John Picton has entered the Grand Space Opera 2D.
Latest Update: Coloring WIP: alternative
OK, now I’m not so sure… the omnipresent alien is a little more siolid in this version. Am I getting caught up in the drawing rather than in what he represents? The idea was that he was going to be a ghostly presence watching over the whole unfolding drama… but there’s no real point if you can’t actually see him… is there? aaaargh. whaddya reckon guys?
well, where to go with this one! it’s very broad isn’t it! the task to create an image that sums up an eternity within an empire! I’ve got a couple of ideas, the sketch will be coming soon. Meantime good luck to evryone who’s entering.
I don’t think I’m going to follow this one up, but the idea is of someone, possibly female walking along a semi technological landscape contemplating the stars and the potential battle going on above… the idea is to get the peaceful tranquility that’s on the planet’s surface… that pivotal moment where she makes her decision. but I don’t think it reflects the massive scale that is the competition brief
This is closer to what I want. It’s more like a movie poster I think, but as the brief is so broad I wanted an image that has a sense of the passage of time; that reflects the different groups involved, the determination of the individuals and groups involved…
looking good mate, interesting to go for the movie poster style mixed pictures etc this will show alot of information in one compasition, not sure I can see any technology in the picture, this is not a problem and would be very different to most other entries, will be interested to see how this develops.
this is somewhere along the lines of where i want the alien face to head… no pun intended. It may be that we only see a portion of the face in the final layout, but I thought it was important to get the whole image done, just in case…
it’s probably going to be ghosted into the atmosphere, to give the feeling that he’s always there, watching, and ever present.
Thank you, in the lower left part of the basic sketch there’s a mass of scribbles which will actually be some kind of orbital space station, and what i’m also thinking about is a load of little fighter ships around one of the planetarey globes. also the figure on the ground will have technical weaponry, in contrast to the airborn one… ambitious? probably :bounce:
I’m going for a very organic feel for my crafts, so for the station itself, which will feature in the battle bit in the background, I’m going for a Thistle seed head design. not quite there yet, but getting close
for the little ships in the background battle, again for one of the factions, I\'m looking to nature for inspiration - primarily insects. so the little beetle ships seem to be taking a nice direction, still got some way to go, but progressing quite nicely. as for faction 2… stilkl not sure yet…
i think ur latest designs are great,i am looking at insects too for inspiration.
hint things with more legs look the best hint
I’m wanting a beast for my key shot which will be in the foreground of the image, so something that has its grounding in human mythology. as I want it to be an aerial attack, the thing obviously has to fly, so a griffin it is, or a variation that theme anyway. these are the pen roughs for the head… ignore the insectoid one, I’m not going there 
the griffin is excellent,eyes are its best feature.i do think it cud look more manic though.maybe make its face a birds skull or something.just a thought.
hey there john. so far so good. ur ship ideas look unique and i like ur sketch of the alien. keep it up!
ok, so it took on a life of its own, and ended up looking nothing like my favourite rough sketch, but hey who am I to argue. the foot is on the wrong side so that needs ammending, and I’m not sure whether the leathery wings work. It makes it more of a drgon than a griffin or gryphon depending on which book you read. It’s also going to have a rider…
deciding not ot go with the leather! feathers is where it’s at! makes him closer to the griffin, and the eagle wings are much more predatory, the feet have been ammended so at least they’re now on the right side, and the other claw’s gone in. Oh yeah nad he has a rider. I’m toying with the idea of making the sheild an energy one, and it may need to be bigger too.
thanks for the support guys. I was a bit worried I was getting caught up in the organic rather the technical… being as that’s what I do best. But still, this is a chjallenge ands my personal one will be to get better at the techy! I’m trying to get a balance of the two, the griffin being very "past2 and the rest of the technology being future-present, hopefully to reflect a sense of history, and the Empire spanning the ages…
I’m liking Noobs’ idea of more legged things… maybe I ought to look away from the beetle and hit scorpions? the curved tail could be something to do with weaponry…
and from annisahmad, the alien’s not as agressive as I wanted him so I think there’s a bit more modification to do on him.
i’m liking the creature.one tip i was given a while back for designing creatures is to exxagerate allota features.maybe that cud help you too.i guess it really depends on what type of creature ur goin for.
is this a calm or manic creature???
i agree the shield should be bigger.
but damn …excellent work so far!
well, the thing about wars is that both sides believe they’re in the right. I’m not going to get political, AT ALL, so I’m going to leave it for the viewer to decide which side is which. I’m also rather fond of this creature, so that automatically makes him a good guy in my book… but having said that, he does have horns and some rather nasty talons, so that could potentially project him as “the bad guy”.
spurred on by Noob, and not wanting to let the dust settle, so to speak, I’ve started the scorpion-based attack ship. It probably won’t feature as a prominent design in the final piece, but I still need to know what they look like. As ever there’s still a long way to go…