very beautiful and quite what i asked for.
well worth the wait and i am so much anticipate more.

*hugs* あいしてる

it'll look a lot better when its done, hopefully ^.^ I'm really glad you like it so far.

Epic artwork as always, Kacey!
Theres a reason why you're my favorite artist.

Thank you =D!

Hehe.. you're definately welcome, hun.
I'm always singing your praises as a artist.. I should get a I am a Kacey Miyagami fanboy sticker or something to wear at furry cons! xD

so very pretty

Wow, really lovin' the details so far hun, keep it up! :3

Holy crap. That's incredible. *FAV*

I've heard of the place. Wish I could go to Japan and see stuff for myself some time..
As for critique, I'd say it looks great so far! I especially love Ace's expression. Reminds me of the old Disney cartoons =D
Also, the background is looking very nice. Bet it'll look nice in colour too!
By the way, are you going to do more sketches and stuff in the future? It's so fun and interesting to see how you develop the pictures. One could learn a thing or two =)

Thanks =D

As for more sketches - I should do that more often... I don't usually with commissions because I want to keep it between me and the commissioner until its done (this being an exception), but for personal work it would be nice if I posted sketches yeah

For commissions, you could also post the sketch after the commission has been delivered if the commissioner is OK with it. It's backwards, yes, but it still lets people see how the picture developed.

I have no problem with it if you want to post the sketch for 'Welcome Home'.

AWWW!!! :3 cant wait to see finished product :D

Critics? Erhm... okay. I see one thing:

Kristania's right arm looks bit... "flat". Maybe it needs some few stripes, like "muscule" relief. - you know



Oh by the way.. it's VERY hard to search mistakes in picture, like this... and i don't like to do it, you must know, why

Beautiful sketch, lots of detail

The only thing I dont quite get is the character on the left seems to not have any support for that pose, as if they are going to fall forward. However, it could just be me, I'm not too great at depicting action :P

My gosh I love your art. It's always so full of life ^_^

really ncie job. not sure i'd have any critique. only thing i find odd is how the one with the camera is leaning and bending forward but doesn't have her hand on the rock yet. not does her shoulder seem to be dropping for her to do so. i don't know if it's even worth mentioning, but i did anyway. sense of depth seems good, shapes and anatomy look fine to my untraiend eye. and it all looks very pretty.

That looks stunning so far Dear.

I looked at it and looked at it and can't find anything wrong with it, it is flawless. I think this is incredible as it is so far and I can't wait to see it all in color. I like how you create a scene and bring it to life. I'm interested in the process you take with finishing it. What feline is that next to the butterfly?

This is very cute.

you want critique? i give you critique, kacey ^^
i dont know who is wich... so i'll just say. the one with the camera around the neck. her pose looks a bit out of place, because of the rock. she seems to be getting support from it to stay staned up, but her hand doesn't seem to be taking much support from it. maybe making the rock a tad larger so the hand covers more space of it, will make the pose look more... "in the place"

and, haha, this isn't a critique at allBUT, the kitty with the butterfly next to it would rather play with it than just watch the girls. xD

but it's an amazing job so far! i want to see it done! n.n

Thank you =)..

Yeah I am thinking about making some adjustments to that arm, moving the rock up and making it so that she is supported by her hand on the rock. Right now she is just leaning forward about to support herself with that arm on the rock but it would probably look better if she was more 'grounded' and not in the middle of a motion.

I was going to mention that, too. The angle of the lean makes it look almost like she's falling against it.

Of course, it's the best-drawn fall against a Japanese rock ever, but it still looks like she's falling.

welcome... hehe
but still, moving the rock a bit up sounds much easier than making her look more grounded ^^;;

Awesome! =3

amazing job!

It looks good so far, nice background, and foreground kitty. I agree that the one with the camera is placed oddly, it feels like she should be a bit more right and "back", her placement on the plane feels off. The right figure is great so far, though I would make her foot a little less visible, it feels like her leg should be obscuring it a little more.

My 2 cents.

Wow...this is absolutely adorable...

Can't wait to see you finish this one Kacey.
Sides everyone else has already said what I saw ._.

I can't see any mistakes but wow. You never stop to amaze me kacey. Truly epic

Don't move! there's a cat on your arm! and it has friends!

Wow! If that's work in progress... *bows down before the artist* I can only aspire to do so well one day!

I'm afraid that I cannot really help you with a critique;

Your lineart is absolutely stunning...

