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Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 01 Chapter 01 – Concept, Development and Lighting Software Used: Photoshop To address a scene containing a lot of detail and information, you need to have an order to work in and above all, patience. For this tutorial I was commissioned to draw a seaport – an original place, with an invented civilization, showing different situations, crane movements, people, vehicles; many elements together interacting with each other. To deal with something of this magnitude, with so many things to draw in the same composition, you have to plan in advance. This tutorial will explain how to draw a complex scenario step-by-step. I’ll talk about how ideas arise, what the sources of inspiration are, how to work with perspective, composition, digital painting techniques, brush management and final details. Although almost all the issues can be found in art books or manual drawing, I’ll show different techniques and ways to address a drawing. The goal is that the tutorial should serve primarily as a guide for those artists who are getting started and need some order in which to address their projects with. In the first part of this tutorial I’ll be looking at coming up with the initial idea, developing the scene and adding light and shadows.

Ideas and Sources of Inspiration First, we need to know what topic we will draw and what concept we want to express. From there we can find ideas and inspiration. Not all artists proceed in the same way when they start an image. I like to find different pictures, which do not necessarily have to do with what I want to draw. Sometimes I only have an idea of what the sky should look like and thus, I look for different this image, I found a very interesting scene: the

In this picture I found my idea and I realized

sight of a battleship parked in a yard. I found

what I was looking for. The world that revolved

Other times I’m just interested in color, and look

the color of the image was great, as well as

in my head, that I could not yet identify, was

for photos where the colors awaken a feeling

the composition and the feeling of vastness

great, majestic and something that showed

or ideal climate for the topic I’m researching for

(Fig.02).

power and distance.

skies: sunset, night, cloudy ones, etc (Fig.01).

my drawing. Looking for images on the web for

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Raising the Scene

As the image would show the greatest amount

an aerial view we should move the horizon up,

Based on the picture I found, I decided to have

of detail and elements, I chose an aerial

so we generate the “airplane” effect (Fig.04).

a huge ship as the central focus and thereafter

perspective, because in this view I could

arrange all the other items relative to it. So, I

increase the size of the ship and provide greater

To begin detailing each object with the lines

produced a sketch of my initial idea (Fig.03).

detail on the scale of things. Basically, to make

of perspective, I use boxes and buckets for

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Chapter 01

Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 01 the initial composition, and I break them down into more interesting shapes afterwards, using the lines as a guide to reach the final design (Fig.05). If we use simple geometric shapes, it will be simpler to detect faults and it will help us to have a better understanding of proportions and distance. I almost never have a clear idea of what I’m going to draw inside a cube. This is a way to explore your designs and ideas throughout the process, which takes patience. For more accurate work it’s necessary that you have the shapes and structure of your image correct at the beginning of your drawing. As we draw things, ideas appear that serve to define other ones. Sometimes, I like a building or design and what I do is repeat it again in another part of the drawing to create uniformity and consistency in style. It doesn’t necessarily have to be identical; if we maintain the same or similar parts then we will be respecting the aesthetic of the original design. Furthermore, repeating the same object in a scene helps to accentuate distance. In Fig.06 you can see the

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complete drawing and the red markings indicate where I have repeated buildings.

Lighting When we have an image as complex as this one, it is much easier to pass into color if we have previously defined the shadows and volumes in black and white. This is one of the great advantages of digital technology; it accelerates our work and makes use of color easier. For my picture I chose evening light, because it produces stronger contrasts and lengthened shadows in objects, creating beautiful spaces of

Again we can define and sculpt each element in

I generally work with a certain degree of

light and shadow that help our composition. As

more detail, because light and shadow will act

uncertainty, unsure of how my final image will

always, what I do first is to define the position

as a guide to help us to achieve this process.

look.

of the sun in the picture. When we know where

Fig.08 shows the before and after of this

the sun is placed, we can cast shadows and

process, from line to volume, using an element

Cast shadows

mark points of light and volumes in each subject

of the drawing.

I have often been asked how I know where

(Fig.07).

shadow should be placed, as well as how I can

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Chapter 01

Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 01

detect it. To do things well, we must first know where the light source is and also whether it is natural or artificial light, because its intensity and the way its casts shadows varies according to this. Natural light casts shadows in parallel and artificial light projects radial shadows, since the latter is closer to the object (Fig.09). Considering where the sun is, we can draw lines starting from the direction of the sun to the object. With this technique we can define where the light and shadow of the object itself falls, and what is cast by it (Fig.10). You can also cheat with the shadow’s location; it does not necessarily have to match the light source. We can use this resource to compose images from spaces of light and shadow to make our work more striking. Fig.11 shows the image with harsh shadows. In the second part of this tutorial we’ll move on to looking at adding color, managing brushes and telling a story through your painting.

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Chapter 01

Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 02 Chapter 02 – Color and Brush Management Software Used: Photoshop To address a scene containing a lot of detail and information, you need to have an order in which to work in and above all, patience. For this tutorial I was commissioned to draw a seaport – an original place, with an invented civilization – that showed different situations, crane movements, people, vehicles; many elements interacting with each other. To deal with something of this magnitude, with so many things to draw in the same composition, you have to plan in advance. This tutorial will explain how to draw a complex scenario step-by-step. I’ll talk about how ideas arise, what the sources of inspiration are, how to work with perspective and composition, digital painting techniques, brush management and adding final details. Although almost all these issues can be found in art books or manual drawing, I’ll show different techniques and ways to address a drawing. The goal is that the tutorial should serve primarily as a guide for those artists who are getting started and need some order with which to address their projects.

Color For illustrators, painting a picture is often the hardest part of the work, as they are afraid of ruining the drawing when coloring it. I always say that the easiest thing is to learn how to color and the most important thing is to learn how to draw. Each element in nature has a default color, which I will name “local”. Apples are red, trees are green and brown, and the sky is blue (Fig.01). When painting an object, we must take into account its local color and add to it the “base” or “environment” color. This base color will interfere with the object’s local color, producing new mixes that will not only change it, but help to enrich and integrate the object into the environment. Therefore, even though the apple

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is red, it can also be green, purple, yellow and

Once I finished the base color in a new layer,

orange in turn (Fig.02).

I started painting the whole scene in Normal mode. Using only my brush, with an opacity

To set the color, I took a photograph as a source

setting of 75%, I started in the center of the

of inspiration, from which I extracted the base

scene and began to work on the color of the

color of my drawing. Once I had more or less

ship (Fig.04).

defined the light and shadow in black and white, I created a new layer. In Overlay mode, I painted

I decided to use a blue-gray color, as the

the entire canvas orange, as well as adding

spacecraft was to be made out of shiny metal.

Unlike many digital artists I usually prefer to

dark brown shadows to limit areas and generate

For the used rusted pieces, orange was

add color, as if it were a traditional painting.

contrast. I mutated the tones to a gray color by

better. By mixing these colors (orange with the

What I do is take the color I want from the color

reducing the color intensity setting on the layer

blue-gray shiny metal) I got the desired effect

palette and apply it directly onto the canvas

to an opacity of 78% (Fig.03).

