Staplebug
02-14-2007, 07:03 AM
I recently did the cover art to Jack's Great Ork Gods (http://www.greatorkgods.co.uk) game - I'm posting up a step-by-step breakdown of the central image.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_a.jpg
This is where it starts, with a scan of the line art. The line art was produced with pen and brush at a 40x22cm scale.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_b.jpg
Here's the flatting- it blocks in the main areas of the image in flat colour. It has two purposes; to provide the base colour and to allow easy selection of objects later. The flats go in their own layer.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_c.jpg
The next layer over the top is a set of shades, in quite primative lights and darks. I greatly dislike the over-use of gradients in computer colouring, so I'd rather do this stage by hand. ( For an example of over-and-crap-use of gradients in my early work, see here (http://www.rhaidley.com//pirates1.jpg) )
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_d.jpg
This is a layer of 'global' lighting over the image, predominantly the foreground figures. It consists of uniform dark-blue shadows multiplied in and blue and yellow light sources layed onto the outer surfaces. It's fairly subtle, but I find it tends to bind the image together.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024.jpg
Final image. The sky has been fitted ( this time using a gradient ) and minor tweaks like the eye glints have been added. Voila !
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_a.jpg
This is where it starts, with a scan of the line art. The line art was produced with pen and brush at a 40x22cm scale.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_b.jpg
Here's the flatting- it blocks in the main areas of the image in flat colour. It has two purposes; to provide the base colour and to allow easy selection of objects later. The flats go in their own layer.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_c.jpg
The next layer over the top is a set of shades, in quite primative lights and darks. I greatly dislike the over-use of gradients in computer colouring, so I'd rather do this stage by hand. ( For an example of over-and-crap-use of gradients in my early work, see here (http://www.rhaidley.com//pirates1.jpg) )
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024_d.jpg
This is a layer of 'global' lighting over the image, predominantly the foreground figures. It consists of uniform dark-blue shadows multiplied in and blue and yellow light sources layed onto the outer surfaces. It's fairly subtle, but I find it tends to bind the image together.
http://www.rhaidley.com//forjournal//0024.jpg
Final image. The sky has been fitted ( this time using a gradient ) and minor tweaks like the eye glints have been added. Voila !