Uplift Universe - Image Entry: Daniel Lieske

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206199944_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206199944_large.jpg)

I would like to enter this challenge with a small concept scribble. For this challenge I want to depict one of the most basic relations between humans and aliens. Human heros kicking nasty alien's butts to save beautiful women is a theme with a great tradition in fantasy and sci fi art. I wanted to create a classic action scene for quite a while now but I never got anything going. I hope this challenge once again will help me to bring something to life that would otherwise stay hidden inside me.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206385536_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206385536_large.jpg)

I want to use this challenge to develop a character that I scribbled in early 2006. It's a spaceship captain who somehow gets warped into an unknown part of the universe and has to find his way in a fantastic alien environment. These are my original sketches from 2006.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206386221_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206386221_large.jpg)

I'm trying to get closer to the character that is in my head. I have not yet found the right proportions and style I'm looking for. In my imagination, the space captain is a tough and bulky guy. I want to go into the direction of Mike Mignola's Hellboy and the superhero paintings of Alex Ross. The character's name is Captain Orion (actually his name is O'Ryan but it just sounds like Orion so he got this nickname). Orion is supposed to wear one of these great silvery space suites and a satin pilot jacket with a fur purled hood. He also wears one of these astronaut caps, which I find look kind of goofy and cool the same time. I would like him to look like some old battle worn knight but in a space scenario. He's going to be fighting a really huge alien monster so he has to look like he's going to take some blows. I'll have to do some more sketches to find the character but the overall direction is right I think.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206476880_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206476880_large.jpg)

I elaborated more on the hero character, this time I sketched some values to depict different materials. Later I would like to contrast different materials like blank metal, the silvery space suite, the dark rubbery parts on the arms and the shimmering flight satin of the jacket together with it's fur applications. I'm also getting closer to the look of the character every time. These variations are too old but I like the knight-like appearance. That's exactly, what I'm looking for.

[MiGa]

Nice sketches! Looking good. Looking forward for some Alien sketches :)
Good luck!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206482608_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206482608_large.jpg)

Now, that is pretty close to what I want the character to look like. The pose is a bit dull but for a costume shot that's ok, I guess. I will work out the finer details and proportions in the 3D model. I did not yet mention, that I'm going to use ZBrush on this project, did I? Well, the plan is to sculpt the whole scene and then do some sweet compositing with all the materials and so on. Well, I've never done that before so bear with me! :)

[Drikus]

Hi Daniel.
The current charakter sketch looks very nice! I can't wait to see the next steps and the other two protagonists.
I've already mentioned it: I love the chrome technique you are using to show the metal parts in your raw sketch.


Stay creative
Chris

[arschgesicht]

hey daniel,
great to see you here! cool sketches/concept so far, i will watch this thread for sure!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206564119_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206564119_large.jpg)

After I have designed my hero I now think that it might be usefull to define the scene I'm going to show a little bit more acurate.
I imagine the fight to take place in the treetops of an alien planet. The hero will take a dynamic jumping pose and the monster will taunt him with the damsel in distress in his claws.
Now, this small thumbnail is really very rough but it should give an impression of the work I'm still facing. I have no idea on the alien monster yet and I think I will design it to fit the flow of the tree trunk it's climbing on. The main concern will be to create distinctive shapes that read well. I guess that the 3D process will be helpfull because you can shift around and scale and rotate a lot until you get the right shape.
I decided that the 'damsel in distress' should be alien, too. Isn't that a nice twist - a human saving an alien from an alien! :)

Ok, what else? I quite like the color sceme but i will definetely not decide on this just yet. 3D is there to play around with everything later, isn't it?

I guess, it might be a good idea to sketch the whole scene out in ZBrush in the next step. Stay tuned!

[maykrender]

Looks very good, i like the concept of this nice space hero, nice to see funny feel of your interpretation.
I haven't read a book, so i can't to tell more ;) but I like it

[cerebro]

What's the name for your spaceship captain??

the sketches looks great, nice work!!

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks for your nice replies!

The name of the hero is Captain Darragh O'Ryan (yeah, he's got irish roots...) but the other space prospectors mostly know him as Captain Orion. And I already have found a name for his space clipper, too. A few days ago I saw a flyer of a local reptile zoo. It features the 'world famous white alligator'. Well, and that's the name of his ship - the White Alligator. Bit his ship is not to be seen in this artwork. Perhaps in a later one. :)

Thanks for you interest!

[stefgrafx]

like the color sheme, the little guy remenber me buzz light gear ;)...

[BaronImpossible]

Great sketches, nice colour work on the last one too :thumbsup:

[LightSovereign]

I'm impressed with the authority shown in your character art. i like the colours of your latest aswell!

Marley

[azazel]

The captain looks great, lots of personality, and the scene sketch looks nice as well, i like the colors. Good luck :)

[Drikus]

Very nice color sheme.
I like the basic poses, but what I am missing is the "wild beast" represented by the big alien. You could show him a little bit more ducked, in direction to the hero, with a wide open mouth to give the viewer the feeling of a "roaring alien".

Stay creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

@ stefgrafx:

Haha, you're totally right! That's Buzz Lightyear in that thumb! I did not see that in the first place but now it's obvious. :)

@ BaronImpossible:

Thank you! That means a lot from your mouth.

@ LightSovereign & azazel:

Thank you!

@ Drikus:

Thanks buddy! Your right, the alien monster does not really work very good in the thumb. But that's ok, because I'm going to design and tweak this creature directly in 3D where I can see the impact of different design approaches directly. this thumbnail is really only a very rough depiction of the scene.

I've started with a rough 3D scene and as soon as I have all characters blocked in I will be back for feedback.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206657992_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206657992_large.jpg)

So, after two evenings of work I've got my first scene layout. I used the same basemesh on the three characters and blocked in their masses only very rough.

Now it's time to work on the individual characters. I'm going into more detail and will also tweak the individual poses.

Since the alien monster was blocked in using a human basemesh it turned out quite humanoid. But that's ok I guess. I don't mind the monster to get a classic muscular monster look but I will definetely push the anatomy of the beast when I'm detailing it. There need to be horn plates, thorns or something like that.

The alien damsel should be quite straitforward, I guess. I'm going for a classic voluminous fantasy chick. The kind you would like to rescue yourself from the clutches of a giant alien hulk. :)

I think I will sculpt the Captain last. The hard round forms in his costume are a bit daunting. I'm wondering how this all will work out in the end. :)

[joshpurple]

Wow! You are bulging with skill! Outstanding work :D .

[laurentino]

your sketches are wonderful
awesome work!

[vmulligan]

Are you sure you want to go with the stereotypical "damsel in distress"? It seems kind of a passé image in the twenty-first century. I like to think we're moving beyond gender stereotypes like that...

On the technical side, though, your work is quite impressive. I particularly like your sketches for the male character. A small criticism of the monster: its legs are asymmetrical. One bends like a human's, while the other seems to have the shape of a goat or horse leg. It's probably something you'll fix in going from your rough blocked-out shape to the finished piece, of course, but I thought I'd mention it just in case.

[beelow]

Nice colors and Nice composition. On top of that mood is always nice with your paintings. I enjoyed your journey begins piece. Welcome! :thumbsup:

[HornlessUnicorn]

Cool stuff, Daniel! I'm sure this will look great in the end! Can't wait to see more.


:thumbsup:

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks everyone for the encouragement!

@ vmulligan:

Thanks for your input! I understand your scepticism concerning the theme. The 'damsel in distress' is quite an old fashioned idea. Nevertheless I'm still fascinated by artwork featuring this theme. Perhaps that is because of it's very simpel and archetypical nature. For me, by the way, this theme is not so much about 'man saving woman' but more about 'man mastering his fear in order to help the weak'. Of course I do not want to pretend that I'm going for deep meaning in this peace but I think that my point of view will show in the details.

Right now I'm thinking about how I might be able to break the strong man/woman/sexuality connotation. Captain Orion is not the type pf guy who breaks women's hearts. The beard lets him appear a bit old and his struggle to save the girl should appear more to be a fatherly impuls. Perhaps I can support this point of view if I make the girl a child. That should break the sexual connotation and support the theme of the 'hero doing good without fear'.

I think I will experiment in this direction. Thank you again, for the input!

Concerning the legs: I guess the view does not show it quite right at the moment. The monster has very long feet at the moment. I think the beast's anatomy should become more clear with the details.

[LightSovereign]

I like this new shot in 3d, you can see the type of energy that your trying to set up, which has whet my appetite for more :D..

I love the fact that he is Irish..i instantly heard Ardal O'hanlon, who played Father Doogle McGuire from 'Father Ted'..so that inadvertently brought in a humerous context for me..

Interesting thoughts on changing the damsil to a child..

Now i know you are taking this subject matter very seriously, but when i read about your proposal to shift the context..I instantly thought of a "roles reversal" (no not a rolls can-hardly *snorts*)

Where the hero is being rescued by the child, and the Alien is retreating in fear..that would be an interesting shot, for not only is it a parody of the "Damsil" situation but it knocks on the door of kids being scared of the closet monster or the one under the bed, If you know what i mean?...of course that changes the ambience from tension to humour..

anyways, mighty fine work so far!!.

Marley

[RoGreg]

hi there,

yeah, King Kong in space.
The layout looks good already.

About that damsel in distress - theme: How about switching the man and the woman?
I'd find that more interesting.

But this will be good anyways :D

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206720522_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206720522_large.jpg)

I'm just playing around with the layout scene a bit to entertain you. I think I will stick with the first version. I might, however, turn the whole scene slightly towards the red version, because there the pose of the monster comes out a bit more clear I think.