(Fig.05).

without using any special filter or effect to

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Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 02

keep the background pattern. In short, I cover the previous stage of the drawing with color that resembles oil paint, because it makes the picture look like a traditional painting. I enjoy thinking about the colors I should use and how to combine them (Fig.06). To save working time, we can also use textures taken from photos, but when using them we must be careful to maintain the aesthetic unity of the whole work. The important thing is not to show that there is a photo and that with this action, we have improved the quality of our work (Fig.07). Gradually an image full of color and detail will appear. It is important to keep color tones. Using the base color we should try different colors, taking care that they do not differ too much from the rest, unless the composition or the scene should require it. As the composition of the scene contains many elements, we should play a lot with the issue of distance and contrast to differentiate and limit their importance in the composition. Objects that are close are more saturated in color and have

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more contrast. Objects that are farther away are fainter and more gray (Fig.08).

Digital Painting For better handling of the color and to create halftones for our digital painting, use the Color Picker + Alt. Once we have established the basis of color, in this case the gray blue metal that covers the ship, we pick up the same color with the Eyedropper tool. By using the brush with the opacity at 70%, we will be able to do the halftone color base, while we add new colors and mix them with that basic color (Fig.09). There are very good programs that emulate a color’s assembly process and its mixture, as if we were working with pigments. My recommendation is to work with a good digital tablet that has high sensitivity in the tip and, at the same time, set the brush properly.

Brush Management There are several ways to improve work by creating your own brushes, intelligently using their settings and not abusing the resources. Early on in the painting process, many digital artists typically use their brush with very little

opacity, thinking that in this way they should

How an artist uses a brush is part of their

be able to achieve a more realistic and

personality and the stroke style often reveals

photographic result in their work. However, the

who the owner of the work is. I recommend

results obtained tend to be not very detailed

preparing a unique set of brushes of your own

pictures with a ghostly or blurred effect (Fig.10

and designing your personal style, trying not to

– 11).

repeat the same resource in the same work.

This process is just the reverse. We start

To Tell a Story

working with a harder brush (100% opacity) and

For the image to make sense and be

finally, if you want a more realistic treatment,

interesting, it is better that it tells a story and

you may soften certain parts of the drawing’s

the composition of the illustration’s elements

strokes by using a softer brush (20% opacity)

reinforces this concept. My younger brother,

(Fig.12).

who also draws, is a fan of the ancient astronauts theory and gave me ideas for this

The more defined the hard shadows and lights

scene. I found the topic interesting, so I tried to

are, the more realistic our work will look. Another

have something similar in my illustration.

way to achieve a good finish is to use textured

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brushes with specific shapes to save working

To the left there are alien emperors watching the

time (Fig.13).

loading and unloading of their mother ship; on

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Step-by-step Photoshop environments Chapter 02

the other balconies to the right, there is part of the nobility. Finally, at the bottom of the picture I put the poorest people, their houses and fishing boats. All these elements lead the eye towards the center of the ship. On the one hand they add information and, on the other, they simplify the composition (Fig.14).

Intelligent Detailing Finally, to display the image better, I recommend detailing the most important issues. What would be the most important? What we want to show, what summarizes the idea or what generates the greatest impact from afar. From this stage I began to work zoomed in to 50 or 70 percent, taking regular intervals to see the whole picture

order and being aware of every step you take. In

master of our work. It also gives us more

to avoid getting lost in the immensity of the

a piece of this complexity it is necessary to take

creative freedom and the opportunity to develop

details (Fig.15).

breaks to criticize the picture and look for errors.

our talents to the fullest.

To achieve a good end result many things

It is important to study and practice a lot,

Ignacio Bazan Lazcano

should be considered, especially maintaining

because this allows us to eventually be the

Email: [email protected]

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Chapter 02

3DTOTAL EBOOK | Step-by-step Photoshop environments

Discover how to generate ideas through sketching and thumbnails... During this tutorial we shall take a look at the process behind producing a digital painting and some of the principal techniques employed. This particular commission orientated around a science-fiction theme entitled ‘Search and Rescue’, and depicts a crash site being investigated by a search party of astronauts looking for survivors or perhaps some valuable cargo. We will consider the entire process behind digital painting, beginning with ways to generate an idea through sketching and thumbnails as well as the use of reference photos. From here, we shall continue through the blocking-in phase and discuss the notion of perspective and composition and the integral role of color and lighting. Custom brushes will also feature, as well as the inclusion of photography as a way of adding textural realism and as a foundation for enhancing detail.

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01

Gathering references and initial sketches: The first stage in any painting is to consider the subject matter or storyline, something that precedes any drawing or sketching. If you already have a brief outline or title then you have a little information to begin with. From here there are two alternative routes you could take, both of which are equally valid. The first is to gather reference material in the form of images relating to the topic – and the internet is as good a starting point as any. The second option involves creating some small compositional studies to try and determine the key components such as shape, light and space. It doesn’t really matter which route you follow first as both are equally valid, but you may find it easier to look for references if you are struggling to visualize anything. With the subject established you can begin to search for relevant materials. In this case, these were entirely based on astronauts and spacesuits from various films. It was important to do some research on this subject in order to ensure that the characters looked plausible, but other than this I relied on my imagination for the design of the environment. If the title of this piece had related to a real-world scenario and factual

“The best approach is to work on a small scale with the canvas zoomed out to around 35%, using large bold brushstrokes, varying the brushes if need be” subject matter, then I would naturally have researched these topics, but it was enough to begin with just the characters. As we shall see later on, I introduced some photo references to help form some of the details in the image, but for the time being it was the characters that took priority. Having compiled a small library of images, I began sketching some small studies exploring various compositions and spaceship designs. During this stage, I often have little or no idea about how the image will look and so repeatedly scribble random shapes until something tangible evolves. The best approach is to work on a small scale with the canvas zoomed out to around 35%, using large bold brushstrokes, varying the brushes if need be. It is good to focus on the general shapes and tonal range as opposed to any details at this point.

CHAPTER 03 | How to generate ideas

Here is an example of a quick thumbnail sketch done using a single Hard Elliptical brush. To avoid a ‘feathery’ look I used a hard-edged brush as this created clearer spatial relationships between the various elements. At this point you want to be able to picture the overall scene and define the foreground, middle distance and background.

02

Creating a sense of depth: In this case we have a structure in the foreground which is in shadow with a spaceship in the middle distance disappearing towards the horizon. The background hints at another part of the wreck which is little more than a silhouette. When creating a scene with a lot of depth, remember to adhere to the laws of atmospheric perspective which, simply put, results in more contrast and darker tones in the foreground. The two photographs illustrate this theory whereby the distant scenery adopts more of the ambient light and color of the sky. The darker tones are nearest the viewer where we witness the strongest shadows and most of the detail. You can see in both examples how the scenery becomes closer to the color of the sky as it recedes. Despite being very simple, the initial sketches crucially display a sense of depth and scale and establishes our foreground, middle distance and background. Before going into any significant detail, it is also worth determining the perspective by way of the horizon line and vanishing point/ points depending on whether you employ one, two or three-point perspective.