I feel bad not commenting on your amazing work before, then just slamming down critique right away. But if you want it then I hope it's not offensive. >.<

Too be honest only thing that stands out without looking for things to critique is the hand like people mentioned. I personally don't think it looks unsupported but gives it more of the appearance that she is pouncing. Which I don't think is what you want. If that is what you wanted then the feet being firmly planted looks off.
The other thing is you wanted it to look high-ish up but I don't really get the feeling of that perspective from the drawing, maybe once finished it'll have more depth though? I dunno, at this point I don't know if you can change that. I don't think it looks bad, I just don't see the perspective you were aiming for.
Only other thing bothering me is the hand on the ground for the kneeling on. The angle seems off and kinda flat to me. Same for the hand on the other that is closer to the rock(if you plan on having her putting weight on it that is by moving the rock) I'm not sure if thats something you add more demension to when you shade. But I personally think, at the moment, it's a bit awkward.

I don't like pointing out just things I find flawed so I'll add what I really LIKE too! X3 I love the life the characters seem to have and expressions, also the action in this piece is great! While just roughed out right now I think your foliage is excellent!. Also I love that you added so much detail with things like in the clothes, but the piece is still about your subjects, not the details in their clothes. I hate when people force detail thinking it will look better then the art just becomes about the clothes and the characters are lost. But you add your detail perfectly to enhance your art. Also random thing but I love how the one kneeling has a foot elevated on a rock(I think a rock?), because land isn't perfect and not always flush so positions can be perfectly symmetrical! XD

Sorry this is SO long! x.x I hope it was helpful and not obnoxious...I'm bad at summarizing...>.>

Thanks =D I appreciate the critique, and do not find it offensive at all.

Yeah I was originally thinking that she was in the motion of about to rest her hand on the rock - but she does look like she might fall or is going to come down on that cat pretty hard when she pets it ... lol ^.^ when i move the rock up I'll be changing the angle of her hand.

The other characters hand thats on the ground - I think maybe the fingers could be foreshortened more, or the unevenness of the ground might make up for the position...

And yeah - I think I moved the perspective down from what I was originally thinking (and I'd drawn a concept sketch before this one that had a higher perspective, but the characters looked weird), but I'm not unhappy with this perspective so I think I will stick with it, as the high view thing wasn't crucial to the concept.

Thanks again ^.^!

I'm very glad! :3 A lot of people on this site don't take it well, but if it's asked I like to try and help.

Haha, yeah I don't think the kitty would appreciate that! I think a more relaxed pose will not just look better but suit the atmosphere better as well. ^-^

I think forshortening would be a good idea, or even when colouring add shading so the fingers look more bent. I think why it looks off to me is because it looks kinda flat and like you are looking at the hand from above.

I personally really like what you have right now, and like the angle/perspective. I think the characters detail and emotions/expressions would be lost at a higher angle. At this one you still get the idea(or at least I do ^-^; ) that the other cat is watching in the foliage unnoticed/hidden, but still get all the character detail.

I'm looking forward to seeing this done!

i'd say the most noticeable thing that you might want to alter/fix is the perspective. it's supposed to be from an above angle, but the background (foliage, rocks, etc) is drawn from a normal standing eye-level. i don't really even know how i myself would fix this; but if i had to give a suggestion, i would say to make the immediate foreground larger. in my opinion, this would also even out the composition.

regardless, this looks very nice. your proportions are awesome, and the expressions are lovely. keep up the great work kacey c:

Yeah I think I inadvertently moved the perspective down from what I was originally intending... I had done a concept sketch before working this one up, and the perspective is pretty different in that one. I like the angle its at now, but you're right, its not as high as I was originally thinking it would be.

i like it that way.

awesome work as usual!

This really is a lovely drawing. Even the "rather rough" background looks quite nice.

The only thing that I notice is Kristania's arms seem better positioned for a higher perspective. Others already mentioned basically the same thing, but I would offer that you might want to try lowering her left elbow as well. I think it would make her look slightly more relaxed instead of poised.

That's 2% or so of the Iriomote cat population in this pic alone! =O Dense part of the forest.

The one with the camera...that point's been made a lot, but I can see how it could work. She's not actually touching the rock, is she? Well, I was thinking that with correct placement of the tail and a movement of the leg, it could look a lot better. Since, ya know, tails are good for that balancing stuff. 83

And, I dunno, but the cat on the other girl's arm...I'm trying to think of where the right hind leg would have to go for that pose to happen. I know I see it all the time with pets, but it's just hard for me to imagine; that's just my mind's problem, and if you would happen to have a reference or some kind of pic that looks kinda like that pose, I'd appreciate it. =3 So my mind's not like, JFOIKEJFWOIEJRIOMEWIOFMWORJI.

Awesome job, as always!

