What are good bases for drawing?

-I draw Warriors (cats), wild cats and dogs, wolves, anthropomorphic animals, and hoomans. (Lulz) I have issues with my art. For example, the head can be a bit oddly shaped on the cats or the legs are too short on the wolves or the humans look...stupid. I know the details and anatomy fairly well by now, but what are good bases to start with? By the way, I have a very specific style, where everything is unrealistically exaggerated. For example, the cats and wolves have legs about as long as their spine, not counting the tail; the tail is almost thicker than the animal itself (they also have thin bodies). They also have large ears and small muzzles, but nonetheless look realistic. The only thing I draw with eyes that are vaguely manga are people. And...according to my step dad, it's a lot like my cousin/friend's art style: dark. I, personally, don't think it's all that dark, but hey, that's just me. :3



A BEST ANSWER WILL BE CHOSEN. No exceptions unless the power goes out or some reasonable excuse like that. But I'll chose one AFTER in that case.



Well...thanks for reading my whole ramble; you can answer now, unless you don't want that free ten points...i like your style :) i tend to drift towards the realistic, correct proportions, kind of drawings. especially horses :) start out with a sketch, my dad taught me that. like the huge ears, make them a lightly sketched Triangle or what ever shape they are, them draw in details like fur, veins and other details you like your ears to have. i don't think your style is dark either. its a little more . . . tim burton. ha, i know, but it seems correct. different and blown up proportions, but realistic in a different way.

as for bases, find inspirations. what happened this weekend? did you see something unique? did something on the news catch your eye? these are all things i look at. i draw animals and the every-so-often person, and it helps. or look at your computer, i tend to look up fairy tales and nature for some of my inspirations :) has something or someone inspired you? draw from that. there are SO many possibilities out there. stay true to what you draw, because someday it could be something your finances depend on! lol!

good luck and keep up the good work :)Hmm.. I'm not sure what you mean by bases, tbh, since you mentioned you know anatomy well by now. It would also help being able to see the art work. But the main thing to do is just practice, and study from live subjects, using photo references especially works. Just remember not to copy the reference, even visual tracing doesn't help you improve much, it's better to study a picture/living animal, to get a better grasp on anatomy (once again, even though you said you know it well) and even studying other artists' works. And remember that you should know the rules before you break them. Drawing sketches of realistic animals (not semi-realistic or stylized) really helps when you need to exaggerate those features. Just practice and study real subjects! I'm not sure if that's what you were looking for, but I hope it helps x3