03

Vanishing points: There is plenty of information online and in books about this, but if we look at this image you can see

A quick thumbnail sketch using a Hard Elliptical brush, keeping clear spatial relationships between each stage Demonstrating how to convey a sense of depth This illustrates the vanishing points and the horizon line in the image

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“Where the viewer is positioned in relation to the horizon will determine how we view the scene” that I have placed a red horizon line and three green lines that roughly trace back towards the vanishing point.

04

Using a two-point perspective: If we were to use a two-point perspective it would involve using two vanishing points as opposed to one. Where the viewer is positioned in relation to the horizon will determine how we view the scene. Although perspective exists everywhere it is only really apparent in architectural environments or ones that incorporate man-made objects. In this image, for example, the lower cube could represent a building seen from an aerial perspective, while the upper one could be part of a tall structure seen from ground level. You could also introduce a third vanishing point above or below the horizon line which is apparent with low and high angle viewpoints.

05

Creating the third vanishing point: Create a series of lines tracing to a third vanishing point below the horizon line showing the perspective of the verticals.

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The importance of setting up a perspective grid depends on the nature of your scene and the content. If you are describing a complicated architectural environment then it will prove useful but if it is a natural environment then it is less so. Using the initial sketches as a starting point, I made a few more thumbnails based upon a large scale crash. I liked the idea of a huge ship dwarfing the characters so pursued this theme.

06

Composition: Here are three variations of my image, using both the landscape

and the portrait formats. Each one focuses on scenes with a sense of depth and the use of atmospheric perspective. The astronauts in the left and upper-right image create a gauge through which to measure the scale but all three are structured in a similar way to the image in step one, with the darkest values set in the foreground. Each has a little more detail than step one but the focus still remains on the key shapes, composition and spatial depth.

CHAPTER 03 | How to generate ideas

Frames for different perspectives, depending on the position of the viewer Setting up grid lines to create another dimension to the picture Creating different variations of the sketch to determine the right composition Taking elements of each of the experimental variations and creating the best composition

07

Finalizing the composition: The other important factor to try and establish at this stage is the light source and lighting conditions. In the upper right sketch in step six, you can see that the sun is somewhere to the right, whereas the left-hand image describes more overcast conditions with a softer, more ambient light.

I decided to create another thumbnail with the characters nearer the ship to help emphasize its size. I liked the cylindrical plate-like structure in the two right images and so used this as a basis for the design. This bears a resemblance to step one, albeit with a little more detail, but again adheres to the principals of atmospheric perspective to create depth and scale.

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CHAPTER 03 | How to generate ideas

“If you have trouble visualizing something from a random doodle, then try using the common technique of starting with a photograph”

08

Other methods to inspire an image: All of the images so far have been painted from scratch, but if you have trouble visualizing something from a random doodle, then try using the common technique of starting with a photograph. Here is a grouping of three photos that have first been desaturated and then combined and reorientated using a variety of blending modes to produce the version on the right. You may notice the block of flats from the middle photo and some of the skyscraper lights in the lower image.

09

The final composition: This step shows the consequent composition that evolved from this approach, with the block of flats assuming the hull of the spaceship on the left. The rectangular shape in the upper-left of the image in step eight, has become a structure that now lunges from the right.

Not inspired by random doodles? Try using a series of photographs to begin your image Finishing touches to the composition

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Richard Tilbury takes us through the process of creating space in a sci-fi image... By using thumbnails and sketches as a way to explore ideas, I obtain enough of an idea to begin the final concept. I prefer to start with some room for improvisation and allow the image to dictate the direction to some extent, otherwise the final piece becomes nothing more than a mechanical exercise and one of reproduction. I find this approach leaves room for happy accidents which often lead to better and more original results.

01

Getting started: The central image here was the first stage. I chose to widen the image to create more of a panorama and use the middle distance to show the bulk of the main wreckage. As with thumbnails, it is a good idea to use hard-edged brushes to clearly delineate the spatial depth, but alternatively you can use the Lasso tool. Another approach is to lay down some brushstrokes and then use a hard-edged Eraser to refine the shape. The left foreground uses both hard and soft brushstrokes to create a sense of depth by playing light against dark (1). The brushes I tend to use vary from the default Hard Round brush (see Inset 3: brushes 60, 80, 9, and 9), the Soft Round Airbrush (brush 17) and the Chalk brush (brushes 20 and 17). As a starting point, these create a good variety of marks and can also help emphasize depth. Try experimenting with a small array of brushes such as the ones listed above, as well as using the Lasso tool. You can also use the Transform tools to manipulate shapes such as the foreground wreckage. This began as a series of rectangles, which were then distorted using the Warp tool in order to add curvature (4). I maintained a darker foreground and reduced the contrast for distant objects, which also adopted a color closer to the sky. I began this image in color, but there is no reason why you cannot start in black-and-white and focus on the tonal range. You can always add color later on in a separate layer set to Overlay. When using color, remember that light bounces around a scene and will reflect color from one surface to another. Apart from the key light source there is a general ambient light which corresponds to the color of the sky, particularly on a sunny day.

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CHAPTER 04 | Create depth and space in Photoshop

02

Applying colors: In this top image, we can see that the blue of the sky is evident in the shadow of the foreground rocks and to a lesser extent in the middle distance grouping. In the lower image we can see the blue of the platform on the underside of the shark as well as a hint of green under the snout which is being reflected up off the grass. When blocking in your composition, try to carry the general color scheme throughout the image in order to unify the pictorial space. In other words, use the sky color in your shadows and consider the reflectivity of different materials and their proximity to neighboring objects. In this instance I opted to start in color as opposed to black-and-white but either method is valid.

03

Color scheme: This image shows the initial block, which uses a combination of both hard- and soft-edged brushes. It is very monochromatic using only a few colors and echoing the color scheme throughout. I sampled a photo of an industrial facility which I used as a starting point for the area on the left. This was then color-corrected to match the palette before being painted over with a semi opaque brush.

04

Light bounces: Having added the bulk of the ship in the middle distance in one of the thumbnails, I decided to try this composition with a secondary sketch as a comparison. In this version I deleted the foreground section and instead blocked in an additional part in the background. The arrows indicate regions which illustrate some of the above principles regarding light bounces.