I cannot WAIT to see the finished product!!!!

i don't think you need to worry about anything being wrong or not in place with this piece... unless you wants to add a third friendly wild kitty in the picture behind misty's tail. looking like the kitty gonna nip her tail but other
then that this piece. is quit marvelous to look at will be even more. i bet when you give this ace an misty piece
some good color.

Like what was said, the only thing that seems a little off is the perspective. It still seems like it's ground level. Other than that, it looks amazing!

Kacey, you've done a superb job with the perspective of everything and the attention to details. Those girls are so lovely, too! Since you asked for critiques and I'd like to help, the only thing I can think of is to slightly make the girls' fingers a little more slender, to make them appear more feminine. Other than that, don't change a thing! It's a beautiful picture.

Sorry if someone already said this (didn't read all of the comments), but what stands out to me as being problematic is the ringtail girl's arm doesn't seem like it's making contact with the rock, so it looks like she's in the process of toppling forward. Assuming that isn't what you wanted, I'd suggest redrawing the hand/arm to make it look like it's supporting some of her body weight--doesn't need to support a lot, just enough to maintain balance.

Otherwise.. looking pretty nice! :) It's cool to see something at this stage, thank you for sharing.

Aside from it looking like Misty's mid-fall there, I gotta second that Ace's left hand/arm looks weird. It's an interesting thing to do, mind you... I'm not sure if you're trying to go with "hand flat on ground" or "resting on fingers/fingertips" there... which matters a bit for the rest of this. >.>' I'm guessing you mean flat on the ground, as it looks to me like most of her hand has been foreshortened like it'd be flat.

For starters, the apparent position on the ground judging by the heel of her hand, compared to her right toe, and assuming her hand's flat on the ground, would to me put her arm having to cross her leg right next to her crotch, rather than 2/3 the way to her knee. Otherwise, for it to be crossing her leg there, again with her hand flat on the ground, would have her wrist likely looking much closer to her knee than it is.

Uneven terrain could produce this as well, of course.Only other suggestion I'd have would be grabbing a friend/model and taking their picture with that general pose.

Indeed, from the current position of her left arm she cannot touch the ground, the upper body would be turned to reach such far down.

Mabe the cat jumped up her left arm and moved around her neck to the right shoulder.

At the moment left arm stil looks a bit strange since it's not clear "where" her hand is - ground or air.

Zomg Ace and Kristania again! I think I've mentioned this before, but I love these two, and this scene looks fantastic so far. Not to mention cute. I can't wait to see the finished version. :3

I particularly like the face of the kneeling lady. :3

Simply amazing.
Just ... wow.

Wow is all i can say

your work is always fantastic but this is going to turn out amazing.


Would love to see that colours your going to use.

<3

~Kana

Even at this sketch stage, the landscaping is looking awesome. I like how the vatage point brings it into the foreground. Nothing to point out as a critique.

That's going to be really amazing!

Btw, I've been wondering what sizes of microns you have been using. They seem very small, I'm guessing 0.20mm or less?

OK looks really great Kacey.
As for critique I think Ace (standing without the cat if my guess is correct) has to stubby fingers in my view.

cuuuute

I personally think the girl with the camera is fine to me. it looks like she is reaching for the rock for support while using her tail to keep balance.
The canid's left hand looks like it's havering above the ground tho.

Also. isn't that backpack too small? Whenever my sister does this kind of thing, she takes with her a backpack about 3 times as big. And that's per person.

The one with the mountain cat on her arm: Her rear left paw specifically. Is her foot pressed up against the root of the tree? If so, it looks like it doesn't sit on the surface quite right. The root is round, but it looks like she's pressing against something flat. Her other paw looks like it's coming out of her crotch. The hand on the ground looks like it needs to be flattened out some since your perspective angle changed and the other arm could use a bit of foreshortening work.

Also, the other girl's balance is way far forward, but that's been covered already. Most of this has probably been covered already, but all in all, looking good!

wow I love how you made the nice background and linework <3
hope to see the finished version KC ^^

My only knowledge of the Iriomote cat is through watching Azumanga Daioh!. They're beautiful cats. ^.^

Having hiked in the Japanese Alps, I like the feeling you gave the background. Granted, it's a different area, but the feeling is there.

The only thing that looked a little off were the feet of the character on the right. Because of the position of the right leg, that foot looks either very short, or the leg is going to have to bend upward to be the same size of the left foot. It may be I'm just interpreting the lines wrong.

I still think the picture looks great!

What a pretty picture. Would like to see in color.

Can't wait for the finished version.
Very nice!

WOW! I'm gonna watch you, if only to be sure to see this completed! Nice proportions and perspective! :D

I really like how you did the foilage here.