Lesson 4: Applying Construction to Insects and Arachnids
House Fly Demo
This demo is a little older, having been published in August 2016. As such, while I have decided that there is still something of value here, any techniques or approaches outlined in demonstrations not flagged with this message should be considered to take precedence over what is covered here. This is a natural part of Drawabox being an evolving, growing resource.
With your major forms laid out, you next want to add in some legs. In the reference image, we can't see where the legs attach to the body, so with some additional research and a bit of critical thinking, you'll find that they connect underneath the thorax like every other insect and arachnid we've dealt with today. Remember that insects have three pairs of legs, and pay special attention to how they spread out from the body. The front pair always faces forwards, but the other pairs tend to point more towards the back.
When drawing wings, don't just tack them on thoughtlessly. Consider how they attach to the body. The more accurately and thoughtfully you deal with these problems of connectivity, the more believable and solid your drawing will appear at the end.
Think of every object in existence as series of problems, whose design was tailored (be it through craftsmanship, evolution or whatever else) to solve these problems. In this case, how do we attach these wings to this little bastard so he can fly around and buzz in everyone's faces while they're trying to work.
Same as all of the other demos - add a quick cast shadow that roughly matches the object and throw in some appropriate ground details. In this case, I was actually thinking about little bits of human hair and skin, but it looks a lot more like grass and dirt. That's definitely something to keep in mind - if that reads as grass, it tells the viewer that this fly is massive and that they should run away immediately. Or that they should try to saddle it and use it as a steed... Either way, not what I was after.
Sakura Pigma Microns
A lot of my students use these. The last time I used them was when I was in high school, and at the time I felt that they dried out pretty quickly, though I may have simply been mishandling them. As with all pens, make sure you're capping them when they're not in use, and try not to apply too much pressure. You really only need to be touching the page, not mashing your pen into it.
In terms of line weight, the sizes are pretty weird. 08 corresponds to 0.5mm, which is what I recommend for the drawabox lessons, whereas 05 corresponds to 0.45mm, which is pretty close and can also be used.