The foreground cylinder reflects the color of the sky, whereas some of the warmer ground color is bouncing off the shaded side of the astronaut as well as the underside of the ship. The two arrows pointing left indicate areas where the light is catching parts of the hull which again is sampled from the sky. A breakdown of the key brushes and tools used in this scene Take note of reflecting colors in the environment Using a monochromatic color scheme and industrial facility reference as a base Arrows indicating certain light bounces in the scene

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05

Making adjustments: After considering this composition I decided that I preferred the inclusion of a cylindrical shaped hull. With this in mind, I opened the original, increased the width and then began painting over it with a much darker color scheme. I retained the large ship in the middle distance which you can see in inset 2. To create the fire I added a new layer set to Overlay and painted in a region of orange that corresponded with the lightest areas in the center which is also partly visible through the hull (3). I then copy-and-pasted the panels from the original ship into the image and duplicated these to form the upright section you can see on the far left (4). I repeated this to create a third version in the distance (5). This repetition of a motif is not only a good technique for conveying scale and depth but can also be used as a compositional aid to link areas of your canvas.

06

Creating depth: If we look at this example, it shows a single motif placed on the ground plane with a low horizon line. It is impossible to gauge the depth of the pictorial space and get a sense of how far the scene recedes. By contrast the right image employs a series of motifs which creates a far more tangible sense of depth simply because we have a repetition which acts as a measuring stick.

07

Applying depth to my image: I decided to paint in an area of water in the foreground to make more sense of this region. A simple way of achieving this is to first select

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an area using the Lasso tool and then on a separate layer roughly block in a reflection that approximates the area directly above it. Alternatively you could copy the area above the water and paste it into the selection area.

With the selection area still active, go to Filter > Blur > Motion Blur and select a vertical axis. You may need to emphasize certain edges if they are not apparent but this will depend on the lighting conditions in your scene.

CHAPTER 04 | Create depth and space in Photoshop

08

Horizon lines: One thing I noticed at this point was the awkward placement of the horizon which was close to the vertical center of the canvas. Generally this is an undesirable position and it is best either closer to the top or bottom edge of the canvas. This image shows the original level (the top one) with the amended one below. As well as looking more interesting it also serves to increase the scale of the ship on the left ,which now feels much bigger. By shrinking the size of the silhouetted component (see red arrow) it also serves to help increase the scale of the cylindrical sections of wreckage. The highlighted component here makes the left-most piece of wreckage look bigger when scaled down, but we still do not really know how big the pieces are as there is no recognizable reference as yet; a role destined to be fulfilled by the characters.

09

Size and scale: Size is relative of course, and the scale of an object can only be gauged by a comparison with something else. This also inherently bounds to the laws of perspective which can create an illusion of something appearing bigger or smaller than it actually is. Here we can see two images of a car alongside a person but because the car is further away from the character on the left it appears smaller. The car on the right looks considerably bigger as it is adjacent to the character. Artists often include a figure as a reference for scale or alternatively use something common-place. Apart from the cylindrical section that was duplicated, there is little information in the way of a repeated motif to convey a sense of depth, and because of the atmospheric conditions we cannot see too far into the distance. As a result we

Adding extra lights and components in the composition Creating the illusion of depth by placing receding objects Adding water made the composition easier to read Moving the horizon line to create a sense of scale An example of how to create a sense of size and scale 31

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CHAPTER 04 | Create depth and space in Photoshop

“Unless your scene only contains an array of parallel objects you may be required to establish a number of different vanishing points” will have to resort to another technique to create depth: overlapping.

10

Overlapping: To illustrate this theory, look at the left image in this example, showing two figures apparently floating in space. Their relationship is vague and we cannot clearly ascertain how they relate to one another spatially. If we introduce three lines we now get a much clearer idea about the pictorial space which now describes a foreground, middle distance and background. Although we have a more tangible space it is still a little unclear how the three spatial zones relate especially where they converge within the red circle. If we introduce tone, this immediately becomes apparent and we can then employ the use of atmospheric perspective.

11

Applying an overlap: If we now go back to the painting and analyze the shapes we can see that this technique has been used already. The overlapping has been achieved by offsetting dark against light areas.

12

Creating space: If we look at this image, we can observe that area 1 (light) is in front of area 2 (dark) which in turn is in front of area 3 (light). The cylindrical wreckage (4) has both a highlighted and shaded side which sets it in front of the main hull (5) because it has a higher level of contrast. As the scene recedes, the

level of contrast decreases due to atmospheric perspective (compare areas 4, 6 and 8).

13

Perspective: As you can see there are a few ways in which to create spatial depth, but the important issue is that you need to always be aware of perspective, whether you are working on an architectural environment or a landscape; even characters adhere to these laws. Unless your scene only contains an array of parallel objects you may be required to establish a number of different vanishing points. If we look at this example, we can see that the boxes on the left are parallel to both the ground plane and each other and so it easy to trace the segments towards a vanishing point on either side.

The Artist

Richard Tilbury

Web: richardtilburyart.com

If we compare this with the image on the right you can see that it is no longer as straight forward. Because these are not aligned, each has a different vanishing point; something which is relevant in our search party scene where each part of the wreckage is at a different angle, and a necessary requirement for a crash site.

Assigning a foreground, middle and back ground gives the image a comprehendible space The overlapping technique in action Creating an impression of space in the image using a variety of techniques A final example on making the perspective relevant to your scene

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Discover techniques to integrate photographs into your images... If we refer to the original image from last week’s tutorial, we can see a few key unusual aspects in the composition. Due to the inconsistent arrangement of volumes and shapes in the image, I have relied on atmospheric perspective and a repeated motif as the main vehicle for conveying depth. Also, because the horizon line has been lowered, the ground plane is heavily foreshortened. In order to support this, it was important to add some visual clues in the scene – something that the pool of water did to some extent.

01

Correcting the perspective: This image shows the original foreground above and the revised version below. I add some water that runs towards the horizon, helping to both define the perspective of the ground plane and create some interest. Because we perceive more detail when in close proximity to an object, then it follows we should apply this theory when painting. If the foreground is in extreme shadow or is blurred to create focal depth then you may make an exception, but as a rule it works quite well. One way to achieve this is by varying your brushes and using textured ones to generate more variety. This can be done by customizing an existing brush from your library. Custom brushes can be made from scratch but you can often create a good result by manipulating the Brush Presets of default Photoshop brushes

02

Dual custom brushes: Here we can see a standard Hard Round brush in the upper right with the Opacity set to Pen Pressure (a setting preferable for most brushes). If you scroll down the list in your Brush panel to Dual Brush and activate this, you have access to the rest of your current library and can combine it with another brush. The bottom left window shows the active Dual Brush function and the resultant effect on the right-hand side, which has now introduced a second brush. The type of texture you get depends on the secondary brush but you can also tweak the settings to vary the brush. Once you are happy with your brush, don’t forget to save it by clicking on the Create New Brush tab

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CHAPTER 05 | Get to grips with integrating photos

at the base of the panel. The new brush will now appear at the bottom of your library.

03

Creating a new brush: If you want to create a new brush you must first define a shape and then make a selection area around it. Then go to Edit > Define Brush Preset and give it a name. This will now appear at the base of your library, though when you select the brush it will be far from correct and will require some tweaking within the Brush Presets.

