04-08-2012, 11:01 PM
The texture needs a lot of work. Other than the improved image quality, I'd say your first attempt was better. Basic image creation/editing is a bit out of the scope of those forum, but I'll still try and help.
The biggest issue is that the lines aren't smooth. They're very rough and lumpy, and the top side of the mouth has a lot of unnaturally sharp lines. There are two solutions for this. One is simply very careful painting, going in and making sure everything looks nice and smooth. If you're using a mouse to paint like I assume you are, try using broad quick strokes when painting. Going slower allows more time for you hand to tremble, which results in the kind of lumpiness you see here. Another solution is to use vectors, which take care of the smoothness for you. I'm not sure what you use to make the textures, but Photoshop has vectors for sure. If you need help with this, there are plenty of tutorials out there for using them.
The other big problem is a lack of symmetry. In case you haven't heard that term before, having symmetry means that both sides of an image or model are practically the same. If you flip around a perfectly symmetrical image, it will look exactly the same. The problem here is that the image doesn't. The shape and thickness of the mouth change all over, meaning that one side is much different from the other. If you compare the tallest points of the lips and mouth line, you'll see they are even at different heights. This is asymmetry, which can make images look bad if looks like something that is supposed to be symmetrical.
Now, it can be difficult to gauge symmetry by looking at it, especially if you're not looking for it. It can be even harder to make a symmetrical image without lots of careful measuring. So, my advice to you is to focus on one specific half of the image, and when you're done, copy that half, flip it around, and paste it on the other side to complete the image.
The last thing is really more of an artistic thing than a technical issue. When you're making a drawing or model from a source, like a sprite, it can be really easy to blindly duplicate what you see in the source without thinking too much about it. We've all done it at some point. In order for your creation to be really good, you have to actually sit and think about what the sprite is supposed to be, not just what it looks like. You're drawing a mouth like the one on the sprite, but what it mean to draw a mouth? What are the white lines? What is the black line? Well, think about the parts of a mouth. The white parts must be the lips, since they surround the mouth. What does that make the black line, then? The black line is the dividing crease between the upper and lower lips, the shaded part of the lips that meet each other in front of the closed mouth. The black line is not an object, or a part of the model, but an outline of the lips. As such, it's going to be either very thin or not seen at all. Think about this as you redo your texture. Here's something else to think about: if you're drawing a mouth, then try to imagine what the mouth would look like if it were to open. You don't have to draw it, but imagine it in your mind as you look at the image. This should help you make a more natural-looking mouth.
The shading's not bad, though it's not perfect. Fixing it can wait until you improve the shape of the mouth first.
The biggest issue is that the lines aren't smooth. They're very rough and lumpy, and the top side of the mouth has a lot of unnaturally sharp lines. There are two solutions for this. One is simply very careful painting, going in and making sure everything looks nice and smooth. If you're using a mouse to paint like I assume you are, try using broad quick strokes when painting. Going slower allows more time for you hand to tremble, which results in the kind of lumpiness you see here. Another solution is to use vectors, which take care of the smoothness for you. I'm not sure what you use to make the textures, but Photoshop has vectors for sure. If you need help with this, there are plenty of tutorials out there for using them.
The other big problem is a lack of symmetry. In case you haven't heard that term before, having symmetry means that both sides of an image or model are practically the same. If you flip around a perfectly symmetrical image, it will look exactly the same. The problem here is that the image doesn't. The shape and thickness of the mouth change all over, meaning that one side is much different from the other. If you compare the tallest points of the lips and mouth line, you'll see they are even at different heights. This is asymmetry, which can make images look bad if looks like something that is supposed to be symmetrical.
Now, it can be difficult to gauge symmetry by looking at it, especially if you're not looking for it. It can be even harder to make a symmetrical image without lots of careful measuring. So, my advice to you is to focus on one specific half of the image, and when you're done, copy that half, flip it around, and paste it on the other side to complete the image.
The last thing is really more of an artistic thing than a technical issue. When you're making a drawing or model from a source, like a sprite, it can be really easy to blindly duplicate what you see in the source without thinking too much about it. We've all done it at some point. In order for your creation to be really good, you have to actually sit and think about what the sprite is supposed to be, not just what it looks like. You're drawing a mouth like the one on the sprite, but what it mean to draw a mouth? What are the white lines? What is the black line? Well, think about the parts of a mouth. The white parts must be the lips, since they surround the mouth. What does that make the black line, then? The black line is the dividing crease between the upper and lower lips, the shaded part of the lips that meet each other in front of the closed mouth. The black line is not an object, or a part of the model, but an outline of the lips. As such, it's going to be either very thin or not seen at all. Think about this as you redo your texture. Here's something else to think about: if you're drawing a mouth, then try to imagine what the mouth would look like if it were to open. You don't have to draw it, but imagine it in your mind as you look at the image. This should help you make a more natural-looking mouth.
The shading's not bad, though it's not perfect. Fixing it can wait until you improve the shape of the mouth first.