ART WAR | 2D | Ela'naeyra The Peacekeeper | andrewnimble

[andrewnimble]

UPDATE XIV.

So the concept sheet is done, but I am gonna post it once the illustration is done as well to keep myself motivated for the time I am working on it
Here's a first sketch of the composition and pose. I went through some composition planning and this one I am most happy about, so I am gonna go with it. (theres not much time left anyway) I would like to call the piece "Victory... is it?" or something like that. Meaning that even when the victory is achieved, does it really bring joy? So much blood spilled for "nothing".. U guys can tell me if the idea is stupid or not

Now I've recently bought a new display tablet and have this issue of my colors being a lot different on my laptop monitor and the display tablet. I guess I should believe the colors on the tablet since it has better color range than the laptop display? Tell me guys what you think please. Also will welcome any comments regarding my sketch. Thanks ^^

[Firathion]

Love the idea man. I'll keep an eye out to see it updated. Are you going to add more figures in the scene? Some dead bodies in the background would sell the point better i think. I'm also digging her poze. As for the composition i don't think i have enough knowledge on the subject to form a strong critisism but so far it seems to b working. Keep it up

[douglasderi]

Super cool idea .

[malcom]

liking the idea and the comp so far. Best of luck in this final stretch.

[andrewnimble]

@Firathion Thanks buddy, glad you like it. Yeah there will be hints to show the massacre, which happened on the battlefield just few moments ago. Don't want too tiny details, but there should be bodies, weapons, parts of the sci-fi ships, smoke, fire, whatever there would be on the battlefield after the collision of fantasy and sci-fi armies. I already hinted it a bit with the shapes all around her, but will define it more during the process

@douglasderi Thanks! Hope I can execute it somehow

@malcom Thanks mate! Best of luck to you as well ^^

[adamostridge]

Nice work on the character, I'm excited to see how you handle the environment. I'd recommend maybe trying to thin the wings slightly, they come across quite dense and heavy currently

[andrewnimble]

Some progress.. Decided to have my main light in top left corner so it shines straight into her face, settled with the pose and composition (which I will try to not ruin while adding more elements later haha) and hinted some levels of depth with simple lines.
Although she's a champion it would be weird if she survived the battle with no harm, so that's why I changed the pose a bit so that she holds her wound on her left leg.
Anyway I like where it's going so far and I am enjoying making it which is hopefully a good sign, that the final result could not be a crap.
Appreciate everyone who is still checking my progress and supporting me, it really means a lot. Thank you

@adamostridge Thank you very much! Glad you like it so far. The concept sheet is already done actually, but not posted so I can post it together with the final illustration (if I make it in time :D). The wings are meant to be magical so they are quite "see-through" which maybe lowers the heavy impression they have in the last post.. I hope so at least

[andrewnimble]

Some more sketching and planning elements in my picture. It's super messy right now, but I'm gonna paint over it anyway. Slowly realizing, that rendering this will be pretty damn hard.. But this competition does not mean a competition for me anyway since I don't believe I could win between such a lot of amazing and talented people, so why not! Let's push it as far as I can
Anyway.. I am most unsure about the dragon in the background. What do u guys think? Should I keep him, or throw him away, or maybe he could benefit the composition better somewhere else? Shoot your opinions
Appreciate everyone who is still checking my progress and supporting me, it really means a lot. Thank you ^^

[Firathion]

Diggin it mate ..But, i think it painting would be better off without the dragon. He might mess up the story as people may assume that he is responsible for the massacre.

[malcom]

I think I agree with @Firathion Maybe if she had her hand on the dragon to show there friends then it might work. But then you would have to have the dragon in the foreground. Overall still looking good. Keep up the good work my friend.

[tiiajohnson]

Looking good, I was having energy/health issues too. I hope you can get it done!!

[andrewnimble]

@Firathion @Malcom @tiiajohnson
Thank you so much for all your support my friends. I appreciate it a lot!
I must sadly say, that I won't make it for the competition deadline in the end, but I realized, that I don't even care haha. I'm definitely going to finish this anyway. ^^
About the dragon, you have a point guys, I am gonna remove him.. Right now I am hesitating a bit with starting to go into color, because I have a new tablet display, which shows colors very differently from what my laptop screen shows. I have to figure out which one has more accurate colors so I can adjust the other one to fit. In the mean time I'm preparing the illustration a bit more, making some layers which I will work with and adding more details to my sketch.
Also have to ask you.. What about that crashed ship? I think I'll change the design of it since this doesn't feel too sci-fi. What do you guys think? Maybe some tips how to make it more sci-fi looking?