04

the top and begin by altering the Spacing (lefthand image). This helps define your brush shape.

Comparing the original and revised perspective shots

If you want to add variation throughout the stroke, flip the X and Y Jitter under the Shape Dynamics – you will also notice I link the size of the brush to Pen Pressure and set the Angle Jitter to Direction. This means that the stroke orientates with the direction of the brush (see middle panel).

Creating dual custom brushes in the brush settings

I finally set the Opacity to Pen Pressure under the Transfer tab (right panel).

Defining the selection area when creating a new brush Changing the brush settings to create the right brush stroke

Altering brush settings: Once you have opened the Brush Presets panel, start at

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05

The final brush: Once the brush is saved out it resembles this image here, where less pressure results in a smaller and lighter tip.

06

Focus and detail: The color scheme and composition at this stage is well established, despite the absence of the characters which will eventually become the key focal points. It may be worth mentioning that you should always work on the image as a whole and not get carried away with details. As part of painting a secondary composition I included some characters to get an idea about their placement, but if I hadn’t explored this aspect then it would have been wise to include them during the blocking-in phase. From this initial sketch I realized that a foreground character was what I wanted with one or two set further back to help lead the viewer into the scene. In this image, one thing I quite like is the cylindrical section in the left foreground, perhaps suggesting a fallen engine component, so I decide

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to include this along with a few duplicates on the main wreck. At the moment the scale looks a little inconsistent between the foreground one and those in the background but we can fix that later. You may notice the suggestion of detail in the shaded underside which comes courtesy of photo overlays; an effective technique for quickly adding realism.

online or use a camera and photograph a subject with specifics in mind; it is up to you, but obviously there may be a limit to what you can find yourself.

07

08

Using photos: If we look at this image, the silhouette of the ship is rather vague with the upper section appearing to merge with the atmosphere, while the distant section looks clearer by contrast. We could simply sharpen the edge, but instead will use a photo to suggest a mechanical structure. You can either search

I found this image of some abandoned machinery which looks like it was used in mining to carry materials along a series of conveyor belts. Scale: One aspect to be aware of is scale; it is important that whatever you sample fits within the context. That’s not to say that you need to find an image that perfectly matches the perspective and proximity of your image but if for example you are describing a distant building then a close up may prove inconsistent

CHAPTER 05 | Get to grips with integrating photos

The final brush effect

and difficult to integrate. This is not an absolute rule but rather a guideline as indeed there are instances when this will work.

blending mode. At the moment it looks far from satisfactory but if we alter the blending mode and reduce the Opacity it looks entirely different. Part of the reason it works well is that the original photo is quite desaturated. This means that when you set it to Overlay it will adopt the color of the base image.

You can see here that the scale of machinery is far smaller than the spaceship but the level of detail within the selection area is consistent. There is a section of grass and sky included which obviously isn’t ideal, but can remain depending on the

Generally you will need to make some color adjustments in order to ensure the photos blend in with your color scheme, but the degree and choice of the blending mode will depend on the context. If you wish to use Overlay, for example,

Getting the right scale is important –use adjustments to make any additions fit the image

“The degree and choice of the blending mode will depend on the context”

Working on the image as a whole and choosing a focal point to add detail Using photos to add texture and definition to silhouettes

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CHAPTER 05 | Get to grips with integrating photos

then you will probably need to desaturate the photo. The important issue is to maintain the tonal range and make sure that the contrast is similar. Sometimes you may prefer to keep the blending mode as Normal and use Image Adjustments to modify the color and contrast so they match.

09

Integrating a photo: This image is a good case in point; you’ll see that the highlighted cylinder was extracted and the brightness lowered slightly. Once the Opacity was lowered the blending mode did not need to be altered as it worked quite well. This was due to the fact that the color scheme and contrast was sympathetic to begin with. Apart from this reference the rest of the ship and areas of the background used the same photo of mining machinery.

10

Photos in the image: Here you can see the culmination of all these additions with their associated blending modes and opacity settings. The far left region was set to Luminosity as this is a section at right angles to the underside and I therefore want it to be a little lighter. If it was set to Overlay it would have adopted the value of the ship layer and appear darker.

Always remember that the photo overlays should be used to reinforce your painting rather than dictate the content. Once the photo has been color-corrected then you can use your brush to blend it in, adding the mortar between the stones as it were. You can also use the Eyedropper to sample colors which can in turn be used to add additional detail.

11

Comparing effects: This image shows a section of color-corrected detail on the left, and color-corrected and painted detail (using the color apparent in the photo layer) on the right.

The Artist

Richard Tilbury

richardtilburyart.com

If your layer is not set to Normal mode you will need to do this on a separate layer, otherwise the color you are sampling will not be a true representation of what you are seeing.

This photo was well integrated into the scene using Opacity The various additions to the image and the adjustments made to integrate them Comparing the different stages of adding detail

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Balancing the composition of your scene by introducing some characters... At this point in the image, we can begin to work on adding characters, which are crucial to the composition. In this case, I decide to put one in the extreme foreground, so begin on him first.

01

Blocking in the figure: The first stage involves blocking in the general shape and color, which in this case is a green/blue hue, deliberately chosen to contrast with the warm hues prominent throughout the scene. As usual, make sure you consider the lighting

“With the principal character in place, it is easier to review the overall composition and the relationship between the various parts”

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scheme and bear in mind the arrangement of lights and darks. If you look at the initial block-in, the light is now hitting the left side of the arm and helmet whereas the right side is in shadow; something that is maintained throughout the two subsequent phases. I try to make the suit well-padded with a large scale visor but it looks oversized (as you can see in the middle image here) and so I reduce the proportions, resulting in a slimmer and less hunched astronaut. By having him point, it also serves to guide the viewer’s attention towards the second astronaut who will be placed to the left.

02

Positioning the character: Having him cropped at the waist feels a little awkward, so I raise him and give him a more upright stance.

03

Composition: With the principal character in place, it is easier to review the overall composition and the relationship between the various parts. I realize that the detail is inconsistent at this point – instead of reducing detail towards the background, I had an area in both the foreground and the background that had been worked on heavily, and a large component that lacked definition in the form of the main wreckage.

04

Fixing composition problems: To help balance this inconsistency, I decide to create an area of detail. I begin by adding evidence of a wing of sorts and then use an array of photos to house some mechanical parts beneath it, perhaps suggesting an engine or internal support structure. I use hand-painted elements to start the process (upper left) and follow by integrating some color-corrected photos (upper right). The photo

CHAPTER 06 | Learn to balance compositions

The first stages of adding in a character Re-cropping and positioning the character in the scene

Problems with the composition that need to be addressed Addressing problems with the composition by refocusing detail 45

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CHAPTER 06 | Learn to balance compositions

sections are then blended in with a brush, paying careful attention to the lighting.