It's fun to find different compositions and to find out how the scene flows as a whole so that several view angles produce nice compositions. I'm not used to that kind of freedom and I have to watch out that I don't get lost between all the possibilities.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206746806_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206746806_large.jpg)

I started sculpting the first level of detail on the monster. I'm not sure if I will stick with the beak and the birdlike head. It would be a good excuse for not having to model teeth. :) The most time I spend on the body. Applications like horn plates or thorns will follow in later steps. Right now I was concerned with placing the muscles right.

[ScottC]

That's some fast work. Looking great so far. You did a nice job blocking in the rough mesh figure poses. Did you just use the Zbrush quick transpose functions for that?

[tkier]

Very nice. Looking forward to seeing this one finished.

[RupertD]

Thats a really interesting way of working, working up your concepts in 2d then sculpting in 3d. Looking forward to more.

[digitaldecoy]

Time for some replies!

@ LightSovereign & RoGreg:

Nice thoughts about the theme but I don't think that I will drive the artwork into comical grounds. It's perhaps a bit strange but I like these modern myths. Besides, there has allready formed a little story about this artwork in my head.

@ ScottC:

Yes, I used the Transpose Feature a lot for bringing the figures into their poses.

@ tkier:

Thanks! I'm wondering what the final piece will look like, too. :)

@ RupertD:

Indeed, it's really an interesting workflow. Like I mentioned above somewhere, it's the first time, I do a scene like that. Normally I'm used to a 2D Workflow and I encountered several interesting points in working in 3D.

The most interesting thing for me at the moment is, that everday I open the scene, I find a new detail which does not look quite perfect. After I posted the last version for example, I found out, that it would look much better, if the right hand of the monster would form a straight line with the forearm. This way it would much better convey the feeling, that the monster is hanging with his weight on this hand.
In 2D terms, having allready rendered the muscles and everthing would make it quite tedious to change such a detail. In 3D it's just bending things right into place and you're done. For me that means that I can work on details although the pose might not be perfect yet. It does not hurt to make changes and that's quite fascinating.
Another point is, that in 2D I tend to overlook problems in the construction or anatomy after a few hours. I need days and days until I have regained an objective eye on my work. I do not have this problem in 3D so much, I think. Perhaps it's because you always see your work from different views and there's no single view the eye can get used to. Together with the possibility to change things fast, this really helps me to push the boundary I think.

Ok, enough thinking - back to work! :)

[nochuss]

nice work..watching this evolve is great

[Goro]

yo daniel!
Glad you're in!
So you are doing 3D this time? Nice nice I'm looking forward to see your
models grow! Looks great already.
I thought about doing a 2D 3D mixture too...
So good luck mate!

[vmulligan]

Thanks for your input! I understand your scepticism concerning the theme. The 'damsel in distress' is quite an old fashioned idea. Nevertheless I'm still fascinated by artwork featuring this theme. Perhaps that is because of it's very simpel and archetypical nature. For me, by the way, this theme is not so much about 'man saving woman' but more about 'man mastering his fear in order to help the weak'. Of course I do not want to pretend that I'm going for deep meaning in this peace but I think that my point of view will show in the details.

Right now I'm thinking about how I might be able to break the strong man/woman/sexuality connotation. Captain Orion is not the type pf guy who breaks women's hearts. The beard lets him appear a bit old and his struggle to save the girl should appear more to be a fatherly impuls. Perhaps I can support this point of view if I make the girl a child. That should break the sexual connotation and support the theme of the 'hero doing good without fear'.

I think I will experiment in this direction. Thank you again, for the input!


Ah, I can respect that. Best of luck in developing this idea!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206820554_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206820554_large.jpg)

I continued sculpting on the beast which I have dubbed "Hawkbeast".

These primitive creatures live in the treetops of the planet on which Captain Orion is stranded. The Hawkbeasts have birdish roots but their wings developed into strong climbing arms. Their arms and legs a partly covered with hardened horn plates which make the Hawkbeast fierce predators. They have the nasty habit to climb down their trees and visit the villages of the native humanoids. If they get a chance, they prey on the weak and it sometimes happens, that a Hawkbest catches a child which in this case will never return to it's family. Unless there's someone to stand up against the monster that is.

I think I will make a new topology for the beast before I go into further detail. A lot of work ahead! :)

[Nomad]

Wow awesome work so far :thumbsup: your zbrushing is great, I just bought it and hope to get your level before 2059 :D

I`m looking forward for more stunning art :bounce:

[ScottC]

For whatever it's worth, I think some people have you over-thinking the "damsel in distress" motiff. It's not "passe", it's iconic. Its going to be something immediately grasped and appreciated by the viewer.

Some people's "politics du jour" might read more into it, but the fact is its just *that* particular damsel who needs a hand, not every damsel. You could change the imperiled subject to another guy, and the image would still work, but it would lose some of it's charm and whimsy that you have right now with the classic fairy tale themes.

Political correctness has no place in art.


I find it impressive that you're posing the figures first, then sculpting like in a traditional real world sculpting process. The effortless symmetry functions in modern 3d apps have made me very lazy for the "sculpt then pose" workflow. Although, considering how mangled my form usually gets after posing unless I spend days meticulously tweaking rig weighting, its probably counter productive for static images.

Out of curiosity, are you using the "poseable symmetry" function in ZB , or is that all just eyeballed?

[vmulligan]

For whatever it's worth, I think some people have you over-thinking the "damsel in distress" motiff. It's not "passe", it's iconic. Its going to be something immediately grasped and appreciated by the viewer.

Some people's "politics du jour" might read more into it, but the fact is its just *that* particular damsel who needs a hand, not every damsel. You could change the imperiled subject to another guy, and the image would still work, but it would lose some of it's charm and whimsy that you have right now with the classic fairy tale themes.

Political correctness has no place in art.

"Political correctness has no place in art"? On the contrary! As artists, we have a responsibility to think about the way in which our art shapes our society. While I don't agree with externally imposed censorship, if one is going to perpetuate a stereotype with a piece of artwork, one ought to have a good reason for it. (Stereotypes should also be avoided in art because they're dull, and art is about the new). Now in this case, it seems clear that the artist has given a good deal of thought as to why he wants to portray what he intends to portray; he also has a new and interesting spin to give to the "damsel in distress" scenario. Giving the subject matter careful thought is certainly not over-thinking, though, especially when potentially negative stereotypes are involved.

Incidentally, I wouldn't call the equality of the sexes "politics du jour". The women's rights movement is a lot older than you or me, and it's here to stay. It doesn't mean that every "damsel in distress" is a step backwards -- but we do need to be mindful of sex stereotypes, as Daniel seems to be.

[ScottC]

"Political correctness has no place in art"? On the contrary! As artists, we have a responsibility to think about the way in which our art shapes our society. While I don't agree with externally imposed censorship, if one is going to perpetuate a stereotype with a piece of artwork, one ought to have a good reason for it. (Stereotypes should also be avoided in art because they're dull, and art is about the new). Now in this case, it seems clear that the artist has given a good deal of thought as to why he wants to portray what he intends to portray; he also has a new and interesting spin to give to the "damsel in distress" scenario. Giving the subject matter careful thought is certainly not over-thinking, though, especially when potentially negative stereotypes are involved.

Incidentally, I wouldn't call the equality of the sexes "politics du jour". The women's rights movement is a lot older than you or me, and it's here to stay. It doesn't mean that every "damsel in distress" is a step backwards -- but we do need to be mindful of sex stereotypes, as Daniel seems to be.

I meant political correctness in the sense of that knee jerk overreaction people have developed over the last 20 years to ideas that could be tied to any concept that could be considered remotely offensive. I don't necessarily disagree with some of the things you've said, but I don't think any of them apply to anything Daniel is doing with his piece. Grimm fairy tales and King Kong will be classic stories that artists still channel hundreds of years from now, past many different social/political climates when we've moved on to being ridiculously over-offended by something else, like shiny purple buttons or something.

In any event, we'll have to disagree and move on, as this is Daniel's thread, and agree that he is off to a great start with his entry.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206904553_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1206904553_large.jpg)

I'm right in the middle of retopologizing the Hawkbeast. As soon as I left the face area I stopped to care about symmetry completely. I'm basicly only trying to put the polygons were I need them.

I first thought that I might skip the retopo of the Hawkbeast because most parts of the humanoid basemesh worked quite fine. Now I'm quite happy that I spent the time and I'm really looking forward to the new mesh. I did some small sculpting tests on the new mesh part and I think that the new topology will enable me to do some nice and sharp detail.

I spent quite a lot of time on this first part (something around 5 hours) which is mostly due to the high poly count around the face and mouth and the fact that I can not use mirrored tools. The area under the chin was massive pain to retopo because you cannot hide the mesh nor make it transparent (and if I CAN, please teach me!). However, the worst part is done now and I hope that I do not need much more then 10 hours to do the rest. I just mustn't think about the fact, that with mirrored tools I would only need half the time. I think I will retopo Captain Orion in a t-pose to avoid the doubled work. But in fact I do not regret not to have modelled the Hawkbeast in t-pose. In this case, the volumes on both sides are so different that it makes sense to work on the model unmirrored.

Ok, next post will be the finished retopo mesh.

[digitaldecoy]

@ ScottC:

Concerning your question, I did not use poseable symmetry on this scultpting though it maybe would have made sense on the hands. On the other hand, symmetry tends to get slow the further you get away from the symmetry axis so I might possibly not have gained anything by using it.

