Copperplate Minuscules - Group 3

[Salman Khattak]

@Vipul

Thank you so much for the lovely message Vipul. You just made my day :-)

- Salman

[Vipul]

@Salman

Once again - Happy 2018.

Thanks for the prompt and detailed reply to my last posting. That helped clarify a lot of things that are not clear earlier.

Have practiced a bit, though need to put more in.

Struggling with finding a nice holder which fits my hand. Trying 2-3 but not sure if they are working because my hand hurts after about half an hour or so.... Made sure that I'm not tensing my hand, so thought my grip is wrong. Following Paul Antonio's YouTube on that, and seems correct. So guess its the holder. Hopefully, I'll find one that works for me soon.

Today's effort submitted for your comments.

[Salman Khattak]

@Vipul

Nice work Vipul. That 'o' in 'tot' looks really good but the 't's have taken on a wedge shape - remember to keep the shade even until the last 1/3rd of the x-height.

The 'g's are very nice. The 'o' shapes in the 'g's seem to be wider at the top - compare the second 'g' in 'gauge' to the 'a' in 'talon' right above it and you will see what I mean. It also happens in the 'g of 'modge' and the first 'd' of 'diced'

The compound curves are spot on - nice work there.

The loop of the 'q' is better balanced but the widest part of it should be a little lower to mimic the proportions of the 'g' descender - it won't be the exact same shape but we can get closer than what you have here.

I am quite satisfied with the spacing.

Work on refining the descender loop of the 'q' and the 'a' part of the 'g' and give it one more try.

- Salman

[Vipul]

@Salman

Hi,
Tried to focus on the things you pointed out.

Still struggling a bit with spacing, especially after the c.

Tried to correct the loop of the q. Guess need to work a bit more on it.

Regards
Vipul

[Salman Khattak]

@Vipul

The spacing on this one isn't as good as the previous one. You know what needs to be fixed in this group at this point. I think it is time to take up the analytical duties so you can begin to 'sharpen the eye'.

From now on, please only post work that you believe is free of any of the issues we have discussed in all the three groups so far.

- Salman

[Vipul]

@Salman

Hi,
Practiced a lot. Somehow, consistent spacing is an issue. Letter shapes can be corrected by repeated practice, but unsure how to correct for spacing. However, tried the brute force method of repeated practice.

Submitted my today's last attempt. There are a couple of issues, I know the c blob and slope, but I think that I've managed the spacing ok. The o shapes also seem ok to me, except maybe the second g of gauge.

Request your comments.

Regards,
Vipul.

[Salman Khattak]

@Vipul

Ah - now we're talking. This is very nice work Vipul.

As for the spacing, things get squishy (technical term for 'too close' :-) when the exit hairline meets the following letter at less than 1/2 x-height. You will see that in 'diced' the exit hairlines are joining too low in 'd-i-c', a bit better in 'c-e' and a bit too far in 'e-d'.

The 'e-n' join in 'quench' is too wide. The exit hairline from 'e' should match the slant line by 1/2 x-height. It should continue up on that slant for a bit before beginning to make the turn at the waist line. You have drawn a better join in the last 'quench' but the top turn could be a bit wider 'without' moving the letters further apart.

The loop of the 'q' is much better but the thickest part is still too far up. It should be thickest at the first descender line - like the descender in the 'j' and 'g'.

This is acceptable level for this group. We will continue to work on the spacing in group 4 (along with the 'q' descender).

I will be looking forward to your submission for the next group.

- Salman

[Vipul]

@Salman

Hi.
Thanks for your critique and prompt response. I've learnt a lot from your critique of other people and the improvements they did after that. Hence I think I owe another go at the words here, especially after your comments made the spacing issues crystal clear and oh so easy to correct.
Hence submitting these 3 words before moving on to the next group. Hope these address the spacing issues I was having.

Regards,
Vipul

[Salman Khattak]

@Vipul

The spacing is much better on these. 'diced' is especially well spaced.

[Sue W]

@Salman Khattak

Hello Salman, I'm attaching just the letters for this group today, thinking that I need to get them down before I move to words 

I'm still working on the compound curves from the last group too ......  Thanks as always for your critique :-)
Sue

[Salman Khattak]

@Sue W

This is an excellent start Sue. I don't see any glaring mistakes. You just need to develop a bit of consistency. The last of the 'c's is nicely done.

Make your entrance hairline the same shape you would make an exit hairline that joins the following letter i.e. start at the base line and curve up so you are parallel with the slant guide by mid x-height. This will result in smooth joins that flow nicely. BTW it is o.k. to have the tiniest of gaps between the hairline and the shade. Your entry hairlines could use a little bit more curve - as if they are exiting an invisible 'i'.

The descender loop of the first 'g' is nice. The counter is a nice almond shape and the thickest part is around the 1st descender line. The last 'q' is getting there.

- Salman

[Sue W]

@Salman Khattak
Hello Salman, hope you're nowhere near the extreme weather I've been hearing about 

Thanks for the feedback on my first submission here we go with words added.  Looking forward to hearing your thoughts as always.

[Salman Khattak]

@Sue W

This is excellent work Sue. You have a very good sense for the shape of the letters and are fairly consistent. However, there is some work still to be done:

- The slant on the round letters seems to be a bit more than the rest - see the 'a' and 'o' in 'tallon' (sp?).

- The width of the shade varies a bit too much. Compare the 'u' and 'n' in 'quench'.

- The accent shade on the eye of the 'e' should be no more than a hint. For now, just make it a hairline and concentrate on making the counter almond shaped.

I will be looking forward to the next exercise sheet.

- Salman

-

[Sue W]

@Salman Khattak

Thank you, Salman .   

Oops, got a bit carried away with 'l' in talon and didn't notice it.  Yes those pesky n's and m's   
I'm on it......
Sue

[Sue W]

@Salman Khattak
Hello Salman
I'm attaching my last practice piece in the hope you'll see some improvement   Thanks for your critique as always.
Sue