I wasn't expecting to submit this into the contest, but then I realized I had an old drawing of these characters and it surprised me to see the differences.

2008 - Done early in the year when I got my first set of Prismacolor markers. I didn't have a lot of greys so anything that was black never blended well. I also didn't have many purples so that didn't work out too well for the girl. Though, I still like the dude a lot in the '08 version. :)

2011 - Finished this lineart last night on SAI and it's got me so happy. I spent more time on this than I did in the '08 version (sketching, lineart, and coloring) and it's still not quite finished. Practicing detailed hair was my favorite part.

All in all, this is just one example of how people don't just pick up a pencil and can create masterpieces. It takes years of practice. I've been drawing since I was little, and I'm just starting to really learn human anatomy and perspective and so on.
TIP: It's always better to look at real life references, rather than the way someone else draws something.

Characters © Ryo and my friend Josh
Art © Kaijin89 (me)