[Manuel3D]

Wow! Great Sculpting man! :D

[na]

Excellent sketches, the very first made me chuckle :) The modellings looking really good too. Good luck with this!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207169975_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207169975_large.jpg)

Finally, I have finished the retopo of the Hawkbeast. Man, these are about 4500 Polys and they are all drawn by hand. I spend nearly 13 hours on this task. I do hope, that the other characters can be refined without massive retopo. Right at the moment I ask myself if it was worth all the work. I guess, I will find out about that when I'm sculpting the details in the next step.

[Hideyoshi]

hey Daniel!
Sehr schönes modelling soweit! Auch die Skizzen gefallen mir sehr gut!
Ich find, das alien könnte noch ne ganze Ecke 'crazier' sein, also designmäßig -vielleicht ein paar interessant definierte Körperformen, Zacken und Co. :)
Oder die gewöhnliche 3-Zehen Fussform etwas abändern...

[ChristianHammer]

Really like the color sketch, and the work so far... I hope to follow your progress.

[GiantG]

Hey Daniel...Nice Work so far...

I agree with Hideyoshi. The Shape of the Beast could be more freaky. It reads a bit ordinary at the moment. I know that detailing is the next Task, but this won't change the main Shape.
Maybe you put on some Stuff like Feathers and Hornplates the makes the shape more interesting.
At the Moment i cannot say if the Beast ist evil or good. It's kind of neutral for me.

Looking forward for updates...

Cheerz...

[Drikus]

Hi buddy.
Believe me, all the retopo is worth to do it. You will have much more fexibility now. It is now to make the expression.

Stay creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

@ Hideyoshi & GiantG:

I see your points. I'm not 100% satisfied with the silhouette of the monster, too. It's my task now to push the design in the detailing process which I also want to use, to refine the proportions a bit. The head can become a bit more expressive, I would say and I'll try to use the hornplates to create some accents in the silhouette.

Concerning your point, GiantG, since it is a wild animal creature it's ok that it does not look like an 'evil alien'. I want to create a creature, that is beautiful and menacing the same time. Just like a lion or a gorilla are not 'evil' creatures, but you won't put on a fight with em, you know? I think, that the texturing of the Hawkbeast will play an important role in hopefully achieving this. Colors and markings can do so much to a creature design. I hope that in the coloring I'll have the chance to push the design even further. But that's future talk. First let's see, what I can do with the form alone. :)

@ Drikus:

Right, buddy! Now I will spend some hours sculpting on this baby. I'm looking forward to this since last weekend. :)

[NH]

Stunning work ! waiting for your more detailed version :)

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207260245_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207260245_large.jpg)

Ok, first session of detailing is over. I concentrated on the overall masses and put in the horn plates. I began to work on the head a bit more detailed but I'm still on a low detail level here. This is only subdivision level 4 and there are already enough polys to go into detail in most places. However, to create fine wrinkles and horny skin I will go up to subdivision level 5 or 6. Still a lot of work to do.

I purchased Richard Rosenman's Depth of Field Pro plug in for photoshop recently. I hope you don't mind me to play around with it a bit in my WIP images (like I did here). I can really recommend this plug in to everbody who uses ZBrush. Since you always get a Depth Channel when you export an image via ZAppLink into photoshop you can do really nice things with this plug in.

[LightSovereign]

the depth of field works nicely..is it something that you physically adjust or it calculates on its own..hmm if you did use i am wondering if your damsil would be affected by it aswell..In anycase, its coming along nicely..i like the teal lightsoucing

[Drikus]

Hi Daniel.
Yes, slowly we can see, where the way is going. Very nice. A little bit to much DOF, but we know, who is responsible for using this plug... ;) :thumbsup:

Be creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks for your replies!

I don't know yet if I will use the depth of field effect in the final composition. In this WIP it just serves the purpose to direct the attention to the part I put the most work in. For the final composition I'm going for a more illustrative look I think, were everything is in sharp focus. But I won't finally decide on this just yet. I will definetly experiment with the alternatives.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207504983_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207504983_large.jpg)

Did some hours of sculpting today. I tried some different brushes and I experimented with the level of detail I want to reach in the end. Still a lot of work ahead!

[mmoir]

Hey Daniel,


Nice job on your alien monster so far, it is a cool looking design. I look forward to the rest of your image.

[HFix]

really great modeling!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207605010_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207605010_large.jpg)

Another Sculpting WIP. That's really hard work! This evening I spent on the arm. I think I overdid the claws a bit. I will go on to another part of the model and return to the arm when I have regained a fresh look on it.

[Drikus]

Goog morning dude.

Don't forget, you will add a lot of color to this piece. What I mean: You don't need so much details, if you are planning to paint textures. Details are only interesting for animation or closeups. So, if you plan some animation later, you need the details, but if you will render a still only, so I would stop the sculpting at this point.

Furthermore don't forget the following: Every detail that you are setting up now, you will have to reach for every further parts of the scene to get the same quality everywhere in the image...

Be creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

These are good points you mention there, Drikus. But you also have to see, that this arm alone is nearly as big as one of the other characters, so I have to plant some details there. But I guess I won't get into much more detail than that. I think I can handle this level of detail troughout the whole picture. But on the other hand, that's a wild guess because I've never done it before. Lots of experience to gain from this project.

[RupertD]

Hey Daniel - like your stuff a lot and will definitely try your technique out once I have a faster machine and the brainpower to learn the software.
I would say there are two tricks you lose out on if you sculpt in 3d for a 2d illustration:

In 2d
a) you dont have to draw objects that are behind objects / cannot be seen
b) you can get away with just drawing in a silhoutte for some areas and the picture will still work.

Thats my 5 cents worth...

[digitaldecoy]

I definetely agree to your list of 2D advantages, RupertD. I would also add, that in 2D you have a much easier job to paint every part just the way it looks best and nobody complains about it. In 3D I experience the problem that everytime I rotate the model, some parts look good (e.g. have nice silhouettes) and others look dull. When I rotate the model to fix the dull parts, the former good ones look not so good any more.

In fact, this project serves me to find out how 3D Sculpting might help me to create 2D images. Right at the moment it's just a lot of work (and much of it being useless, because you won't see big parts of the model in a 2D image). But I'm really looking forward to the part, when all models are ready and I can concentrate on compositing the different light passes. Also, the possibilty to create more then one image form one single scene is tempting, but that's not the point in this experiment. In this image I want to find out, how to create rich detail with a maximum of flexibility till the last minute. I really like to render details in images but I also always have the feeling to be stuck to one single track by commiting to certain detail and not being able to change things as soon as I'm rendering the detail. The 3D sculpting has the advantage to be completely flexibel till the very end. Although I have rendered wrinkles and crevices I can practically change poses and views any time. But again, that's an experiment for me because we all know that to much possibilities can hinder the creative process.

I'm really as curious as everyone else to find out how this all will work out. I'm really determined to finish this one just to find out how it all will work out in the end.

[DeeVad]

Hi Digitaldecoy,
It's a nice experimentation you do with this WIP, very interresting to read your 3D process with your strong and solid 2D skill level.
I even think that do it in 3D/sculpting is an handicap compare that if you would make it 100% 2D, could be less time consuming for you.

For my side, I experiment by the past a lot with the limit with 3D to 2D workflow : creating 3D dummy for 2D rendering , and when better stop 3D work to finish in 2D. It's not easy, and more I come back to pure 2D, cause it's more similar way to digest the way evolving my creative feeling.

I will continue to read your thread, very interresting. Good luck !

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207690149_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207690149_large.jpg)

And another sculpting WIP of the Hawkbeast. I guess I'll need two more scultping sessions of about 3 hours to finish this model. I'm looking forward to work on a new subject and I guess you'll also be happy to see something else than muscles and hornplates. :)

[MichaelZHsee]

very nice modeling mate,awesome update,totally agreed what u have just said above about how the 3d sculpting helps u to create 2d images:)keep it coming mate

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207777530_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207777530_large.jpg)

Ok, for the time being I stop working on the Hawkbeast now. I have reached a decent level of detail in all visible parts of the model. My eye gets a bit strained on all the detail and I guess it is a good idea to start the other characters. When I'm done with all the other modeling I'm sure I will tweak several parts of the Hawkbeast but for now I'm done with it.

I guess, the other characters will be finished a lot faster. At least I'm hoping so. :)

For those who are interested in numbers:

The Hawkbeast has 4.8 millions of polygons. That's quite a moderate polygon count considering the amount of tiny detail in this model. It's due to the retopologizing that I'm getting away with such a small number of polys here, I guess. And that's important because I'm calculating another 5 million polygons for each of the other two characters and about 10 million polygons for the tree. The latter I will have to split into several parts in order to being able to sculpt it on my machine. I'm really curious if there will be trouble to render all this stuff in a high resolution in ZBrush...

[Drikus]

Moin buddy.


Very nice, that's all, what I can say for now. Hope you will succed, it's a lot of open work before you.

And if you have problems to render the stuff, you know who can help you... ;)

Be creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207995449_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1207995449_large.jpg)

Before going on with the next character I felt the urge to do some previsualization with the material I have so far. I started to fear that things might not come together as I imagined them to do. I'm a 2D Artist and I sort of missed the feeling of making progress.

That's why I took a shot of the current sculpting state and worked over it in photoshop just to get the feeling that I'm heading somewhere here.

I also took the opportunity to plan on some details concerning the other characters. I tested a color sceme in the alien girl and also sketched some ideas for her costume. The color work on the Hawkbeast is a total dummy. I don't quite know how to paint him in the end but I will work that out later.

I also sketched some ideas for the tree and the background. First I thought, I would paint them by hand but I get the impression that ist might look awkward to mix 3D with pure 2D so I now plan to do some sculpting on the background detail, too. I definetely plan to work over all parts in 2D when everything is composed.

