So, hello! A bit about me: I am originally a digital doll-er but have recently been more interested in pixel art techniques. I now come to PJ for some critique :D

This here is a request for Anne Boleyn from a friend who watches a lot of 'The Tudors'. She requested a doll of Anne Boleyn in her undergarments. The face is loosely based on the actress on the show, Natalie Dormer.

Progress and References:


non-animated:


I was originally going to post here once I finished shading in grayscale but I was feeling bold and went ahead with the colours. So here's my best shot, BUT, in addition to the moonlight, I want to make the impression that there's a candle or lamp somewhere on the left outside of the frame but am unsure as to how. I tried making the highlights on that side to have a warmer hue but It still doesn't look like candle light :/

The person who requested this has specifically asked for 'Tudor Windows' which are windows made of glass and overlapping bars. I'm now trying to figure out how to show the shadows of the windows on the subject. I could only find one relevent reference (top right hand corner) but I still don't understand the angles and how to transfer that on to a non-flat subject. Any suggestions?


If there's anything else I'm doing wrong and could improve on, please feel free to point it out!

You haven't really hit the right angles according to the ref. It makes yours look very stiff instead of actively moving. The head should be titled to our right, her legs should be spread out more, more emphasis on the angle of the hip, and the arm should be farther away from her body.

First of all, thanks for all the feedback!!

I tried to incorporate everything in and here's what I got so far:



With respect to the perspective and the angles, I lessened the angle of the window. Legs and arms are farther apart as per King's advice and the right foot (hers) was lowered to be more parallel with the window.

I made it less illuminated and tried the candlelight using a shade from the skin and i tried to keep it as faint as I can. Also, added in the shadows from the window bars.

I see what you mean about the tranny-face and yes, that's probably a digital doll thing. I tried a couple things with the face. Initially I made the nose slimmer which was alright. I also tried making it look more like the bellydancer reference as per King's advice. I don't think I did it right because she looked terrrrible and homely.I settled on this picture as a reference of the actress's face. Hopefully it looks close enough to her?

The face, and with it the hair, looks a lot better for the edits. The lighting is also much nicer for it, she looks less like she is glowing now. I especially like the window-bar shadows you put in.

I don't really have any advice, this is a bit beyond my level. Maybe take a look at the corset; It could use some texture and wrinkles to better match with the skirt.

Other than that, it's looking nice!