awawadaman

[awawadaman]

It's the first time I've done this kind of drawings but I really liked the result. @e-vay

[awawadaman]

Speed Highway

[awawadaman]

OF COURSE! It's the same report they ask me for at the council.

[awawadaman]

Blaze The cat in my AU

[awawadaman]

("Sonic") Hands Study

I get asked a lot how I draw hands, and particularly how I draw hands in the "Sonic" style. Let me preface by saying I am mostly self-taught, so please do your research and study what techniques work best for you. The following demonstration is what I personally use to help me draw hands in general and–more specifically–how I draw “Sonic” hands. This is less of a tutorial and more of a series of observations.

*And remember, there are always exceptions to the rules!*

I personally believe before you can go about stylizing hands, you have to understand how to draw hands in the first place. Afterall, I think you have to know the rules before you can best bend/break them. Think about super stylized hands in animation like the characters from Atlantis or Hercules. Even though these hands are unlike what we see in real life, they still look and feel ‘natural’ because the artists understand how hands function and are able to bend the rules while still demonstrating proper anatomy. 

Sources: [x] [x]

I highly recommend studying the anatomy of a hand. It’s educational and fascinating! There are plenty of free resources online!

I understand many people find hands intimidating to draw, but the best way to learn how to draw anything is by breaking it down into shapes. Everything is made up of shapes.

3 is the magic number

In simple terms, our hands can be seen in patterns of 3. Your palm can be broken into 3 segments that can move semi-independently. Your fingers are composed of 3 segments each (proximal, middle, distal). There are 3 phalangeal joints per finger. The average shape a person’s fingertips make when aligned is a triangle (a 3-sided shape), with the middle finger being the highest most point of the triangle and the other fingers cascading down (there are exceptions to this rule). Keeping the number 3 in mind will help you remember how hands/fingers articulate. 

Everything is connected

Even though elements of your hand can move somewhat independently, every movement influences the other segments of the hand. Notice when you put one finger down how (most likely) at least one other finger moves slightly? Or notice how you can only do certain gestures with the assistance of your other fingers or sections of your palm? Keeping in mind how segments of the hand affect the others will help make your drawings feel more organic and less stiff.

I usually start with the palm (or back of the hand) first and that determines where everything else falls into place.

Once you grasp how hands work, that’s when I believe you can determine how stylized you want to get. There is a very large range of drawings hands from super realistic to very simplistic.

If you’re wanting to emulate a certain style, you have to study it and learn how it works.

"Sonic" hands

As far as Sonic hands go, it depends on which version you’re best hoping to emulate. Notice how the styles vary even throughout the franchise?

In the 3D video games, Sonic characters tend to have what I classify as more ‘cartoon-y’ hands while in illustrated media, it often leans more towards realism. (Note I said ‘leans towards,’ not full realism). How and why is that?

Let’s break it down into shapes again, Sonic Style! Pt 1

In many of the 3D rendered media, the characters’ fingers are made of more round shapes. The models also don’t conform to realistic proportions. The tips of the fingers are usually larger than the segments closer to the palms (the middle and proximal phalanges), and this helps to deviate them from a more realistic look. Speaking of proportions, the hands overall tend to be disproportionately larger than the rest of the characters’ bodies. This also makes it feel more like a cartoon, even without resorting to a super simplified, 3-fingered hand like Mickey Mouse or Bob Belcher.

Breaking down shapes, Sonic Style! pt 2

Illustrated samples vary depending on the artist/studio, but I’ve noticed that in general, illustrated Sonic characters’ hands tend to have more square/rectangular shapes. The phalanx proportions often resemble what we see in real life, with the fingertips tapering down in size compared to the segments closest to the palm. The overall size of the hands in proportion to the body are still larger than that of real humans, but they tend to be closer in proportion compared to their 3D counterparts. This is why in illustrations, the characters are more capable of crossing their arms, interlacing their fingers, or making other natural hand gestures.

Also, notice in these examples, there’s more detail to the hands than what you’d find on a Looney Tunes character? There are often folds in the material of the gloves, some knuckle definition present, more natural bends to the fingers. However, the hands are almost never as detailed as that of say, a Dragon Ball character where you’re seeing muscle tendons, veins, definition of each finger segment, finger nails, etc.

Sources: Dragon Ball Z, The Looney Tunes Show

MY STYLE

With all that in mind, I happen to find the sweet spot for the Sonic character style right in this range:

Everyone has their own preferences and it’s up to you to decide what you like best, but this is what I prefer. 

MY STYLE - Cont’d

I use a blend of the two previous Sonic styles I mentioned, Cartoon-Round + SemiRealistic-Square. I like to go with a more “Squoval” shape (rounded squares) to the fingers. I try to keep the fingers in a naturally proportionate scale with the ends tapering down in size, but the overall size of the hands are still bigger than what you’d see in real life. I like to add a bit more detail when warranted, but I personally rarely resort to definition in the tendons/veins or complex wrinkles in the bends of the fingers (unless it suits a specific character or emotion). 

Like I said, this is less of a tutorial and more a series of observations. But perhaps looking at hands in the way that I do might help you with your own drawings! You should absolutely do your own studies to find what works best for you. But I hope you found this helpful in some way!

[awawadaman]

[awawadaman]

Sonic vs Scourge | AU Sonic universe future

[awawadaman]

Knuxouge kid

Aqua The bat

Ruby The echidna

[awawadaman]

Finally got around to designing Cream as she would appear in my AU.

My thinking is that although Cream will always be polite and well-mannered, she definitely becomes more assertive and bold later in life. I like to think that Cream actually likes rock and other “edgy/dark” stuff, but because she was raised to be so polite and quiet and respectful, she kind of represses that side of her for fear of upsetting her mom (though I do believe Vanilla would love her all the same, of course!) I see Cream as the type who always assumes she’s in trouble if she does something even remotely taboo and gets super riddled with guilt ((I wouldn’t know what that’s like hahahaaa)))

When she leaves home and pursues her humanitarian work, that’s when she starts to be a bit more rebellious and do some of the things she’s been wanting to do, like get her ears pierced or get a tattoo. She hides those things at first but later in life she stops masking that side of herself and realizes she had nothing to worry about in the first place.

I always found it interesting how Cream is this super polite, sweet little kid yet she’s drawn to adventure and danger and even befriends people who might usually be considered “baddies,” so I wanted to expand on that. She’s still one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet, but she’s got a little edge to her, too 😉 Her world travels, her charity work and her dark academia aesthetic are just some of the many reasons Aurora looks up to her!

[awawadaman]

I know you'll tell me, "but Tails has no strength", yes I know, and that's something I want to break in my AU, I want Tails to surpass the limits of strength here, to compete with Knuckles' physical strength, or simply to have superhuman strength, I guess I really liked the idea that Tails doesn't depend on Sonic to protect himself.

[awawadaman]

SONTAILS KID

[awawadaman]

burp

[awawadaman]

KHANALLY FANKID

[awawadaman]

BARBIE

This is the first time I have published on this platform, I hope you like my content.