I collected some story bits, too. For all, who might be interested in it I can now tell, that the depicted scene takes place in the lush jungles of Planet Aloya. Captain Orion has a crash landing on this planet after having flewn his ship through an ancient space portal and the alien girl is the first humanoid lifeform for him to encounter in this remote place. She wants to accompany him but being the lone wolf character he is, Orion tries zu shake her off. However, as the girl suddenly is taken by the ferocious Hawkbeat, Orion runs to her rescue...

[maykrender]

Looks so, sooo good!! especially colours and creature!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208015520_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208015520_large.jpg)

Before I'm starting sculpting on the alien girl I scribbled a concept sketch of how she might look like. I imagine her native to the jungles so I gave her some sort of primitive knottet clothing. Her hair might be knotted, too. I'm not sure about jewelry ot tattoos, I will decide on that in the sculpting process.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208102059_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208102059_large.jpg)

I'm making good progress with the alien girl.I have sculpted her body and hair in t-pose and now I'm going to put her into pose.

I had to do very little retopo here. I just fixed her hands and inserted some polys in her mouth and ears. The hair was first modelled out of a sphere and then I did a quick retopo on it.

I will model her clothing in pose because I'm going to use Extract Mesh for that and it would be quite a pain to fit her skin tight clothing to the body when it's put into pose. Detailing on the hair will also have to wait until she's in pose.

I'm very happy that it took not too long to arrive at this state.

[nwiz25]

hard work paid off! :eek: me can't wait to see this in colour! :p best wishes to you dude! :thumbsup:

[FBiege]

hey daniel !

spannendes projekt- ich freu mich über jeden neuen schritt. :)

2 sachen drängen sich mir auf und die muss ich mal gerade loswerden.
dabei weiß ich noch nicht genau, was noch wip ist...naja, ich schreib einfach mal:

- einmal stört mich, dass die hand den baum so sehr schneidet, also weil sich da so viele
dinge überschneiden. ich hab irgendwie das bedürfnis, den blickwinkel mehr zu drehen,
dass man das monster mehr von vorne sieht und die hand frei vor dem hintergrund steht.

-was hat der retter genau vor ? selbst wenn das monster gar nichts macht, sieht das nicht
so aus, als könnte der mann irgendwas bewirken...
oder bekommt der noch nen lichtschwer oder ne railgun oder so ? :D

hau rein !

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208209049_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208209049_large.jpg)

I put the alien girl into pose today. I guess I could give the pose a bit more drama but before I'm able to pull that off I better sleep a night over it. Tomorrow I 'll have a fresh go at her.

[beelow]

How much more detail you are going to do before you add texture? You can sculpt it to oblivion, but consider the timeframe that you have. I am pretty sure that you understand that. Continue to pimp these models out. :beer: :beer:

[Kuanbyr]

Wow, that is some excellent work! I am really liking your Hawkbeast. You have done some very impressive work in a very short period of time. Nicely done.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208295672_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208295672_large.jpg)

Ok, another evening and another 3 hours of sculpting later and I'm pretty happy with the alien girl now. I surely will fix some things on her when I later revisit her with a fresh view but for now she's done.

You know what that means! Right, it's time for the Captain! I'm really looking forward to sculpting the Captain. I'm really curious to see, how he turns out.

[Neubius]

excellent!

( teach me zbrush! i can't work it out on my own :( haha )

[digitaldecoy]

After having slept a night over it I definetely see several issues that should be fixed. For example the braid at her ear. It's sticking to the face and should be flying I think. And I need to ephasize the muscles on her left arm to show, that she is pushing against the monster's grip.

Anyway, time for some replies:

@ nwiz25:

I'm longing for color, too. I could't resist to put at least a few flat colors into the latest WIP. :)

@ lucy.turm:

The monster's supposed to cling to the tree. There's no camera angle in which the hand would stand alone before the background. I hope, this becomes more clear when I have a proper dropshadow on the tree.

Of course, Captain Orion will not defeat the Hawkbeast bearehanded. I plan to give him a blaster pistol. Also I will work on his pose and might change it a lot. The current pose is quite dynamic but it's a bit ridiculous, too. 'What is he going to do?' is the first question that comes into mind when you look at him. I want to preserve this question but also want to portray an action that's more believable. I'll try to create a pose, which foreshadows dangerous action but also captures a moment of hesitation and tension. Hold your thumbs! :)

@ beelow:

Yeah, you're totally right about the detail. I'm quite happy that the girl will be quite small in the final image so I do not have to put too much detail into her (e.g. fingernails, teeth etc.). I also think that I'm going for a more stylised look on the detail in the image. I could for example stamp the Hawkbeast with tiny skin detail and wrinkles and everthing. But I think those things won't read in the final image so I'm careful with that. When all objects are sculpted I will try to match their detail levels as good as possible.

@ Kuanbyr:

It's funny that you're saying that I have done everthing in a short time. I've got the feeling that I'm working on this for ages! :D

Thanks for your replies. Please feel free to crit on anything you encounter! My view becomes biased and I'm not sure if I see all the issues that surface in this growing scene.

[MartinNielsen]

Nice work, digitaldecoy :) Poor woman...

I understand what working pressure can do to you. I just dropped out of the DW3. Everything seemed ok, and then suddenly I lost all motivation to finish my work. I love doing 3d, but it's also so much hard work.

[FBiege]

aah misunderstandig, i was tallking about the other hand.
maybe its not really possible to turn the point of view so much,
that it can stand alone before the background. but i´m not
so happy with that area or the silhouette .. well, maybe its just me ;)

looking forward for the captain (with a good weapon!), your sketches were promising.

[digitaldecoy]

@ Neubius:

Just invest some time to watch the tutorials on the ZBrush homepage. That's how I got the clue. It's really worth the effort, ZBrush is the most inspirational software I used in years (last time I had this feeling btw. was Maya Paint Effects - it just felt like playing although it was work).

@ MartinNielson:

Sorry to hear that you had to cancle your DW3 entry for lack of motivation. For me it works quite the other way around I must say. I seldom find the motivation to really put effort into a single piece. These challenges are a huge factor in my motivation. It was exactly the same with "The Journey Begins". I would never have painted it without these challenges. I think the trick is to create an artwork that you really want to do and to which you relate to in a deeper sense. Don't think too much about how it fits the task of the contest. If it just quite fits, just do it. In this case for example I know that the jury will look for the best story idea in the artwork. I could have constructed an elaborate story concept and could have put much effort into developing a striking idea in order to win over the jury. But that's not the point here. I knew I ever wanted to do a classic action pinup like Frazetta. Furthermore I've had this character lurking in my mind for two years now and last but not least I wanted do to an elaborate piece in ZBrush but never found the right topic to motivate me. I just mixed all these ambitions together and take this challenge to fuel my motivation (and as an excuse for my wife for coming to bed way too late every evening). I know, whatever in the end the jury might think about my entry, I will have fullfilled three wishes for myself and I know, by putting as much effort as possible into this piece, I'll be able to give me a real treat in mid may when these wishes come true :)

@ lucy.turm:

All right, that makes much more sense. I share your feeling and I have also rotated the scene a few times to see if another view might produce a better picture. I will come back to this point when the modelling is done. Fortunately, in 3D you can postpone these basic decisions to a later point in time (which through the eyes of a 2D Artist is just crazy! :) ).

[Neubius]

been dying to get in to it, it seems like the perfect crossover from 2d to 3d. but can't find any tutorials that start from the begining!

if you can point me in the right direction i'd be very happy :)

A

[digitaldecoy]

@ Neubius:

No problem. Just head for the Pixologic homepage und visit the ZClassroom:

http://www.pixologic.com/zclassroom/registration.php

Lot's of basic tutorials there.You'll have to register but that should be ok since if you planning to get into ZBrush you might want to register at ZBrush Central anyway (same account).

Also, there are very interesting tutorials in the ZBrush Wiki:

http://www.zbrush.info/docs/index.php/Special:Search?search=Tutorial&go=Go

That should give you a nice jump start. I purchased ZBrush last July. In less than a year I now feel really comfortable with it and this challenge entry is my first really big project with ZBrush.

Hey, but before you're running off playing, first finish your challenge entry, right? :) It looks very promising!

[Neubius]

fantastic ! thank you : ) seems like you've really got used to it.

yep, i'll finish up before playing with it, honest! haha

thanks alot dude. looking foward to updates :)

A

[chilombiano]

i still like more the concepts you made than any 3d so far. the drawings are really good quality . .sorry is just i find sometimes a 3d option too troublesome ..but maybe this wont be the case!

good luck . looking forward to see more

[MartinNielsen]

Well, actually DW3 was the first challenge ever I had to quit. I loved the backstory and theme, and I loved working with my concept :) The problem was, that I always work very hard every day at work as a 3d artist. So, comming home from work and start again with a new 3d project just blew it for me in the end. Free time became work time. I don't feel the same way about 2d. I can always get something useful together without feeling stressed. But don't get me wrong, I like 3d just as much as 2d. I just think it's harder to finish a good 3d entry.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208382518_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208382518_large.jpg)

Ok, another evening of sculpting and now I have blocked in the Captain. I established the general proportions and I have also put in some quick color for better judgement of the shapes and relations. I don't really like t-poses because they let the character look totally dull. But I can imagine him in a cool pose. However, I will sleep a night or two over it and check back on the proportions before I do some retopo work on the model. I plan to use the model in later works so I want to give him a real good topology that can stand some playing around.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208625257_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208625257_large.jpg)

What I like about weekends is, that you can really make progress. :)

I finished the t-pose sculpting on Captain Orion. I retopologized the jacket and hood but I left the body mesh untouched. It hold the detail for this artwork quite well and I think if I ever need the Captain for other purposes I will THEN take the extra time to alter the mesh. I would definetely like to give him a proper mouth interior and teeth and so on but for now he will work just fine how he is right now. I only have to model his gun now and then I will put him into pose.