05

Adding detail: I use three photographs to add detail, as you can see in the corresponding images. Increasing the detail in this section of the canvas makes a great deal of difference and marks the beginning of the last phase. It is always good to balance areas of detail with less labored parts of the canvas, and in this case I want the right half to be far simpler and more suggestive compared to the left-hand side.

06

More characters: The foreground character is used as a device to ‘activate’ this space and help balance the composition. One remaining aspect is the inclusion of an additional character in the direction that the astronaut is pointing. This is something which will also help tie the left and right sides together and guide the viewer into the scene. I add two additional explorers approaching the main wreckage and refine our key character, whose right arm is now complete alongside his modified helmet. I create a sharp edge around the helmet using the Lasso tool; you can then paint inside the selection area, invert it and then delete outside it (assuming you do it on a separate layer). He is the focal point and from here your eye is led to the other two explorers, guided in part by a subtle lens flare where light is reflecting off a metal panel. These characters are composed of a group of light and dark areas to suggest their general shape and spacesuits. When you get a highlight in the right area it is amazing what effect it can have in describing form, even in the absence of any detail. The composition at this point is now complete and any further work is simply a matter of refining what is already there.

07

Collapsing layers: It is helpful to divide your image into layers and break it down into a logical structure that allows you to experiment with areas independently, but it will get to a point inevitably when you want to collapse a few or indeed the entire PSD file. Once done you can apply some adjustment layers to further modify aspects like the color scheme and contrast for example. So at this point, I collapse everything and then create a new group (icon is located at the base of the Layers palette next to the Delete Layer icon). Within this, I add two additional layers that make up the refinements. There is no reason why you

cannot use a single layer or indeed create a whole new set, but at some point you will probably repeat the process. You can see the image and the corresponding Layers palette with the new group called Refinements (marked green) and a Curves adjustment layer at the top with the mask thumbnail alongside it. This is used to darken the shaded areas, and by painting into the mask with black, I can prevent the lighter regions from being affected.

Using reference images to inspire detail in the image Working out the best composition by adding more characters and a subtle lens flare Collapsing the layers and adding a few final adjustments to complete the image The final image

08

Final thoughts: This concludes the end of the process though no doubt I will look at the image in a few months time and see a number of flaws – this is a scenario that could apply to almost every piece you undertake however. Ultimately there is a point at which you must decide to stop, and sometimes the temptation to continue can prove difficult to resist, but this is simply another step in the learning process.

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The Artist

Richard Tilbury

richardtilburyart.com

3DTOTAL EBOOK | Step-by-step Photoshop environments

Discover how to create a strong starting point for your complex images... In the following tutorial, I am going to give a detailed walkthrough on the creation of the image The Hunt. The tutorial will focus both on the fundamentals of creating visual art and the technical aspects of the digital painting. This scene takes place within some ancient temple ruins, showing a few characters chasing after a beast.

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Research, thumbnails, sketches of the ideas: I never under-estimate the importance of the researching stage in the creation of my images. It gives me the opportunity to brainstorm the given subject and find proper designs for the architectural elements and the characters in the image. With the given brief of the image, I can quickly sort out a few key words: ruins, hunters, beast. Then, it will be around those keywords that I will sketch out the ideas.

01

Sketching the ruins: I will start by setting the temple ruins within the environment. I have found some really good references on www.freetextures.3dtotal.com/ index.php. It contains a large royalty-free image database, so don’t hesitate to use it for finding useful and high-resolution references. It’s also very useful to build your own visual bank by taking tons of pictures during your trips and daily life routines. What is good about them is their copyrights totally belong to you. Not only

CHAPTER 07 | Sketching with texture brushes

can you manipulate them freely for making your own textures and patterns, but you can also make your own custom brushes. When you lack ideas for your next image, just go through your visual bank; some nice sunset clouds, building shapes or a giant old tree root may trigger your imagination and inspire you to come up with fresh, new ideas. Since the ruins significantly dictate the composition of the image, I choose to start with these. Iconic shapes are the foundations of any good composition, so I pick some gray values and make some blockings of big iconic shapes. At this point, you can use any default brushes that come with Photoshop, however I prefer to use charcoal brushes rather than the round airbrush ones, since they can give you crisp and sharp lines.

02

Adding small details: It is important to spend some time drawing small details on the outlines of those big shapes in order to make them visually appealing and realistic. Those cracks can tell the viewers that these are aged bricks and rocks. Along with the broken shapes, the very few gray shapes that I have just put down are already solidly setting the basic tones for the overall image.

03

Using texture brushes: As I continue with the sketch, I continue using different textured charcoal brushes to add brick details to the basic blocking. I also use photo references

that I have gathered as texture bases that I overlay as reference. Since we are in the researching phase, it is important to observe the material properties, mainly the old stone bricks in this case. To make the stone brick textures pop out of the image, it is essential to not overpaint every single brick in the ruins, just carefully draw out the ones where the light hits the most, and hint subtly at the rest.

04

Perspective: Atmospheric perspective is another trick to make your image easy to read. The areas that I circled in red have different degrees of value contrast: the two foreground shapes are the darkest facets against the light sky, so they have the highest value contrast in the image. Such contrast makes them instantly stand out in the foreground. As our eyes move further in the distance, we can notice that the central architectural element has less value contrast, as it

is a mid-gray value against a light sky backdrop – this less perceptible value change makes it recede into the background. Since this is still the sketching phase, I stop polishing the image too much and start exploring with another sketch.

Blocking out the shapes of the ruins to set the composition Adding small details tells the viewers that these are aged buildings Isolating one or two bricks in the wall really makes them pop Creating perspective by varying the tone of the objects

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“The characters and the ruins should have a similar perspective/horizon line, as it will make our life easier to integrate them in the environment later”

05

A new sketch: Since the first ruins sketch is composed of heavily broken parts, I want to make something a little different for the second one: it’s a less destroyed ruin on a hill, and it has a more dominating presence in the image. I will elaborate the technical aspects of the digital painting using Photoshop, such as how to make custom brushes, in the other parts of the tutorial. But in this researching and sketching part, I really want to put the importance on the 54 | 3DTOTAL.COM

basic artistic notions to make a visually appealing image. Those notions remain the same no matter whether you use traditional tools or digital software for achieving the final result.

06

Adding to the composition: After completing the second ruin sketch, I find something is lacking in the image, even though I do like the massive shape of the ruins. I think that it is because the sketch is missing some depth, especially some foreground elements, to lead the viewers’ eye into the image. Suddenly the ruins become alive – they tell a story. They start to show that back during the temple’s glory days, the people would follow the path to climb up to the hill, to the central part of the temple for worshipping their God.

07

Sketching the characters: I am pretty satisfied with the environment now, so it is time to do some sketches of the characters as we move forward in the process. As the ruins are static visual elements, it would be nice to add some motion in the image with our characters who are chasing after a wild beast. It should be appropriate for the story to have the characters as native people living on this land since the time of their ancestors. I use some big brushstrokes with the intention of sketching out the movements of the hunters, without worrying too much about their designs. I make more sketches, paying attention to creating depth with the positioning of the hunters. The characters and the ruins should have a similar perspective/horizon line, as it will

CHAPTER 07 | Sketching with texture brushes

make our life easier to integrate them into the environment later. Now they are all approximately at our eye level, so if you want to save some time, don’t sketch the characters from a bird’s eye view or from a low-angle view unless you just want to experiment freely and have some fun.

