This was drawn mostly for practice. It could use a lot of improvement, but I wanted to get some input before making any drastic changes (i.e., screwing it up).
(http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/8035/sprite15rt.png)
(http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/8035/sprite15rt.png)
I'm not artistically oriented or experienced by any means, so any help would be greatly appreciated; I'm at a bit of a loss when it comes to things like shading and texturing. Right now, her unbalanced skin tones and the lack of texture on her clothing are bothering me, as well as the flatness of her torso, but I don't know the best way to go about fixing those things (I'm really new at this).
Good job. Looks great. You should make some rear views, some side views, and a walkcycle. :)
Actually, I think it looks great - the level of contrast between your lights and darks works really well, and I don't think texture is all that great an idea, all things considered. If anything, I'd say she looks a bit knock-kneed - her stance isn't particularly relaxed, which makes it look a touch awkward, kinda like she has to go to the bathroom. if you brought the legs out a little bit, at least in the knee area, it'd be groovy. Her torso seems proportionate, but for some reason the legs still seem a bit short. I'd suggest either bringing up the crotch a pixel or two, or lengthening the legs a tad.
If I were to grasp about for other improvements you could make, I'd say that the way her hair falls about her face, her jaw looks like it juts out to either side, but that's not a problem at all. Aside from that... The shading on the hair makes it look sort of bulbous, or plasticky? Not entirely sure, as I'm having a hard time coming up with other issues. For complete anatomical correctness, it's important to never make the head taller than the waist is wide - in a sprite it's not law, of course, but this character is physically correct enough that it may be something to keep in mind. Also the shading on the tummy-area could be a little smoother - the stark angle of it at the moment catches the eye more than it perhaps should.
Hope this is helpful.
It's very good for someone that claims no artistic skill. There are a few issues that may help you to improve even more:
1. You used a nearly indistinguishable additional flesh tone.
2. Her torso is too long. Shoot for about half the length of the legs.
3. Her face does not follow the shading method you used elsewhere.
4. The legs do not follow the top down shading.
5. Her leg pose is awkward, like she has to use the bathroom.
6. Her shoulders are a bit too square and her breasts hang down a bit too far.
I made an edit that incorporates edits to these points to a degree. Hopefully it will help you to make your next image even better. I want you to bear in mind that you did a fantastic job with this, and that my edits are more personal taste than anything.
(http://members.cox.net/veradin/sprite15rt.png)
(http://members.cox.net/veradin/sprite15rt.png)