[Paul4wood]

Amazing work! Very inspiring!:bowdown:

[CGmascot]

I've followed this for a while. Now leaving a little mark just to say that the scene is very much a classic and the style of your characters, the captain and the monster especially, contribute to it. Also great details you have in these.

My absolute favourite though is your last scene previz: lovely colours! Am curious to see what lighting and colour you go for with the 3D. I hope your final work will have the same fairy tale-like quality your scene previz has.

[John Keates]

You have some realy solid modeling there. I am just getting down to the posing and composition stage myself and it is always a nice feeling to finally start image making (Finaly I am getting to where my ten minute sketch was).

It looks like you will be there soon yourself... enjoy!!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208710792_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208710792_large.jpg)

Today I modelled Captain Orion's Blaster. I know, it's a crazy thing to model such an object in ZBrush but I did all the modelling in ZBrush till this point and I just wanted to challenge myself to use no other 3D Software. So to say, I deserved the pain. :) Well, actually it worked not as bad as I feared. I used ZSpheres to design the shape of the Blaster (no sketches)and created an Unified Skin from that amature. i sculpted in the main details, edges and stuff and then did retopologize the whole thing. With the new mesh I did all the detailing and it was done. It's still a bit bendy in some places but I like the overall result and I think it will work quite fine in the end.

[digitaldecoy]

And for some replies:

@ Paul4wood:

Thank you!

@ Sleepyghost:

Yea, I also like the Scene Previz a few pages back. Rest asured that I'm really trying to go for an illustrated look much like the Previz in the end. My main weakness is, that I tend to put too much contrast in everything in order to "scream out the message". That's why I plan to put a huge effort into the rendering and compositing of this image. I just have to resist the temptation to show every tiny detail in crisp contrast. *biting fingernails*

@ John Keates:

I know exactly what you mean! :) The 3D way can often feel like extremely delayed painting. But I must say, that sculpting feels really good and the most time I'm not even thinking about the fact, that I'm supposed to produce a picture here. I hope I will do so in the end anyway. ;)

[HornlessUnicorn]

Wow! I haven't looked at this thread for a while... Awesome modeling - love the captain Orion model - it's just amazing.
Super Arbeit, :thumbsup: bin sehr gespannt, wie alles am Ende aussehen wird!

Cheers,

Dimitrij.

[KOryH]

looks great.
every time I look, It gets better.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208815250_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208815250_large.jpg)

Ok, here's the pose on Captain Orion. I gave it some thought and I think that the first pose was dynamic but also completely senseless. Instead, I'm going for tension, now. Captain Orion has just stopped climbing after the Hawkbeast and for a terrible moment, he does not know what to do next. He tries to distract the beast by holding out his hand. he hopes to get just enough time to aim his Blaster...

You can also see that I began giving some shape to the tree. Hopefully I can show you the finished tree tomorow.

[Drikus]

'morning dude.

Wow, very impressive. So much details, and every part is working for itself. You could take some shots of the whole scene and use it for a own image, if you like.
I am interested in coloring the whole stuff, it will be a "nice" task.

Be creative
Chris

[Aseph]

You're an amazing artist, can't wait to see how this pans out. The look in your main character's face is strong, I like it!

[digitaldecoy]

@ Drikus:

I'm also curious about the coloring. I think that I will go for very simple and stylized color that makes the shading stand out. If I need color variations in special parts the I might as well do them later in compositing.

@ Aseph:

Thanks! I'm also looking forward to the end result. I'm getting closer! :)

[HornlessUnicorn]

Wow! The pose looks great. The face is very expressive and natural and it has a touch of classic sci-fi (the suit and all). Thumbs up!:applause:


Cheers,

Dimitrij.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208887086_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208887086_large.jpg)

I'm closing in! I have now a model of the tree. It's split into three parts, so that I can easily subdivide it to the necessary level. The leafs are painted in in photoshop for previsualization. I plan to add the leafs in ZBrush when everything is dropped onto the 2.5D canvas. That gives me more freedom for placement and better performance.

For the next step, I will take every model into a finishing touches round (Hawkbeast, Girl, Orion and Tree) and then I'm going to start polypainting.

[Dragneye]

Just have to say, Beautiful work digitaldecoy.

[HornlessUnicorn]

Wowee! Great details in the sculpting.:bowdown: Love the tree and the monster! Everything looks very organic and natural.

Absolutely beautiful work!

Keep it up!!

Dimitrij.

[gpepper]

Great ! they are all so nice ! Amazing ZB work here on every character !

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208899947_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1208899947_large.jpg)

I changed the pose for the Captain a bit. I thought about the position of the Blaster. It occured to me, that if you were approaching an enemy with a gun, you would point it at him. So why is the Captain pointing his Blaster to the ground? On the other hand, would you draw a gun, when you're climbing a tree? I thought that maybe Captain Orion heard the alien girl scream an ran after her. He climbed the tree and than the Hawkbeast appeared. For a moment, the Captain is in shock but then he draws his weapon. That might add a bit of tension to the scene. Furthermore, the new position of the arm and gun directs the dynamic curve of the figure from it's hand, through the head, through the arm and gun, into the leg. Before, the dynamic flow was a bit broken at the point of the gun. I'm curious what you are thinking about my dedcision!

[nightwoodwolf]

cool character ... very nice wip .. keep it coming

[Drikus]

Hi dude.

Interesting pose. It is not easy to interpret the new pose. The captains act have two statements now and the viewer have to decide, which one is the right one for himself:
1. Your statement: The captain begin to take the gun out of the holster, maybe to use it.
2. The new statement: The captain put the gun into(!) the holster and try a peaceful way to rescue the girl. The captains face give enough interpretation for this alternative.

It is not easy for a artist to "write" the right statement into a picture, which have no text in it and lives exclusively through the content/scene.

Keep it up
Chris

[sasquatch70]

Hello Daniel,
I don't know which is better, your 2D or 3D, their both exceptional.I love your concept, and your color pallette you've chosen. No critiques just praise at this point. Excellent work. Brad

[digitaldecoy]

@ Drikus:

That's really a good point. I have to think about that. For me it's totally clear of course - he's going to attack. But you are right, that's not the only possibility to come up with when you look on the picture unbiased. I have to digest on that one a bit, I guess.

What I know is, that I like the right hand in this position. So I tend to experiment with the gesture of the left hand.

[Azagthoth]

wow! amazing work, concepts... The results is great!

[ChrRambow]

Great concept and work.

I really like your progress.

And i have to agree with Drikus ... bending his upper body a littlebit more forward and
rising his elbow on the gun-arm a littlebit more could make it more clear.

Keep it up! :beer:

[JackZhang]

Hey Daniel, how you doing there. everything is pretty fine to me. can't wait to see the colors.
keep it up buddy, time's ticking.

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks, you three!

Yes, not much time to lay back and relax. There's still some work to do! This weekend is the weekend of color. So, hopefully we will let the greyscales behind us and I'll be able to post some colored WIPs in the next two days.

I was also tweaking the poses and models in the last few days but changes are so minor, that it makes no sense to post them anyway. You'll be up to date with the next update in color.

[Dragneye]

Personally, I like the change, and, I think the ambiguity of what he's doin with the gun is good. Adds a lil mystery touch to the whole wonderful scene, letting the viewer interpret as best he likes. Unless you want to say Exactly what he is doin, I think its an advantage.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209216239_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209216239_large.jpg)

Ok, these are the final models now. I could tweak the models till doomsday if I had the time but I have to come to an end here. Although I tried different arm poses for the Captain's left arm I finaly stuck to the original one. By tilting the whole scene a bit to the right, his pose gets more momentum to the right side and this way the viewer will interpret the pose the way I want it, I think.

Ok, now it's really time to throw in some color.

[HornlessUnicorn]

I think it's in a perfect balance now. Great composition and sense of motion. Again - wonderfull sculpting work - you just increased my appetite to see more and to try some 3D sculpting myself some time.

Would be great to see the colours :)

I have no doubt - this will be a piece of art :)

Cheers,

Dimitrij.

[walrus]

This is looking terrific, Daniel! The poses, the ZBrush work, teh whole layout, it's really terrific. I really enjoy seeing someone know really knows their 2D composition tackling the job in 3D, the whole piece just ends up soming out so much more coherent and eye-pleasing than just throwing models at teh scene and hoping something sticks. :)

One small suggestion before you abandon tweaking the model: With the current composition, the female alien's outstretched hand lands right in front of the crease between the Hawkbeast's thigh and torso, and almost looks like she's resting a hand on the thigh. In your ealier posts of that area, her arm was raised a bit more so the hand was in front of the torso and less in front of the thigh. I think that conveyed the proper depth relationship and was slightly better, compositionally.

Looking forward to seeing your textures on this, good luck!

[Anapäst]

heya..
of course i love your work and detail yada yada.
but i can't help myself longing for the beast having it's right (or left) foot twisted backwards.
i think it'd add some energy... i don't like that toilet-pose.
you know, as in "i'm grabbing that tree and am about to jump up to the next level" rather than "that tree feels really good... oh hey, there's a guy trying to kill me".

