A different perspective on our own art

~ghoner Aug 18, 2012 Professional Digital Artist

Hello, I'm asking this out loud to every artists and artist lovers out there because my search turned out nothing.

Is there a way to see our own art from someone's else perspective?

What I mean by that, is that when you draw a picture, you know all about it, you see every little flaw, you
know how you did every effects and such, so even if you zoom out, or mirror it, its still you work, and you
know it too well to have an objective opinion about it.

But, sometime, if you look at an old but good artwork you did years ago, you see it with new, different eyes, and you can appreciate it like you were a stranger that is looking at an artwork for the first time.

So what I'm asking, is if there's some kind of photoshop trick or picture filter that can give you that impression of "new again" when you work on your picture and you're not sure about something.

Mirroring your picture is good when you want to find out weird flaws regarding perspective and anatomy, but its not really efficient when it comes to things like shadows or light effects, or assymetrical things like a mountain or ruins.

So anyone have some trick in its sleeve, or I'm just dreaming for the impossible and will have to wait several years to be able to see my recent artworks in an objective way?

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~ghoner Aug 20, 2012 Professional Digital Artist

thank you all for your answers

*opiumtraum Aug 19, 2012

Back in the old days there was plastic film available (rubylith?)...laying that over artwork killed the color (assuming it was in color) & allowed you to see the work purely in terms of light & dark. I'm sure in photoshop you can make a color work black & white, maybe giving you the objectivity you need.

I use the "walk away then come back to it" method weremole mentioned. For me, it's about 80% percent effective in allowing me to see stuff that needs "fixing". Mirroring has worked for me as well. If something looks off in the mirror, it's off right-way-round, too.

=nelchee Aug 19, 2012 Professional General Artist

Flipping the subject upside down may give you insight into compositional flaws and light/shadow direction and ratio.
I've heard that the Japanese sometimes observe the landscape by looking through their legs to appreciate it more as abstract forms.

*weremole Aug 19, 2012 Professional

There are a few ways.

First is the "flip". If traditional: look at it from the back against a light source, you'll now see it with fresh eyes. If digital, just flip it with the program.

Then there is the classic "walk away and forget about it for a spell, come back to it later".

~hiyoi Aug 19, 2012

I really don't think it's possible with any kind of tools or filters...the closest thing I think is receiving critiques from other people.

~narutokunobessed Aug 19, 2012 Student General Artist

So what I'm asking, is if there's some kind of photoshop trick or picture filter that can give you that impression of "new again" when you work on your picture and you're not sure about something.

No. Tools will only get you so far to learn your craft. Its great to know what they do and stuff, but the important meat is practicing, doing something over again, studying your favorite artists or real objects, and knowing the different part of composing a piece together.

*DKDevil Aug 19, 2012

I'm afraid that you can't make your art feel like it isn't your art. There is no substitute for the passage of time.

I think the best thing you can do is "Get over it". As harsh as it sounds, its what sometimes works for me.

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