08

Close-up details: I had the hunting mood going on with my last character sketches, so I decide to create a close up of the native. He has some fundamental features of a native: dark skin, and a clear and hard facial bone structure, along with a few feathers as decorations on his headwear. I am not sure if this close up will be useful for the final painting, but doing some side studies on the topic is always good, as reference, to have a better understanding of the image context.

09

Finalizing the characters: To finalize the character sketches, I draft a dark back view of the hunter. It can be very useful as a foreground for the final painting as this back silhouette can lead the viewers’ eye into the image for the hunting action.

After doing all those sketches, I now have a pretty solid understanding of the image context, and am very confident to start the black-and-white painting for the final image. From here, we need

Creating something a little different for the second sketch Building up the sketch to enhance the narrative and story

to blend these sketches into a more complex and finished composition with a strong, convincing storytelling characteristic.

Drawing extra versions of the characters broadens your knowledge and skill on the topic Finishing the black-and-white sketches

Sketching characters on the horizon line

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Learn how to build up your scene using custom brushes and incorporating characters... In this tutorial, I will focus on how to bring all the sketch elements together in order to build a complete black-and-white image.

01

Adding the hunters: Since we’ve already created a series of solid sketches of both characters and temple ruins, we have a solid base to start from. I finally choose the second environment sketch, showing lessdestroyed ruins standing on top of a hill, because its path leads the viewers’ eye into the image well and it has good story-telling potential. I take the first character sketch that I did in the previous part and try to integrate the natives into the foreground. Don’t be afraid to use the Free Transform tool to scale and flip the characters to find the best way to blend them with the background. I usually make two to three versions to pick the best. With the added hunters, the image suddenly becomes more alive and gains an extra layer of information.

02

More characters: I take a step back and look at the image. The left side feels

“As digital artists, we don’t only need to master all the traditional art notions; we also need a few technologically enhanced tricks to help us to achieve the best visual result”

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very empty, so I decide to add another group of characters. I take the second hunter sketch that I did, and reduce them in size considerably to place them behind my other hunters. Much more depth is then suggested with the newly added hunters: I reduce their sizes proportionally as they recede further into the distance.

03

Creating custom brushes: In a fastpaced entertainment industry like ours, production speed is one of the most important requirements in the workplace. As digital artists, we don’t only need to master all the traditional art notions; we also need a few technologically enhanced tricks to help us to achieve the best visual result.

CHAPTER 08 | Create custom brushes with photos

For the background temple, I want to add a few tree silhouettes. I already know that I will also need them later for my foreground, so I create a custom brush to ease the process. I open one of the pictures that I took during my trip to Texas. Since the trees are in dark tones against a light sky, it will be much simpler for us to extract the intricate and nice tree branches. Please note that this kind of level of detail and the natural randomness of the tree branch shapes and distribution can’t be hand-painted with a round brush, but it would take ages.

04

Preparing the image: I then simply desaturate the original image and use the Curves adjustment to boost up the contrast. You can also use the Levels adjustment or the Brightness/Contrast adjustment to achieve the same result – any Photoshop technique that suits your work habits will do.

05

Extracting the image: With the highly contrasted tree silhouetted against the almost white sky, you can use Extract under the Filter tab, or Color Range under the Select tab, or any other masking methods that work for you to get rid of the light background. Now we are left with a clean cut-out of the trees. And, of course, all the tiny tree branch details are neatly preserved!

06

Refining the image: I continue erasing all the extra trees on both the left and the right sides. This step requires some patience, as it is extremely important that the silhouette is exactly how you want, otherwise when you turn this into a brush, the unwanted single black dot will repeat endlessly with each single brushstroke.

Integrating the sketches of the natives into the scene

De-saturating and tweaking the contrast to make the best base image

Adding more hunters and reducing them to create the impression of distance

Extracting the tree image and preserving the fine branch detail

Using an image of a tree to create a custom brush

Making sure that all the details are exact on the image

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07

Naming the brush: Now select the tree, go to the Edit tab and click on Define Brush Preset. Give it a name as you will have many brushes in your Brush Preset window and it is important to name it properly to avoid confusion later.

08

Adjusting the settings: The newlymade brush should appear now in your brush collection, but it is not over yet. Open your Brushes window under the Window tab and you will be offered many options to alter your original Tree brush. You could spend half an hour playing with the settings, but I will talk about just two of them that are used the most frequently: Shape Dynamic and Other Dynamics. You can use them to give some random effects to your original brush. So when you apply your brushstroke, the original brush shape will change in size, angle, roundness and perhaps opacity along the brushstroke path. In our case, since it is a recognizably shaped brush, unlike those Charcoal, Pencil or Oil brushes, which aim to mimic certain specific traditional media, you don’t want to go too crazy with the settings. I would only apply some Size, Opacity Jitter, and maybe some very subtle Angle Jitter to it, because if I want to build a forest with the brush later, I don’t want to have upside-down trees there. After you have played with all the settings, please don’t forget to save the brush again and give it

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CHAPTER 08 | Create custom brushes with photos

a new name, otherwise all the settings that you have just spent 20 minutes to get will be lost once you change your brush.

09

Using the brush: It will be fun to not only paint with the brush, but also to erase with it. You can see some results that I had with my new brush in this image here. If I have to make a digital painting with more forest/trees content, I will certainly make a few other brushes by repeating the previous steps that I just have explained. It will give more variation and more appeal to the vegetation. However, for this painting, I only need it to hint a few silhouettes, so I will make one or two strokes here and there, and then move forward with the black-and-white painting.

10

Adding more elements: I select the tree brush and place a few trees near the temple top. As long as you select the right gray tone, they should blend in easily with the rest of the painting. I continue by adding the hunters’ target: the tiger. Now the image becomes complete in terms of story-telling. The confrontation is set right at the center of attention: the beast is fierce and the hunters have their eyes on it ready to capture the wild animal.

11

Framing the image: Finally I put some big tree trunks on the left and right top corners of the paintings to make the composition more visually appealing. All the subtle details of the small branches are done with our new brush. I have circled all the areas that are touched up with our new brush in red.

12

Adding more elements: This last image shows the final black-and-white painting that I achieve before moving forward with colors.

Applying the custom tree brush to create silhouettes in the scene Adding the story-telling elements to complete the narrative

Give your brush an appropriate name to avoid confusion Adjusting the settings of your custom brush to create random effects with each stroke

Creating a more appealing composition by adding tree trunks around the frame The final image ready to begin coloring the scene

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Learn how to add color to areas of your image using masks and adjustment layers... With the final black-and-white base painting completed, we can move forward with the coloring process. It is important the keep the gesture and loose feel of the black-and-white painting throughout the coloring without overrendering the image with small brushstrokes. Hence, we will focus on the overall feel and color scheme in this part of the tutorial and worry about the finer details later on.

