Sta.sh
Fourth part (if excluding facial proportions) in my tutorial series. Probably my favorite thing about drawing.
Dynamism
Dynamism is what makes the drawings so lively. Even a drawing without any real action should be dynamic. Dynamism makes your drawings look more natural and interesting to look at. It can also make up for many mistakes and even make them look intentional and part of the drawing.
Line of action is the manifestation of dynamism. It's a sort of invisible line that (I believe) everyone can see subconsciously. I find that there are two types of line of actions: primary and secondary line of actions.
The primary line of action, like the name suggests, is the most important thing in your character. It gives the backbone to the whole pose. That's why it's really important that it's found very early in your sketches. Without this line, your poses will end up plain, boring and unjustified. The secondary line of action is more like a compositional guideline. It helps to justify the positioning of the sub-elements of the drawing, such as clothing, accessories, hair, limbs and shapes.
Regardless the role of the action line, it's main purpose is to add feel of flow in your drawings. This flow is then perceived as dynamic drawing. A good line of action is long, strong and as continuous as possible. These are prerequisites for illustrating dynamic action.
Dynamism
Dynamism is what makes the drawings so lively. Even a drawing without any real action should be dynamic. Dynamism makes your drawings look more natural and interesting to look at. It can also make up for many mistakes and even make them look intentional and part of the drawing.
Line of action is the manifestation of dynamism. It's a sort of invisible line that (I believe) everyone can see subconsciously. I find that there are two types of line of actions: primary and secondary line of actions.
The primary line of action, like the name suggests, is the most important thing in your character. It gives the backbone to the whole pose. That's why it's really important that it's found very early in your sketches. Without this line, your poses will end up plain, boring and unjustified. The secondary line of action is more like a compositional guideline. It helps to justify the positioning of the sub-elements of the drawing, such as clothing, accessories, hair, limbs and shapes.
Regardless the role of the action line, it's main purpose is to add feel of flow in your drawings. This flow is then perceived as dynamic drawing. A good line of action is long, strong and as continuous as possible. These are prerequisites for illustrating dynamic action.
:origin()/pre10/9399/th/pre/i/2013/258/3/c/nsio_explains__know_the_rules_by_nsio-d6mfdka.png)
:origin()/pre10/f96c/th/pre/i/2013/257/5/0/nsio_explains__the_way_i_see_the_world_part_by_nsio-d6m8z1y.png)
:origin()/pre11/fc0e/th/pre/i/2014/117/c/3/nsio_explains__understanding_proportions_by_nsio-d7g6194.png)
:origin()/pre14/89f3/th/pre/i/2013/261/0/9/nsio_explains__simplifying_the_complexity_by_nsio-d6mu2na.png)
:origin()/pre00/1a94/th/pre/i/2014/152/6/e/nsio_explains__constructing_and_analysing_by_nsio-d76c736.png)
:origin()/pre08/3d01/th/pre/i/2013/306/b/c/nsio_explains__line_dynamics_by_nsio-d6sr9x8.png)
:origin()/pre13/0111/th/pre/f/2013/265/7/f/nsio_explains__facial_proportions_by_nsio-d6ndzxw.png)
:origin()/pre14/9210/th/pre/f/2014/016/5/c/nsio_explains__foreshortening_by_nsio-d72fy4j.png)
:origin()/pre12/c972/th/pre/i/2013/358/6/0/nsio_explains__perspective_by_nsio-d6z6826.png)
:origin()/pre05/5aed/th/pre/i/2014/299/5/3/nsio_explains__understanding_3d_by_nsio-d848jyx.png)
:origin()/pre06/69ca/th/pre/i/2014/151/2/1/nsio_body_practice1__muscles_of_the_inner_thigh_by_nsio-d7kgo17.png)
:origin()/pre08/d923/th/pre/i/2014/166/0/0/nsio_super_pov_practice___26_viewing_angles__by_nsio-d7mioh0.png)
:origin()/pre04/c30a/th/pre/i/2015/096/d/a/nsio_explains__introduction_to_guidelines_by_nsio-d8on52v.png)
:origin()/pre02/d7ba/th/pre/f/2011/249/4/9/understanding_anatomy__part_vi_by_bittersweetdisease-d492onf.jpg)
:origin()/pre09/9427/th/pre/f/2011/209/1/3/understanding_anatomy__part_ii_by_bittersweetdisease-d41nug1.jpg)
:origin()/pre02/ad54/th/pre/f/2010/090/e/7/how_to_draw_boobs_by_ragingtofu.png)
:origin()/pre12/61c7/th/pre/i/2012/182/9/8/tutorial__head_angles___perspective_by_rockinrobin-d55lt67.jpg)
