So, I just exported this image and I had many things to reflect on. To simplify this process, I would use the format used by James Clear for his Annual Review but I will apply it to the experience of making this artwork.

So, the format will go like this.

1. What went well with this art?
2. What didn’t go so well with this art?
3. What did I learn?

Without further ado let us begin.

1. What went well with this art?

SHAPE. I thought that the lighthouse of picture was pretty good to be honest. I had a lot of fun making the thing and I tried experimenting on the shapes a lot. I used a reference from drawings and real life. I was really trying my best not to copy art from others only using them as reference.

CYLINDERS. I have  found a great technique for making cylinders and to be honest, that was really fun.

SETTING. I was also proud of the overall setting of the work. I liked the premised that it gave. A lighthouse at night where it guided sailors and such. I liked that it was over a cliff and overseeing the beach and the sea.

SHADING. I like the shading of the lighthouse. Though it’s not perfect, I think I pretty good job of sticking to the fundamentals.

TEXTURE. I also liked the texturing of the ground, but I think it’s cartoony for my liking. However, I still liked the effect that I did. I did like the moon however I didn’t finished it.

• What went wrong with this Art?

Well from the first observation, the artwork wasn’t finished. There were no finishing details and such.

DEADLINE. I always set up a deadline for about week and I made an agreement to myself that I would publish the artwork within the deadline no matter what. Yes, that includes whether the artwork was finished or not.

The premise of this idea is to not be fixated on perfectionism thus not allowing me to continue this work. Though it was sad, I think it was still better to post it anyway.

For my experience, the drawing part was easier than the coloring part. The coloring part will take more time than the actual drawing. I think that it’s better to set deadlines for the drawing and coloring part with making coloring the priority. (Possible Solution: 3 Days for Drawing and 4 Days for Coloring.)

COLORS. I tried using many colors and that was very tiring. The problem with it is that I was making my own palette all the time. Which was more time consuming and inaccurate. So, I will now try limiting the color. I think that it’s best to have a pre-existing palette limited to 5-8 colors for now.

SHADING. Although I feel good about the fundamentals of shading. I still felt that the shades were not natural at all. Do we even need highlights at the night? That I do not now. I will look for tutorials on how to shade more and practice this more.

• What did I learn?

COLORS. I will now try to limit my Colors to 5 to 8. I was very overwhelmed on the amount of colors that I was trying to accomplish per layer. I tried this for the sea, this for the lighthouse, this for the ground etc. This was taking the most out of my time than the actual coloring itself.

DEADLINE. I must allocate more time to Coloring than Drawing itself. If I have a 7-day Deadline, then 3 Days for Drawing and 4 Days for Coloring. I think that having a select color palette before the drawing or conceptualizing an art is important.

CYLINDERS and CURVES. I think following the ‘5432112345’ rules for making curves is actually helpful. I learned this from a YouTube video and I will learn from that guy again and give him proper credit after my next artwork.

FUN. I really had fun making this piece especially the lighthouse. The making of the lighthouse was when I was enjoying the piece even more. I was surprised that i was able to make something like that. I was really happy that day and I don’t know why.

Final Note

Okay, so for the final note. I really need to schedule a part of my day to make Pixel Art. If I want to be good at these things, then I must commit myself on making this art every day. I actually making these things; however I think that I don’t prioritize it enough and let social media take my time away.

Anyways, I look forward to the next Artwork. I don’t know if it will be good or it will be shit. But one thing is for sure, I will learn a lot of things from now on.