my .02, obviously, if you like it the way it is, it IS your art, and nobody can tell you it's wrong. i just thought you were kinda looking for opinions.

keep up the good work!

amanda

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