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209285909_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209285909_large.jpg)

That was a fast one! Only 4 hours and all coloring on my main objects was done (including a crash which made me coloring the Captain twice). The most time, obviously, went into the Hawkbeast. But although it's coloring looks quite detailed, it wasn't too much work. The Cavity Mask feature of ZBrush enabled me to paint into the crevices and to "drybrush" the scaly skin structures just like in the real world of model painting. This software is just so cool and fun to work with.

This, by the way, is by no means the final compositing of color and light. I just threw in some light passes so that the scene doesn't look too ugly. There are two weeks to go and I will spend a lot of that time to tweak llight and colors.

But before it's time for tweaking, I will drop the whole stuff onto the 2.5D canvas now and add all the little detail I need to let the tree look alive and there's also a lot of stuff left to create for the background.

[digitaldecoy]

And for some replies!

@ HornlessUnicorn:

Thank you! I also think that the composition is turning out quite nicely. It's a very interesting task to take a scene like that and turn and rotate it and to encounter how the smallest turn can totally alter the composition. It's abit like searching for a "snap point" where everything fits the best. It's also a task of finding compromised because it's nearly impossible to find a viewpoint, from which every detail looks best. This whole project for me is a big eye opener on how composition works, including angles, weights and positive and negative shapes.

@ walrus:

Thanks for your input! I see what you mean concerning the hand. I will look after that when I'm rotating the scene into the final layout. Like I wrote to Hornless Unicorn, it's a lot like balancing. A slight turn which lets the Captain look good, might cause an issue in the girl or vice versa.

@ Anapäst:

Thanks also for your input! I was so concentrated on the Captain's pose all the time that I did not even consider that there might be better alternatives for the Hawkbeast's pose. I will definetely experiment with the far leg.

[HornlessUnicorn]

Those colours already look impressive - I know it's not complete yet so it's only a base colouring, but nevertheless.

After reading your posts I think that I would really like to try out ZBrush some time soon - it sounds like a very versatile tool - and you can even paint your sculptures in ZBrush? That's awesome...

Gutes Gelingen :)

Later,

Dimitrij.

[MartinNielsen]

Nice progress :thumbsup: When you come to the lighting, remember to add some rimlight ;)

[na]

The modelling is amazing! I also like the frazetta style composition. It just amazes me how this just gets better and better each time I visit your thread!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209499945_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209499945_large.jpg)

Man, I went through hell at the weekend! Originally I planned to bake the scene down to the 2.5D canvas and by now I allready wanted to have the major environmental detail in place, but nooo.

By the reaction of my wife and several friends of mine I came to the conclusion, that the pose of the hero, while working nicely in the composition (triangle and all that stuff...) does not really make the point storywhise. And if there's one point in this artwork I really did't want to be hasted it was the pose of the hero, of course. So I came to the totally insane conclusion, that tilting some limbs here and there and working out some angles would do the pose merit. I sat the whole sunday and tweaked the pose into different renditions. Now, while posing the figure is a fast thing in ZBrush when you work on a SINGLE mesh, it's hell of a job when you have to pose several Subtools at once (and the 'Transpose Master' plugin did not work. No idea why...) So, most of my time I spend on putting the body into a new pose variation and then placing the other parts (jacket, Hood, metal rings, blaster) into their places. I posted some of my variations with this WIP submission just to show you, how blind I got in the end. Just look at the two goofy poses on the bottom! Sunday evening I really thought, they work! I even tilted the arm back on the last one because I thought, this would make the pose 'perfect'. Well, I got to bed on sunday quite frustrated because I intuitively knew that all I did this day was pure crap. Luckily, I took the step to some radical pose changes on monday. You see the outcome in the next submission.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209501025_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209501025_large.jpg)

As you see, I took the pose of the Captain through a radical change. I'm quite happy with the result. It's now a much simpler and also cooler pose, I think. It has more of a daredevil character because you get the feeling, that the Captain knows what he's doing. Of course, you're still wondering what the heck he's going to do to save the alien girl but now, at least, you get the impression that he's got to have some serious skills to face the beast in that fashion.

Concerning the composition, I think the new pose does an even better job then the previous. The previous pose had this strong triangle, connecting the Captain through his outstretched arm to the Beast's head, through the beast's arm down to the girl and through her outstretched arm back to the Captain. This, without any doubt, was a nice and strong composition but also it felt a bit too formal, I think.

What I have now is a much stronger feeling of conflict between the Captain and the beast. The tree draws a diagonal line between the contrahents which is only bridged by their stares (and not the reaching arm anymore). The triangle is still there but it's much more subtle now and the composition focuses more on the hero and does not circle around in endless repetition.

Well, that' at least, what I'm thinking about it. Don't hesitate to tell me your opinions. But that's the final pose for sure. No chance for me to come up with something even better in the time I have left. :)

Oh, and please notice some subtle changes in the other characters. I tried the variation on the Hawkbeast's far leg and I love it. Thanks again to Anapäst for the suggestion! And I made the reaching hand of the girl much more expressive but this detail you'll only get to see in a higher resolution and with the colors and constrasts tweaked, I guess.

So, now it's really time for the background and environment!

[sasquatch70]

Hello Daniel,

The captains pose is definately more heroic, and fits naturally with your other characters. Very classic look and feel.Best of luck to you. Brad

[John Keates]

I love the expression on the girl! I also like the way the peice has a definite style throughout. Something about it reminds me of the hildebrandt stuff. Maybe the string, medium size rythmic detail?

Maybe you could play with the angle of the beasts head? I think he should either be concentrating more on the man (pointing down a bit more) or looking up at the tree. Just my opinion.

[Spin99]

K I'm giving you my dead honest crit hope you like.
I like the drawings, the character design, the character modeling.

I also like composition B for sure not A or C.
And I don't like the monster pose, and the way he's holding the girl.
But that's just my opinion. Hope it's of any use to you.

Any case enjoying this one, nice work :buttrock:

[ErichSchreiner]

Hey Daniel,

nice amount of work. :)

I like all the thoughts about the characters (background stories etc), the sketches and final designs. The theme is not new, but as you know, i like those things too.
The colors are great too.

What i don't like is the composition and the pose of the monster.
The triangle thing just don't seem to work in this case, because (just my opinion) it calms the action down (male and female figure are nearly on one horizontal line). It would be more dynamic, if the monster would hold her way up, so that the main line of action would be diagonal.
Also the pose of the monster does not fit the presented action. It looks very unstable / irresolute, so as if it fears falling down and just grasps the tree before doing so.

Just my 2 cents... :)

[Drikus]

'morning dude.

The result looks good, but there is a small point that I have to remember you and everyone who is working with 3D graphics in every form:

It ist the answer to this question:
"Where is the advatage and the disadvantage in 3D graphics?"
The advantage: "You can change everything fast."
The disadvantage: "You can change everything fast."
What I mean: The possibility to have neverending options can be a big brake for creativity and motivation. You have so many possibilities, to many to select the right one...

It was very important, that you are telling a little story, to constrain the possibilities, but it is not that easy like to create a briefed project.

Be creative
Chris

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks for all your replies!

@ sasquatch70:

For me it's a very subtle choice which pose does fit best. I even would say that it depends on the mood I'm in every given moment. That arises a very interesting question: if the result of posing a character depends on the mood of the artist at a given moment, how could he come to a 'final' result when he's able to change the pose anytime? Is there an ideal pose or is there only a pose that fits a certain mood? I'm thinking about that very hard at the moment but what I now is, that I have to commit to a pose in order to finish this artwork in time.

@ John Keates:

Good call! I will definetly check the tilt of the beast's head.

@ Spin 99:

Every input is welcome as it puts the things into different lights. The biggest danger in creating images is to get too biased towards your own creations. Critique also is an opportunity to defend your own ideas against those of others. Personally I think that the beast works quite well although the current layout of the scene causes some problems, I guess.

@ Erich Schreiner:

I'm not going to do radical changes to the composition but I see your point with the calming down of the situation. In my daf showroom I received some valuable input concerning the difference between my first overpainted scene PreViz and the current state of the scene. The current scene is tilted to the right (originally done to enhance the old hero pose) and by that the 'floor' on which the characters are standing now is nearly horizontal. I think, that weekens the composition and I will change that. Thanks for your input!

@ Drikus:

You know, I started this project in order to find out, which merits the 3D process holds for my art. I definetely found lots of them but at the same time I experience exactly the problems you are hinting at. It's a very valuable experience and it will help me to judge the merits of 3D for my future projects. Being constrained in 2D makes many things much more easy, that's for sure. But the fight's not over. I will draw my final conclusion after finishing this piece. :)

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209648417_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209648417_large.jpg)

Yeah, you just can't get enough of those final versions. :)

But I think I could further enhance the whole thing in this final rendition (yes, it's final!). The composition now comes closer to the scene PreViz I posted a few pages back. The tilt to the left balances the masses a bit better and all the characters are a bit larger in this version which also is a good thing. Of course, there are downsides. Especially the area were the girl, the beast and the tree overlap is more busy now. But for that I might find a solution by tuning the colors and contrasts.

edit: Just to prevent any confusion. It's the final scene layout, not the final image. :)

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209682709_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209682709_large.jpg)

This is the result after having added the last details (leafs, moss) to the foreground and having rendered several lighting passes. I played around with it quite a lot but there's still room for some more experiments.

The background is still dummy and in the next step I will produce the details for it. When I have everything assembled I'm going to find out how far I can get with compositing only before I get to 2D retouch.

I've got the feeling that the image could use some structures which would connect foreground and background...

[dascerra]

I like this image, beautiful color and composition! good!!!

[MartinNielsen]

Very nice colorization :)

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209722800_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209722800_large.jpg)

I've worked on a concept what exactly is going to be seen in the background of the image. The blurry, undefined structures of the color sketches so far worked quite good - in the sketches. For the final artwork I need something more 'real' because I don't want the contrast of detail between the foreground and background become too big.

