Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this “boxer referee” thing, and let me tell you, it’s been a wild ride. I wanted to create something, you know? Started with zero clue, just a vague idea.
First, I watched a ton of boxing matches. Like, hours and hours. I needed to get a feel for how the referees move, what they say, when they step in. It’s more than just waving your arms around, believe me.
The First Steps (And Stumbles)
- Tried sketching some stick figures. Looked terrible. My stick figures can’t even box, let alone referee.
- Then I thought, “Okay, maybe animation?” Downloaded some free software. Total disaster. My computer nearly exploded.
- Gave up on animation for a bit. Focused on just getting the poses right. I stood in front of a mirror, mimicking referees. My cat thought I’d lost it.
Getting Somewhere (Finally!)
After the mirror fiasco, I decided to try something simpler. I grabbed some action figures – a couple of wrestlers, actually, because I couldn’t find any boxers – and started posing them. That helped a lot. I could actually see the angles, the stances, everything.
Took a bunch of pictures of the action figures in different referee positions – separating the fighters, checking for a knockout, signaling the start of a round. You know, the basics.
The Digital Leap
With my photo references, I went back to the digital drawing. Instead of trying to animate, I just focused on drawing still images. Much easier. I used a free drawing program. No fancy tablets or anything, just my mouse and a whole lot of patience.
- Started with basic shapes – circles for heads, rectangles for bodies. Looked like a robot boxing match at first.
- Gradually added details – the referee’s shirt, the gloves, the expressions. Lots of erasing and redrawing. Lots.
- Started using layers to fix the posture.
It’s Alive! (Sort Of)
It’s still rough, but I’ve got a few decent drawings of a referee in action. It’s not perfect, not even close, but it’s something. I can actually see what I was aiming for, and that’s a huge win. I’m thinking of maybe trying to color them next, or maybe even – gasp – try animating again. But one step at a time, right?
The whole thing has been a reminder that even if you’re terrible at something at first, you can still make progress if you keep at it. And hey, even if it’s not perfect, it’s yours. And that’s pretty cool.
