Figure Drawing (On The Cheap)...

[Crossbreed]

Have you ever worked with Poser? I could see that as a ready source for faces and figures.

I have salivated over it, before, but

1. The base software and minimum accessory add-ons are exceedingly out of my price range.
2. And then to have to replace all of that software when Microsoft stops supporting WinXP, requiring an upgrade to Win8>10.
   
3. Also, learning (& managing) all of that software becomes an avocation in itself (much like 1:6 figure-collecting has
   
   ).
4. 1:6 figures (at least, in the past) have a large catalog of accessories (props, wardrobe, set pieces, livery, arsenal, etc.) often found at resale sources. (I am very minimalist in that regard, for drawing.)
   
5. You can expand the variety of physiognomies by re-bodying heads from poorly-articulated bodies, such as fashion dolls (which many of us do).

 

[Crossbreed]

When I needed a live model, I had a mirror. Anatomy for artist books were helpful, too.

I also have some clinical nudes that I downloaded, too. (I used to use on-line porn for the same purposes, but I am no longer comfortable with their intent.)

 

[Judge]

I have Poser 3, but haven't used it for so long I can barely recall a thing about it. Probably because I couldn't get it to run on my Windows XP SP3 platform, even using the compatibility feature on the executable file. While I can install it, I still get an "out of memory" notice that keeps me from using the application. Perhaps due to running an amount of RAM (1.5GB) the application doesn't recognize as it's so old.

Making me think that if I lowered my RAM back down to only 1 GB I could run the program as well as a few other golden oldies using Windows 98SE on a removable drive. But you still have to apply a specific hack to make Windows 98 run 1GB of RAM. The beauty of Windows 98SE is that it doesn't require connecting to Microsoft online. You just use the install CD and voila!

Though all this does make me wonder if I could attempt the same thing on Windows 10. I'm guessing that I'd get the same memory issue, even applying the compatibility feature to run it as a Windows 95 program. It's something I've done in Windows 10 to run some very old programs. But there's never any guarantee that it will work. I still run Photoshop 5.5 on Windows 10, but it won't let me run Corel Draw 3.0 either. Go figure.

Perhaps much later versions of Poser might just work on Windows 10 using the compatibility mode for the executable file "poser.exe", as well as the installation "setup.exe" file. Microsoft officially ended security and technical support for Windows XP in April of 2014. So I run my legacy Windows XP computer totally offline, without any anti-virus programs that slow it down and take up so much memory.

 

[Crossbreed]

Though all this does make me wonder if I could attempt the same thing on Windows 10. I'm guessing that I'd get the same memory issue, even applying the compatibility feature to run it as a Windows 95 program. It's something I've done in Windows 10 to run some very old programs. But there's never any guarantee that it will work. I still run Photoshop 5.5 on Windows 10, but it won't let me run Corel Draw 3.0 either.

I have a lot of great apps from Windows 98 that ported to XP just fine, but would not make the leap to Win8. I got them at a discount at tech college, but cannot afford to replace them now. MS-Office 365 has been a fortunate exception. (I could never afford to pay full price when they were sold separately.)

Peripherals and their drivers mostly made the first leap, too, but not the second.

The earlier Paint Shop Pro seemed more capable (and easier to use).

 

[Judge]

MS-Office 365 has been a fortunate exception.

LOL...I run Office 2000 on Windows 10. Not something Microsoft likes to discuss, let alone admit.

Sadly though I never got MS Publisher 2.0 to run on Windows 7 or 10. Otherwise on my Windows XP platform I run a ton of older productivity and entertainment applications. Where some work like Corel Draw 3.0 and Print Shop 3 Deluxe, and some others just don't.

Bryce 3D is another application I can't get to run on Windows XP. Too bad...an interesting program. But I think this was the first or second version. Early 90s native 16-bit applications tend to test the limits of the compatibility features even for Windows XP.

 

[Mia]

Figure drawing can cost very little if your willing to go out to a place that has a long-time studio. Something I did in the city several nights a week. Believe it cost ten dollars per session to do life drawing there.

Studios are usually set up by artists and models in areas near schools that teach life drawing.
You can find them in local papers, message boards in schools, if you live near a city. Even in remote areas, such as where I live, there are art classes offered at the local high school in the evenings.

 

[Au Naturel]

I also have some clinical nudes that I downloaded, too. (I used to use on-line porn for the same purposes, but I am no longer comfortable with their intent.)

Seriously, if you want artistic nudes there's no shortage of them out there. No need to go chasing hentai. Nudist pages often have lots of images of ordinary people of all body types just doing stuff.

I have Poser 11 but never really figured out how to use it.

Posing for figure studies was one of the great pleasures of my youth. It can be a psychologically amazing experience if you let it. One of the few places where I really felt accepted for who I was and no social mine field to traverse. Just wearing the uniform for the job.

 

[Judge]

<Sigh> I wish I would have kept my portraits and nudes I drew in an art class for college. Not great, not bad either...but I was kind of satisfied with the job I did with them. Though I do find digital photography more fun.