The sketches so far lacked a bit in scope I think. The part of the universe were Captain Orion is stranded with his ship is an atmosphere cloud in which countless small and big planets are drifting. The space between those planets is all filled with breathable atmosphere so that even the less technically advanced alien races can travel between the different worlds (with balloon ships e.g.). To give a better impression of this fantastic place I introduced a second planet which also serves the composition in my opinion. It forms a circular halo around the hero and supports his position in the picture which otherwise might look a bit too peripherical.

In the midground I'm going to show the pointed mountains of Planet Aloya and just behind the foreground I plan to put more jungle trees so that the main tree with the characters does not stand alone too much.

The other trees I plan to create with ZBrush's Deco Brush. That should enable me to put a lot of detail into them without having to paint every leaf by hand. It's important for me, that those trees get enough detail so that they hopefully connect the foreground detail with the background detail. The planets I'm going to sculpt in 3D.

I could not resist to try to enhance the pose of the Captain a bit in this Caoncept with the Liquify Brush of Photoshop. It should be possible to enhance his shape quite a bit in the end. I'm not completely satisfied with the way how he turned out. But I have to live with it now and see to make the best out of it.

Closing in, stay tuned! :)

[Neubius]

holy cow man! flying along, ace stuff !


love it

[Minnhagen]

Absolutely wonderful! I love the style and the colours!

[stefgrafx]

really great scene and colors.. remember me a "indian-indhu god scenery".. perhaps the orange-blue tones... :arteest:

[plasteredcat]

What a beautiful picture!:thumbsup:

[AndreasHagetoft]

Action on a confined area combined with beautiful backdrop and characters, I like it! The color scheme is quite pleasing too.

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks for all the nice replies, you guys! In the end phase, my doubts always grow very huge and your comments really help to hold up the morale!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209736433_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209736433_large.jpg)

I've finished the first planet. I named it Zula. It's quite a nice place I guess - sunny, much water, not too much clouds. :)

Note that I only put detail in those places, that will be seen in thge picture later. I really had to stop me. I could model planets all eternity. :)

Now I'm going to work on the moon.

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209910390_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1209910390_large.jpg)

I'm working from back to front on the background and I thought I might share a little WIP of the planets. Next step will be the jungle valley in the midground.

[Donglu-LittleFish]

Hi Daniel, you have done a great job with the planets! Loving the color and the atmosphere sooooo much! Keep it up, looking forward to see your valley! :D

[Pegahoul]

wow this is really cool. the colors are great. I like that twisted trees. 2 planet for a background maybe a bit full though... but looks like one's going to be pushed back so it's fine...

[beelow]

I think a slight tilt in the image may help the composition a bit. It may give it a bit more action to the piece. I like what I see so far though Daniel. Colors and Designs are nice though. I think composition can be pushed further though.:thumbsup:

[digitaldecoy]

@ beelow:

I see what you mean. But in fact, I sort of realized that my original plan to create a pure action piece sort of failed because I've chosen a very iconic view on the scene in the first place. I did a lot of experimenting within this particular view and I've come to the conclusion, that for having a real action scene I would have had to choose a totally different view (like one of the very early composition tests). Now, that seems to be a little too obvious to call it a discovery but for me this point wasn't clear at all. I really thought, that I only had to find the 'real' pose for the Captain to ignit the action feel of the scene. I totally overlooked the fact, that there were loads of more dramatic camera angles in this scene which would all have led to a cool action scene. I really learned a lesson here and I think this one I finally have understood.

You know this strange difference between knowing and understanding? I knew all this long before but I guess I've never really understood it.

Now, but that's not a big problem for me. I guess, there's a reason why I've intuitively chosen the iconic composition. It's simply, that I love pictures of that sort and again could not overwhelm myself to do it the other way. :) Now that I've realised this I'm making my peace with it (we say that in german - no idea if you can translate it literally...) and I'm just going to finish the artwork as what it is: a stylized image of heroism in an iconic composition with a strong emphazise on decorative and epic intergalactic detail (what a sentence). ;)

The last week's started. I hope the finish will not be too close. :)

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210021817_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210021817_large.jpg)

This is a collection of trees I created for the near background. They were created out of four simple textures which were painted with the ZBrush Deco Brush. The Deco Brush 'grows' the textures and warps them along the brush stroke. It's quite fun to toy around with it in fact. But enough playing around. I have to find out if they work in the composition...

[Ivy00]

ahh beautiful colors, I really have to save some coinage so I can get z-brush

[yakonusuke]

I still regret that you don't do it in 2D, cause i like the scribbles on the first page a lot.
But obviously you do very well in zBrush , too. I would like to give you some critics and helpful
hints, but all elements look very nice... well, okay, i don't like the beast that much, but i
guess it's just my taste. I'm looking forward to see how this will fit together in the end.

Anyway lots of luck to you! I bet an award will be yours!

[nwiz25]

this tree is just brilliant! very dreamy colors and the way it fades into the background adds to the depth .. love it a lot! :love:

[azazel]

This is really a joy to watch :). Not much to crit, just keep up the good work :love:

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210108674_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210108674_large.jpg)

Ok, I'm really closing in now. I have completed the background elements and have nice and crisp detail all over the image now. In fact, it scares me a bit but hey, it's a 3D image and those details are supposed to be there. :) Maybe I try some subtle depth of field in the final image.

Things that are left to do:

The reflective materials on the Captain are just dummy at the moment. I waited for the final setup for being able to create an environment reflection map that fits the image. That will be next. And then there's a ton of minor details like reflections on the eyes, tuning a shadow here and there and perhaps detailing some background clouds a little more. I also will see, if I still like the color balance in a few days and might do some adjustments, if necessary.

And of course I will closely listen to any suggestions that might come to your minds!

[headtrip]

Wow! I was impressed last week when I saw the finished modeling, but now with the excellent choice of colour scheme... superb! :thumbsup:

[winchester]

Daniel,
If I were a judge you would take best art direction. I am inspired and in awe! Everything looks great. I am fasinated by the seemless cohesion of 2d/3d. Such strong form and lighting from the 3d, such enjoyable color and general esthetic from the 2d. Its so interesting to see someone really bridging the gap.

WHen you color your render over in photoshop, what kinda layer settings/technique are you using?

BTW-I absolutely love your original sketches of the captain.

[HornlessUnicorn]

Hi Daniel!

Great work as always, but here are
some thoughts on my part:

The other pose of captain Orion looked more natural and actually had a reason - this one looks very "movie-poster-macho" like and doesn't really make sense in the situation.

The two planets just hang within the atmosphere - and it even looks as if the bigger planet is in front of the smaller one (again within the atmosphere). There are even clouds behind the moons?? One other thing to observe when depicting planets within an atmosphere - the dark (shadowed) part of the moon/planet will merge with the atmosphere colour.

Keep up the great work!

Dimitrij.

[MartinNielsen]

Very nice :) This looks close to a final. I agree about the planets and the atmosphere.

[bearfoot]

really nice image daniel


great work..

cheers
n

[digitaldecoy]

@ headtrip:

Thank you! Towards the end I always tend to noodle around with the colors in order to make it look 'better'. This time I tried to stick to my color concepts and I'm glad that it seems to work out.

@ winchester:

That's a very nice comment, thank you! With this project I have a special interest in the integreation of the material that ZBrush gives me. I was playing around with the Software since last July and I have tested several of the techniques I ultimately used in this artwork (the multipass rendering, the 2.5D detailing and the Deco Brush Trees e.g.). It was important for me to put all these things together in one artwork and find out, if it works. I'm quite happy with the result so far but I also found out a lot about the downsides of 3D from a visual standpoint. I might go into detail about that when I'm finished with the image. I also will see if I can sum up some details about the compositing. It's quite complex by now but it follows some simple concepts.

@ HornlessUnicorn:

Thanks for your input! You are totally right, the planets are within the atmosphere. I wrote about that a few post up there. Captain Orion is stranded in a place that I currently call the 'atmosphere cloud'. There are many small and big worlds within this atmosphere that can all be reached trough breathable air. Just think Super Mario Galaxy and you get the point. :) I wanted to create a rich universe of different worlds and alien races but without having the aliens to have an advanced technology. The aliens travel between the worlds with balloon ships and generally have the technology of the earth's 19th century. Captain Orion gains a sort of superhero status because he's got energy weapons and that stuff. Additionally he's got some super powers because gravity in the atmopshere cloud is lower and he's able to jump further and lifting big objects more easy. You see, I sort of want to create a fantastic steampunk world with sci fi space and superhero elements. :)

Concerning the pose, I definitely see that the old one had it's merits. But the new one has them, too and I'm not going to change it. The whole scene evolved into an epic decorative piece and the stylised and iconic pose does work in this scene, I think. I was aiming for a Frazetta in the first place but arrived perhaps at a Vallejo. Not that I want to compare my work with these outstanding artists, let alone compete with them. But you hopefully get the point - I did not really achieve to channel the action but hopefully compensated that by supporting the iconic style. I also wrote something about that above.

@ MartinNielsen & bearfoot:

Thank you!

[digitaldecoy]

http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210427866_medium.jpg (http://assets.cgsociety.org/challenge/entries/20/14645/14645_1210427866_large.jpg)

"What the heck am I doing? A few minutes ago I was happy to having finally managed to scare that eerie little girl away. It's bad enough being stranded in this foreign world. I can not risk to get into contact with whatever alien natives of this strange planet.

