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Ekuneshiel — Forest Clearing
Published: 2013-02-12 00:16:49 +0000 UTC; Views: 3759; Favourites: 112; Downloads: 0
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Description
This started out this morning as a foliage and lighting study, and it kind of got away from me. I like the results though!
Should I put this in my portfolio? I think I ought to.[EDIT] Made Lhiya's skin darker like it ought to be, added some more details, noodled around with the foliage a little bit more.
[EDIT2] Fixed where her staff is in relation to her arm. Now she's holding it! Whee!
[EDIT3] Punched up how chromatic things are, added more detail and a bit of texture to the background. Much better!
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Comments: 29
hey i luv your style, preatty good works, sorry my english XD
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I have an observation about your work, since I've been following it for a while and I really like it... The color palette you use is very muted. I'm not sure if it has anything to do with monitor calibration (yours or mine, I dunno), or maybe it's just my personal preference, but everything seems slightly shifted towards a cooler gray. It's not just this piece, I see it in most of your work.
I feel like if you used warmer colors with a higher contrast things might pop out a little better.
For a portfolio piece you're really going to want to punch up the background more. A loose painterly style is ok, but not if it looks rushed. You could fake it a bit by using textures to make the brush strokes less pronounced.
I'm also not sure about her eyes... the angle doesn't quite feel right if the viewer is looking up from below. The eye liner is also the darkest thing in the piece, which might be by design to draw attention to them, but it's not quite working for me with the muted shadows everywhere else.
Not trying to be a downer, just trying to offer constructive criticism
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Thanks for the thoughtful input, man. I was actually kinda bummin' about it, but after sleeping on it I realized a good art director would probably tell me the same things!
I dunno, I think I tend toward a more muted palette because, at least to me, really chromatic colors look "fake." Could be because it's winter and EVERYTHING around here is gray, could be just a general inclination. I'll try making the foliage a bit more chromatic, and dialing back how dark her eyeliner is, and see if that helps out.
Cheers! And thanks again for the input!
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No problem; I felt kind of like an asshole writing it, but critiques need to be blunt. Like you say, an art director isn't going to hold back to spare your feelings.
I know what you mean about the over saturated colors looking fake... color tones are tough to get right, especially on digital where the monitor's color settings can completely hose what you're working on. I usually wind up adjusting the curve values on my work in photoshop once I'm done. Sometimes I can hit large areas with a soft airbrush and a warm, dark color with a really low flow, using a multiply layer to bring things out.
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Ah, that's a good tip! I'll try that in the future.
How's it look now? Any better? I spent some extra time punching things up.
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Nice angle! I think that face is a bit off from perspective point, but I like the stylization. And the coloring is amazing too! A little feedback - the staff that she's holding should be lower - cause for now it's probably piercing her arm right above her hand.
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Thanks for looking and for the input! I'll have to fix that staff problem really quick. I actually noticed it the other day, and then got distracted before I could fix it.
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Yeah,it happens - I still find some things I forgot on some paintings
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love the perspective and the lighting. it brings the composition together nicely
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Thanks! I had a lot of fun with the streams of light!
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Welcome!
i always have fun playing with colors and lighting when I don't think too hard about them. it's always fun when everything just naturally comes together.
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Nice perspective on this!
Love seeing the little details like the stitching on her pouches.
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Thanks Bezzy! 
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Ooh, pretty. It's nice seeing something with a bit more stillness from you!
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Thanks! 
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Good Updates I think they helped it blend a bit better
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I think you should put it in. The perspective and lighting alone are fantastic looking. I feel that due to how light her skin and hair are that her head gets a little lost and blends into the background just a tad, but other than that the overall design is quite nice to look at.
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Heh, I actually just updated it. Her skin's supposed to be darker, so I darkened her up a bit. 
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Oh MUCH better! Now she pops out like she should.
Hope your portfolio gets you somewhere. You have a lot of really nice pieces in it.
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Yeah, she's supposed to look a little Middle-Eastern, at least in complexion. I just hadn't quite gotten it dialed in yet.
Thanks man, I hope it does too. Keepin' my fingers crossed!
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