Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
 very helpful October 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have never done any kind of drawing other than when I was 8yrs old for fun. I wanted to learn how to draw cartoons and this book was my first purchase on my road to drawing.
I thought the instruction was simplified for the beginning artist like me. I am very visual and so I was pleased with the tremendous amount of examples included. I also thought that the lay-out of instruction was helpful, step by step.
Over all this book was very helpful, to the point, and interesting to read. Christopher Hart kept my attention while teaching me the basics of cartooning.
thanks
 Yap, good book...for the BEGINNER-beginner August 2, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Reading all the praise here, I was pretty anxious to receive this book, EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT CARTOONING BUT WERE AFRAID TO DRAW. I expected to get inspired and learn techniques in writing and drawing I had not perhaps even considered before. In this respect, I can't hide my disappointment. I had not read for long before I realized that what this book had to offer would not be of much use to me. I am a self-taught cartoonist, I've been doing comic strips my entire life and all the advice this book provided I found to be completely obvious; not without relevance, certainly, but I didn't purchase this book to be told that "monsters get more effective if colorized green," or to study the contrast between a happy face and a sad face. Also, the drawings used to represent the points in the text are just about as stereotypical as they can get; I'm not saying I expected it to do the process of creating original characters and ideas for me, but in a book of this kind I find it of invaluable importance that the author is able to really inspire the reader to go ahead and make something good. After all, we've got HI AND LOIS and U.S. ACRES already, or what?
However, if you have just discovered that you got a knack for drawing and want to try it out as a cartoonist, but need guidance in the (very) main rules, this is a good book. If you have been part of this medium for a while and seek new opportunities to get inspired or learn new tricks, try elsewhere. Your own mind for instance.
Maybe not Everything, but Plenty Nevertheless! June 1, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Before I finished my third book I decided it needed cartoons to visually explain some ideas (a picture is worth 1000 words) and provide humor to a tough subject. I started checking with hiring a professional artist (or student artist) to do the work. It quickly became clear the task would be time consuming, expensive and I may not get what I wanted in the end.
First, it would be difficult to find someone who would be able to take what was in my mind and transfer it to a cartoon
Second, it became painfully clear it would be expensive (even with a student artist). I wanted around twenty five cartoons drawn.
Third, some individuals wanted to discuss contracts and usage.
My best option was to learn how to draw cartoons myself. I figured it would be less expensive (only the cost of books and art supplies), and frustrating and I would get exactly what was in my brain. It would take some time to become proficient, but it sounded like a fun project. I was fortunately right.
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Cartooning but Were Afraid to Ask by Christopher Hart and a couple other books helped me learn how to draw cartoons good enough to put in my latest book.
Christopher Hart has done several books on drawing comics. He provides excellent common sense content, and teaches the skill very well though his words and cartoons.
Some the sections that I found especially helpful were: Expressions, How to Draw Hands, The Art of Character Design, Body Types, Principles of Layout, Layouts from a Distance, The Special Effects Lab, Explosions and more.
After finishing my sketches, I used Adobe Elements software to polish up the work. I was very pleased with the final cartoons that went into my book..and there have been many positive comments about them from people who have the book!
Overall, this is a great resource for learning to draw cartoons!
The Re-Discovery of Common Sense: A Guide to: The Lost Art of Critical Thinking
Drawing on the Funny Side of the Brain : How to Come Up With Jokes for Cartoons and Comic Strips
The Cartoonist's Workbook Drawing, Writing Gags, Selling
Beyond the Basics October 28, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I love how Christopher Hart really delves into the hard things to draw. Like hands and feet and expressions. This is a wonderful art resource. The pictures are fun and will help you generate many of your own ideas.
This would make a great gift!
Excellent May 19, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Far more detailed than the How to Draw Cartoons book by this author. There are examples of heads, eyes, noses, mouth, hands, and many other elements in good detail.
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