And now, after barely having survived the crash, I'm running after her and risk my life again.
Maybe it's her screaming. Although coming from an alien throat it sounds so familiar. This universal sound of fear and desperation gives me the creeps. And it triggeres something deep inside me. I'm not thinking about risk any more. The only thing that's in my mind now is not to let it happen. I will save this alien girl. I'm not giving her up."

[digitaldecoy]

Phew, it's finally done!

I feel really relieved now. With this project I ventured into unknown territory. I gathered everything that I learned about ZBrush in the last 10 month and put it into this piece. I learned a ton of new things, too. And in the end I've come up with an image which marks the beginning of a universe that I now can explore. That alone makes the challenge a success for me. I wonder which adventures Captain Orion will experience on his way through the fantastic world he's stranded in. We hopefully will see!

I thank everyone for the wonderfully motivating replies on the way and for all the invaluable advice that surely has lifted this image up to a higher level that I could have reached alone.

I'll now lean back a bit and enjoy the summer sun that finally has emerged over Germany!

And for you I have some details of the image in full resolution:

http://www.digitaldecoy.de/bilder_upload/Saving_The_Alien_Girl_Details.jpg

Actually that's half resolution. The image was rendered in ZBrush in 4800x3600. Since ZBrush has no antialiasing the whole image was finished in 2400x1800. I used Richard Rosenman's Depth of Field Pro Plugin in Photoshop. There was no other software used than ZBrush and Photoshop.

[Noren]

That turned out really great! :)
Awesome colours and everything works together nicely to create a convincing scenery.

Some tiny nitpicking:

I'd separate the right thumb of the monster a bit from the arm/hand, formwise.
(If it has a thumb at all. ) It could be pointing up a bit and would lead the eye into the direction of the tree even a bit more, perhaps.

I'd separate the two lower legs a bit colour- or valuewise. Same goes for the lower beak.
It works better in the larger version and there is of course no need to separate everything to death but those were the areas that I visually "tripped" over.
E.g. his right leg looks a bit as if it would grow out of the back of his left leg.

But alltogether you created an amazing, very detailed piece without loosing the readability.

edit: lots of edits. :D

edit2:

The longer I look at it, the more I think the piece could profit perhaps from a more direct and stronger lighting. Please don't get me wrong, it is awesome the way it is right now and works really well. So you can really lean back now and enjoy the good weather. :)
But who knows, one day in cold December you might find it fun to play around with lighting a bit. I think it would be worth it.

[digitaldecoy]

I mentioned that I might write something about the compositing process I used on this project. I have now summed up the most important steps:

http://www.digitaldecoy.de/bilder_upload/Saving_The_Alien_Girl_Compositing_Tut.jpg

If there are any questions left about that, just ask them. I'll try to find answers.

@ Noren:

One drawback of ZBrush is, that it does not handle cast shadows very good. That's one of the main reasons why the whole scene is lit with a rather diffuse light. I don't kow yet which role 3D will play in my future projects. If I decide to do more in 3D I might have to work with an additional software package with full rendering capabilty.

[azazel]

Nice write-up, and awesome final image. Cant wait to see more of Captain Orions adventures.

[JackZhang]

congrat digi, good luck in judging, all the best~

[handlebar]

congrats on the final image, the details and overall feel is amazing. Good luck

[Banjavor]

Hmm the purple atmosphere is so sexy like the alien girl. And Orion is sexy to. Alien is maybe from marzipan... I'm just kiding :) Well done ilustration for space fairy tale. Thanks for explanation of layers. You are the winner :beer:

[gpepper]

Excellent ! Probably a winner here !
Great job Daniel !

[LightSovereign]

I can only add to the chorus of compliments..congratulations for this. it really feels as if you've climbed the technical mountain to achieve this piece..

its is just pure candy all detailed elements merge beautifully..Thank you so much for the detailed explanation..

I imediately picked up that i should learn to use layer sets and gradient maps..

Thank you and best of luck

Marley

[akahraman]

This is a great didactic thread you have. Also a stunning picture here. So dreamy... Very well done man. I must thank you at my own. :applause:

[ivanisavich]

Wow...this is one of the best ones yet! Best of luck!!!

[digitaldecoy]

Thanks for all your encouraging comments!

[GiantG]

Grats. Well done! Nothing to add.

[HornlessUnicorn]

Congratulations, Daniel! You can be proud :) Great image!

The best of luck!

Dimitrij.

[melkao]

nice work...the models are so cool...keep looking

[ahmetekn]

Cograts Daniel! Great final and amazing sculpting. Good luck :thumbsup:

[walrus]

Congratulations on finishing, Daniel. This really came out wonderfully, and it's a joy to see someown combine such experience of 2D and 3D both. Lovely work!

[Voidreamer]

awesome 3d, congratulations :scream:

[MartinNielsen]

Yes... Great work :)

[notec]

wow! beautiful work:surprised
congrats!!

[Fetus23]

Indeed I agree with everyone :), a masterful peice Daniel. I think you would really enjoy lighting/rendering in a package besides zbrush. You'll find alot more freedom and room to play with lights, shadows and rendering in an outside renderer. Zbrush can do some nice renders for sure though, and you've done a fantastic job of turning it into a pleasing illustration. Congrats.

-love

[chilombiano]

nice work man. and thanks for sharing the process. how do you find the time?
!
good luck in the challenge .

// Even if a love the result ..i still find the drawings you did more appealing! matter of taste. anyway. in the modeling i can see the drawing style. And thats cool!

[Suchanek]

Really great work Daniel. I like atmosphere and colors:). Good luck.

[Neubius]

big luck fellah!


A

[digitaldecoy]

You guys are really great! :) Thanks for all the nice comments and also good luck with the jury to you all!

[sasquatch70]

Hey Daniel,

Fantastic finish! Very Beautiful piece of art. Best of luck to you.
Brad

[Kuanbyr]

I really like your finished image Daniel! Very well done. Good Luck!

[Kerem]

So beautiful work! Definately one of my favorites. Good luck man :thumbsup:

[mv]

great work as usual. I really like the retro feeling in this one.

[vmulligan]

Very nice. You're quite the talented illustrator. I very much like the way the piece turned out.

[nwiz25]

congratulations dude! :p :bounce: :scream: a fine entry indeed! me totally in love with the colors and feel! great work! all the best with the judging! :thumbsup:

[walrus]

Daniel - Just wanted to drop by and congratulate you on being recognized for your work on this piece in this Challenge. I love this painting and really appreciate the painterly style and compositional skill you have brought to this piece even while working with 3D elements. See you around for another one next time...! :)

[nwiz25]

me with Mike! :p never have i seen a vibrant color combination! very well executed! :p congratulations on the honourable mention dude! rock on! :buttrock:

[MartinNielsen]

A well-deserved ranking :) Congrats.

[digitaldecoy]

Thank you guys!

I'm really happy that I managed to put together a working illustration although the technique was an experiment for me. Again I learned loads of stuff on this challenge and that's the very best reason for joining future challenges I believe.

[Neubius]

congratulations man, awesome image :)


A

[whkguamusa]

I had your image as my pick to win this contest.
Very nice work from start to finish.


wayne k
guam usa

[Dragneye]

Congrats on this. You created some really nice models.

[mecman]

Man, this final image is one of the most beautiful scenes I saw here in this forum. Your "Traped" scene was my wallpaper for almost a year, I guess it´s time to replace with this new one =)

Grats man your art is amazing.

Mec

[onginov]

OH . .. . Prefect Prefect Prefect Prefect Prefect

[calisto-lynn]

wow amazing work!! i just had to go through your whole thread. beautifull!!

[Pigumon]

Are you sure you want to go with the stereotypical "damsel in distress"? It seems kind of a passé image in the twenty-first century. I like to think we're moving beyond gender stereotypes like that...

On the technical side, though, your work is quite impressive. I particularly like your sketches for the male character. A small criticism of the monster: its legs are asymmetrical. One bends like a human's, while the other seems to have the shape of a goat or horse leg. It's probably something you'll fix in going from your rough blocked-out shape to the finished piece, of course, but I thought I'd mention it just in case.

Vmulligan, not sure which decade you're living in , but that silly women are the same as men thing died in the 1990's. Stereotypes are generally true, that's how they became stereotypes in the first place. Women in general are weaker than men, men in general are more aggressive than women. It's these true generalities that created the stereotypes, and we should all be at the point to accept that stereotypes are no necessarily a bad thing. Just because the 70's and 80's tried to pretend that everyone is exactly the same and equal on every level doesn't mean it's true. It's been disproven time and time again. This is the same reason everyone is so racist nowadays, we all pretend that every race is exactly the same and there are no differences and no problems.

This painting is amazing and the concept will always be part of our core as humans. Digitaldecoy, I'm glad you stood your ground.

More importantly though the picture itself is so amazingly rendered!
It really looks as if it was painted, not 3D modelled. Really amazing work!!!

[vmulligan]

Please elaborate, Pigumon. Why don't you enlighten all us poor outdated folks as to how the sexes -- and the races -- are so fundamentally different? Since you bring race into this, as a person of mixed race I'm particularly interested in learning more about your views on race.

--Vikram Mulligan

[phoenix]

mn this is nice work ... love it

regards

[motorpsycho]

I'd like to say as an illustration student myself, this thread is inspiring. A few things, though...

I realize you only used 2 softwares for this project. You pulled this off greatly but I feel like you could have pulled off more had you used other software for lighting. It looks great, there's no denying that, but I just feel like you could make it pop out more. However, for someone who just started in 3D it's very ambitious. You did a great job, but I think you'll do an even greater job on your next 3D job to come. That's all. Just keep practicising and always remember whatever you accomplish later on will always be greater than the first.

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