[tiia]

I'm sorry you won't make the due date, but I hope to see the finished product! I'm having colour/brightness issues too depending on which device I see my work on, I wonder how professionals make sure it's going to turn out properly. From what I can see of the ship, it looks like it could still be sci-fi, it actually reminds me a bit of the ship platform thingies from the latest Star Trek movie... crap or was it one of the Avengers... lol, anyway, they had giant round rotating blades on them, and that looks kind of like what you have going on. You might change the body to match the roundedness of the blade parts, or add something around the blades that's more angular like the body of the ship to give it a more unified appearance. Keep at it! It's going to look great

[andrewnimble]

@tiia thank you for kind words! It's a very hard project, for me as a beginner artist, to paint such a scene. I'm wondering how it's gonna turn out haha Maybe will have to simplify a lot of stuff.

I would normally not do a lineart when approaching a painting, but this peace just feels really complicated for me and I'm still imagining much more elements in it so I felt I need some guides to hold onto.
Anyway here's a little update. I'm not able to invest much time, but trying to move chicken steps forward every day when I find some free time ^^ Redesigned the ship and am more satisfied with it now .. also removed the "confusing" dragon

Yeah and a question for you guys. I am still not entirely sure if I want to go for a low-key or mid-key setup. What do you think would fit the mood better?

[andrewnimble]

Took some time and painted the sky.. Thought about using some "cheat" brushes which I got from an amazing artist Grzegorz Rutkowski (I bet the name rings a bell for some of you and if doesn't u should definitely check out his stuff, he's amazing) to imitate the clouds, but then I realized, that now when the competition is over I have all the time in the world, so I DID and I WILL DO everything hand-painted, cause it helps me to improve and I like the painterly look it gets ^^

Now I need help guys.. Still figuring out my monitor/color problem. On my PC monitor I see the image rather washy, but on my new graphic tablet I see really nice colors. (I know that my tablet has I think 75% RGB spectrum, but I don't know what my other screen has) Anyway the problem is more in the contrast and saturation, than the actual colors, because they somehow match. The QUESTION is then: Do you see the image "washy" or are the colors clear to you guys? Thanks in advance for helping me with this, cause it really makes me mad

[malcom]

Let me start off by saying, love the colors you laid in so far. I really like the feeling and atmosphere. Adds a lot already. I would just recommend playing with the values of the sky a bit more. Some areas seem a bit to close which can also give off a washy-ish look. Keep up the good work. 10 more hours I believe. You got this.

I believe you should modify the contrast as you paint or at the end when you finish. On my main monitor(1920x1080) things look a bit desaturated and a bit washy but on my cintiq(2560 x 1440) it looks fine. Don't worry about it to much. Make adjustments as you go. Save out jpegs just to check. Hopefully that helps a little. Sorry if it doesn't

[Iago_Cavalcante]

Great work so far mate.

I would advise you to block-in all the colors first, before render anything.

Because later on I'll be a pain in the ass for you to adjust all the bonce lights, reflect light, sky lights, fill lights etc. You can always use adjustment layers later of course. Keep it up.

[andrewnimble]

@Malcom Thank you! Glad you like it budd ^^ Yeah the contrast is the main problem of the two different screens + the saturation seems a bit different. The real problem is, that I don't know which one of them should I adjust it to. I used to paint with my small Wacom Intuous on my laptop screen, but I know that the images I created there then looked more saturated and contrasted on other devices like iPad or my phone, so probably my tablet has the more "true" colors? I don't know man.. It's good that I can just adjust it later, but it's making me crazy that I am not sure about it

Thank you @Iago_Cavalcante , appreciate you like it so far.
I already have a main color scheme made by some flat colors, which I use as selections for different regions. I decided to start with the furthest layer which is the sky and work my way towards the foreground so I will have all my lights already there when I approach the character itself. Seemed to me most logical, but maybe there's a better way Also I can then adjust different levels of depth separately which I see as a benefit. Idk. I will see. If it will be a pain in the ass in the end I will learn from that for my next peace

[tiia]

From the colour coming through on my iPad right now it's looking good, and is going to come out lovely!

[Firathion]

Agree with @malcom. You nailed the atmosphere. I'll definately look forward to seeing the finished painting. And thanks for recomending Grzegorz Rutkowski. He's art is mind blowing indeed! As for the washiness, not sure. Maybe seeing it with some more colors and stuff will make it easier to form an opinion. anyway you're doing great, keep it up