>>2875550Your image has nothing to do with drawing from reference. The right image is from Scott Robertson's book called "How to Draw: drawing and sketching objects and environments from your imagination".
If you want to be able to draw anything accurately from imagine you have to learn perspective, proportion etc basically the fundamentals.
You don't have to stop drawing from imagination at any point in your training.
In fact the optimal to learn incorporates it similar to : Learn new method from a master and recreate his example -> using reference, apply the method you learned -> using your imagination, apply the new method you have learned.
The problem with drawing from imagination is that you have to use the reference library in your brain. If you don't have a photographic memory then that means studying the world around you by drawing everything.
Draw from reference -> build internal reference library -> more reference to use from imagination -> learn new method from master -> more reference study but now more accurate and effective -> stronger internal reference -> better drawings from imagination.
If you never study using references and you never learn effective methods from masters, you will be extremely limited in your imaginative drawings.
Proko sucks at drawing from imagination because he didn't spend time practicing it. He learned to render references. Most tumblr artists suck at imagination because they ignore reference study and have no idea how to study new references and lack effective methods. They can only do copies of other peoples styles and draw basic 2d shapes.