:origin()/pre13/e51b/th/pre/i/2010/324/c/3/_anatomy_tutorial__by_odduckoasis-dgd312.jpg)
:origin()/pre14/1ec5/th/pre/f/2013/121/4/4/learn_manga__body_proportions_by_naschi-d63p75x.jpg)
:origin()/pre14/f439/th/pre/i/2013/132/0/d/tips_for_drawing_clothing_by_laauraf-d6538g1.png)
:origin()/pre03/a8fd/th/pre/i/2013/358/c/6/part_1__sketch_your_face_by_krissin-d6z7wlw.jpg)
:origin()/pre12/650e/th/pre/i/2014/036/e/8/female_body_tutorial__tips_and_mistakes_by_holyelfgirl-d752az8.jpg)
:origin()/pre02/ad0a/th/pre/f/2012/248/2/a/anatomy_part_1__form_and_function_by_shutterbones-d5dnvp5.jpg)
:origin()/pre04/4298/th/pre/i/2014/075/0/2/thigh_construction_tutorial_by_n3m0s1s-d7aj0qq.jpg)
:origin()/pre09/5934/th/pre/i/2013/012/5/d/general_body_tutorial_by_shark_bomb-d5rc5k0.jpg)
:origin()/pre11/3a67/th/pre/f/2013/273/4/2/421b59193955a988b8500acb6683f6f3-d6onqli.png)
:origin()/pre11/0cb4/th/pre/f/2011/214/d/2/understanding_anatomy__iii_by_bittersweetdisease-d42elq4.jpg)
:origin()/pre04/415e/th/pre/i/2013/292/d/a/nsio_explains__dynamism_by_nsio-d6r1663.png)
But, a question: Does this mean that you necessarily don't have to add a line of action before sketching or is it one that develops in your mind's eye as you sketch your drawing?
In practice, I usually draw the line of action when I'm unsure how to continue with the drawing. I may also draw line of action after finishing the sketch to check whether my drawing looks dynamic or not.
I just wanted to tell you I've been following your advice on the line of action, and it's working like magic! It's liek suddenly my drawings became a lot more vivid and natural, and not so stiff. Thanks a lot for making this, it helped me a lot
"Take care of your anatomy skills"
Your examples haven't anatomy problems. I'm only advertising that when we're starting playing with these lines, we use to lack on anatomy skills.
I was advising about when I was starting to use this.
I was to focused on dynamism that I'd let aside important anatomy fundaments.
And I think this is a very important part of the composition of a drawing, because it gives so much more "life". It's a point that a lot of artists should work. But I suck at proportions xDD
you really help me much~
Dynamism isn't just about adding a random line, It takes a lot of understanding about many other fields before dynamism becomes particularly useful and effective. It's such a concept that you will understand later on as you keep using it. I suggest reading Nsio explains: Advanced Dynamism tutorial as well.
(sorry for my english, when it has flaws... I´m german)
Like, do i stick a line of action in before I do anything else when I start a drawing, or does it just kind of happen if the person drawing is skilled enough?
I always know to keep dynamism in mind but I can never ever obtain it,even if i set the pose up to be dynamic. I dunno what Im doing wrong...
In addition to dynamism, you need to know how human body behaves, in order to draw a natural pose. For example, if you are standing, you likely put your whole weight on one leg while the other is only making sure that you keep your balance. This causes your pelvis to twist, so you need to adjust your upper torso in opposite direction to keep your shoulders in level. Due to these facts, your body forms subtle S curve, which has dynamic flow in it. If you were drawing such a pose, you then should strengthen the presence of this flow by posing the arms and head harmoniously. The pose could end up looking quite similar to Michelangelo's David (note how the direction he is looking at continues along the line of action).
That said, just keep drawing. Look for inspiring tutorials and analyse other peoples works, especially those you find appealing.
I know line of action also does not ALWAYS involve the head, but i find it hard to think of a pose where the LoA the head is not part of. Thats also a bit tricky, I think. Easy to see with the examples given but when drawing from the mind or observing any picture it's hard to really say for me if it should involve the head?
Basically, everything should follow some sort of dynamic idea, but it doesn't have to be the primary line of action. There are many other types of dynamism other than line of action, although it's the most prominent one. I usually just pose everything in a way that I find most appealing. I find dynamism appealing, so I follow it