Look to the process (Part One)

With two years in and four to go I'd had a small share of many aspects of the production process, sculpting, modelling, texturing, rigging and animation.
It's summer and I've taken stock. It was time to look at the basics again. The basics aren't basic. They're the foundation of everything. Perhaps I should refer to them as the base, basis, bases (bā'sēz')? Regardless, back to basics I went. I won't pretend this is in order.

1. Thinking about a story. Producing an outline.
2. Planning, research, planning, reference, planning.... planning while;
3. Learning to draw again. 
4. Thinking about story again, developing a history, writing a treatment.
5. Portraying character and environment according to story and history

I'll get back to 1. and 2. Learning to draw was a top priority (with the story still in the back of my mind). I'm learning to tell stories but they'll be visual stories.

Enough words. Here are some pictures.

   

I started with some portraits. I've never been good at likenesses. You may think I'm still no good. Not the world's best known faces but important to me nonetheless. They proved good practice towards further character development and forced me to improve observation and hand-eye skills.