I'm a huge fan of Dave Matthews and have wanted to draw him for some time. I was so afraid...now I know why! I have admired everyone's work here and decided it was time for me to post a WIP and hopefully you all can help! Please be gentle! I'm having a rather frustrating time with this!

Thank you for any comments and suggestions!!!

I think I may have posted this in the wrong place...if I did, Sorry about that!!!

This is a fine place to post.

I think it's coming along rather well! You did a good job with the likeness and you've not been shy about including some nice rich darks. I would say take your time and just keep doing what you're doing; this is going to be a nice piece. Be sure to capture the wide range of values on the shirt as it goes from bright light to shadow.

Thank you SO Much Ernest!! That is an issue I tend to have...either my values are too dark or too light, so I'm happy to hear I'm going in the right direction! And even happier you think the likeness is there!! Phew!!! I started on his shirt last night, I'll post more later. Thanks again for your help!!! ONWARD!

I also can see a likeness is there.....I understand about going to dark or too light .. its like we dont want to mess up after we put so much work into it .. what I have done in the past before I felt confident was set the drawing aside and practice drawing darker if I felt the portrait needed darkness...once I got a handle on that i went back to the drawing .. most times it worked for me .. good luck and keep up the great work .

Yeah, usually putting it down for awhile helps me. But I try not to keep it out of sight because sometimes I catch myself accidentally looking at it and that is when I begin to see things in a new light(or darkness) and I begin to see what I need to do next. But if you are on a roll don't put it down. I think you are on a good start. I also find that it is easier to look at it as a whole than just judging it when you have a portion of the drawing done. So, keep going, post some more, and don't get intimidated by the shirt because the folds and denim can be a bit intimidating.

Great ideas! Thank you so much! Never thought to put it down and just look at it...I do find myself getting on a roll sometimes! But this one I have been taking my time b/c its been harder than most i have done. Soooo we'll see. I have out of towners coming tomorrow...so hopefully I can get some done tonite before Dave goes on the shelf for a week! I really appreciate your help and encouragement you guys!

I think its comming out just fine, i agree with the others advice.
I too like to stop for a while and look at what I'm doing, sometimes I even leave it alone for a while (not to long, I'm always to ansouios to finish ) but after a while I can see what I have to do next
Good luck, and have fun with the visitors you're having over.

Thanks Kaly!

OK well here's my update...I tried more on the face, but decided to leave it be for now and started working on his jacket. So now is time for the whole thing to sit on the shelf while my friends are here! Thanks for your help and advice, and I'll be back when they leave!

Looking really great!
Add a bit of detail to his ears.

Thanks! Yes I noticed that last night...I hate doing ears! hehe But I see I need to fix those.

really looking good, and that shirt is comming out neet

Hello everyone! Man I had to dig to find this!! I've been so crazy busy this summer I only JUST had time to finish this. Well he's not totally finished, I'm working on a background and of course whatever corrections I need to make to Dave that you may suggest. I redid his lips over and over and over......ACK! That was hard. Thanks again for all your help and suggestions!!!

Sorry the photo is awful b/c I used my camera phone. My daughter is coming back today so I can start using her camera again! YAY!

Well no one commented so I just finished this! LOL I guess its OK, my daughter knew exactly who he was so I guess that's a plus. Thanks for all your help!

Its looks really good!! You are doing a fine job, remember, practice makes perfect! You will only get better. Great job.

Thank you Jimmer! That was my first attempt at Dave...so I'll def try him again at some point!