sculpting ears

[howlin mad jack]

I'm having difficulty sculpting ears for my prop, are there any tutorials on how to do this effectively? I just need to know why they keep coming out all weird.

[Hauntiholik]

Talk to Lauriebeast about ears. She's a master.

[howlin mad jack]

Thanks, Haunti!

[Allen H]

I am ambidextrous so this may not work for you. I take two balls of clay that are of equal size, (smaller than a billiard ball and larger than a ping pong ball) and I start to shape the ears at the same time, there are ridges and folds in the ear that are best tackled simultaneously in order to be similar. then they are detailed out separately with texture. The size and placement are the big deal. The ear should be about the size of the figures open mouth. open your mouth, thats about how big your ear is.
look at pictures of the human head in order to tell where to place them.
Good luck

[DarkLore]

I've never heard it put that way before.

If you take a person's head (oval, like an egg) and draw a horizonal line splitting an up and lower half...that's the line for the eye placement. Split the bottom once more. That line is the bottom of the nose. Split it again, that's the line for the mouth. Most people's ears are the length of their nose.

[fritz42_male]

Make a mould and cast some from the real thing?

[tot13]

I've never heard it put that way before.

If you take a person's head (oval, like an egg) and draw a horizonal line splitting an up and lower half...that's the line for the eye placement. Split the bottom once more. That line is the bottom of the nose. Split it again, that's the line for the mouth. Most people's ears are the length of their nose.

Thanks, DL, again and again. It's always been a guessing game for me, and not always with the greatest results. I'm aggravated right now because the ear-placement is not symmetrical on a prop I've spent a lot of time on. I believe this is the last time I'll have that issue.

[DarkLore]

Thanks, DL, again and again. It's always been a guessing game for me, and not always with the greatest results. I'm aggravated right now because the ear-placement is not symmetrical on a prop I've spent a lot of time on. I believe this is the last time I'll have that issue.

God only made one of us perfect. Flaws and differences make us unique and interesting. Don't sweat the ears, I'm sure they are fine. I don't know what you are sculpting...but it sounds like you are facing an opportunity to see what you can do with hair.

[tot13]

God only made one of us perfect. Flaws and differences make us unique and interesting. Don't sweat the ears, I'm sure they are fine. I don't know what you are sculpting...but it sounds like you are facing an opportunity to see what you can do with hair.

No hair this time, it's a Jeepers Creepers bust that will be used as a scarecrow like in the beginning of the second movie. The ears aren't that big of a deal on this particular prop because he'll be wearing a hat, so that helps especially since he's bald. It just aggravates me every time I look at it.

[howlin mad jack]

No hair this time, it's a Jeepers Creepers bust that will be used as a scarecrow like in the beginning of the second movie. The ears aren't that big of a deal on this particular prop because he'll be wearing a hat, so that helps especially since he's bald. It just aggravates me every time I look at it.

Hey t-13, I'm right there with you, besides not getting the ridges right, placement of the ears is also a nightmare!

[howlin mad jack]

Hey t-13, I'm right there with you, besides not getting the ridges right, placement of the ears is also a nightmare!

I've never heard it put that way before.

If you take a person's head (oval, like an egg) and draw a horizonal line splitting an up and lower half...that's the line for the eye placement. Split the bottom once more. That line is the bottom of the nose. Split it again, that's the line for the mouth. Most people's ears are the length of their nose.

Thanks DL for the help, I was able to get the placement right ( or there abouts ) and am working on the finishing touches.

[howlin mad jack]

I am ambidextrous so this may not work for you. I take two balls of clay that are of equal size, (smaller than a billiard ball and larger than a ping pong ball) and I start to shape the ears at the same time, there are ridges and folds in the ear that are best tackled simultaneously in order to be similar. then they are detailed out separately with texture. The size and placement are the big deal. The ear should be about the size of the figures open mouth. open your mouth, thats about how big your ear is.
look at pictures of the human head in order to tell where to place them.
Good luck

Hey AllenH, Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately your right, not being ambidexterous I wasn't able to do it this way, but I was able to use the info you provided to make and place the ears. I'll post the finished pix when I'm done with the prop.

[Dr Morbius]

Here is the ear portion of the sculpt tutorial sticky thread at the top of the General Props forum.

http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=9757&page=22

[howlin mad jack]

Thanks Dr. M, I started most of the ears from some of the other posts, and I have them attached, I just have to do some touch up. I appreciate the post though, and next time, I'll follow the tutorial which is more concrete.

[pagan]

A graphic illustration of ear placement (I needed it simple so I would understand too).
http://www.howtodrawmanga.com/howtodraw/tutorials_howtodraw_ears_koda.html#c1