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01

The Hue/Saturation window: The adjustment layer Hue/saturation is my dearest friend in the coloring process. There are two ways to access it: From the Image tab, go to Adjustments > Hue/Saturation, or use the little circle symbol at the bottom of your layer window. I start to give the overall painting a desaturated blue tone. Don’t forget to tick on the Colorize box in the Hue/Saturation dialogue window; it will make the whole painting monochromatic. You can slide freely with the hue sliding bar to achieve a variety of different color variations, and the

saturation sliding bar to desaturate the painting to your preference.

02

Adding a basic brown color: I continue to add more colors to the painting. I use the same technique to get a light-brown color layer. It sets the basic color for the temple ruins. Since I only want this brown color layer to apply to the temple, I use a gradient mask to reveal the first blue layer for the sky and another mask to reveal the characters.

CHAPTER 09 | Explore coloring techniques

03

Darker colors – trees: I have kept all my masks from my last tutorial, so it is making my job much easier now. If you didn’t preserve the masks, it is not too late to make them now. However, don’t solely use the Lasso tool to select your elements – using any painting brush to trace the contour so the masks have a loose silhouette of the characters, will give the image a stronger traditional painting feel. Now let’s boost up some dark-brown color for the foreground tree branches using the hue/ saturation adjustment layer.

04

Darker colors – hunters: I take a step back and look at the picture and notice the foreground hunters are too light, so I darken them and desaturate them even more since they are in the shadow, ready to jump out to capture the wild beast. Also, they should be one of the darkest elements of the image to further enhance the atmospheric perspective.

05

Exploring other color schemes: With all the digital tools that Photoshop provides us, we have the convenience to try other color schemes/time of day to make sure that we

Locating the Hue/Saturation window and working with the hue sliding bar Using a gradient mask to block out the sky and characters Boosting the brown tones in the foreground trees Deepening the tones on the foreground hunters to create perspective

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have made the right color choice. So even though I am pretty happy with the basic color tone, I still want to take a few more minutes to explore other possibilities. Some traditional painters do this step on very small color thumbnails on canvas, watercolor paper and other traditional media – just another way to refresh our minds with different visual inputs.

06

More color schemes: To have more fun, I make another evening color trial with a desaturated dark-blue tone. Now I have three color directions to choose from: a daytime one, a sunset one and an evening one. Based on my personal preference, I find the daytime one the best. And it should also be the most suitable one serving for a tutorial purpose 66 | 3DTOTAL.COM

since it has the potential to give more color information and nuances. The other two are probably better for speed mood-paintings. If I’m doing this piece as a production art, I will keep the sunset and the evening ones for the Art Director and the Lighter – maybe they will need them just for extra references. Of course, there are still other possibilities such as dawn, noon, late afternoon, and midnight to explore. If you want to practice even more, it is also enjoyable to try out different weather conditions with the same setting, such as a rainy day, heavy snow, heavy fog, and so on. You need to make a lot of careful observations in your daily life or thorough studies of photo references to make those different visual explorations believable. It might be time consuming, but after

a lot of practice, you’ll be able to respond to the Art Director requests or production needs with much more ease.

07

Refining the colors: With the basic color set, I am going to focus on different parts of the image to further push the color nuances. Starting with the temple up on the hill, I enhance all the facets facing the light with a lighter brownish tone. In order to contrast with the light facets, I give all the shadow areas a much darker purple tone. Suddenly, the structure has much more depth and a three-dimensional feel to it. It also helps to give all the vegetation a very desaturated green as it shows here in this image. For the light stone texture on the temple walls,

CHAPTER 09 | Explore coloring techniques

I paste some rock texture and erase it lightly to make it blend in with the rest of the image.

08

Painting the tiger: It is time to give the tiger yellow fur and a black-and-white stripe motif. It is pretty simple because there are tons of tiger references that you can find out there on the internet.

09

The hunters and ruins: To continue, I add the dark skin tone to the native hunters since they are constantly exposed to the sun and rough weather conditions. Paint in the different skin color nuances to sculpt the muscles. As long as their posing conveys some kind of ready-to-hunt movement, it should be fine. Don’t over draw the body anatomy too much, because it makes the characters freeze in the image and you lose the gesture feel of them. Finally, I repeat the similar process with the ruins in the right-side bottom-corner. Don’t hesitate to paste rock textures on the ruins and erase them here and there randomly – it helps the photo integration to fit in better with the painting.

10

The color pass: Our color pass is now complete! As you can see, the color pass preserves the nice painting feel that we had in the black-and-white painting. This is mainly because of the intensive use of the adjustment layers. If we were to paint in the color merely with a brush, the painting would soon become hard to manage with all kinds of smaller strokes and color variations.

Even though the creation of the painting relies intensively on the artistic side of the artist, a logical and methodical approach on the technical side can make the whole process much faster and effortless. As you might have noticed in this tutorial, I have three secret weapons to help me achieve this result: the use of masks, adjustment layers and the integration of photo textures.

A sunset color scheme with a reddominated palette, keeping all the foreground elements in the dark shadow Trying out different color schemes Refining the color nuances in the scene Adding fur and stripes to the tiger Adding gestural shapes to the hunters, and texture to the ruins The complete color pass

67

3DTOTAL EBOOK | Step-by-step Photoshop environments

Discover how to add traditional brushstroke textures to your scene... The closer we get to the end of the creation of an image, the more it becomes timeconsuming to render the finer details and to give some crisp final touches to the illustration. We might get the impression of being less efficient, however such slowing down is quite normal, and necessary to close the painting process. We are not far from our final goal, so let’s move on!

01

More refinement: First, there is some work to do on the left side of the ruins. These ruins are still painted very roughly with some rock textures, however I want them to be a continuous part of the right side ruins so I add some stone bricks that appear to have been crafted by men long ago.

02

Vegetation: Having added detail to the ruins, I also have to add some moss, vegetation and sandy grounds on top of the ruins, so it integrates well with the right side of the hill where the central temple is located.

03

Silhouette refinement: One thing that gives any painting a more finished quality is well worked outlines or silhouettes of the different elements. Usually, the closer the elements are to the viewers, the more they need crispness or attention to the silhouettes to create atmospheric perspective. In our case, the foreground tree branches and the hunters fall into this category. The vegetation on the hill also needs some work: even though they are far way, they are against a very clean sky background which makes them easily

72 | 3DTOTAL.COM

noticeable to the viewers. I have circled all those components in red to make them obvious.

04

Overall adjustments: At this stage, it would be extremely helpful to zoom out of the image in order to see if it conveys the ambiance that you have originally imagined. For me, I find the color tone a bit cold, in particular

the fog between the hunters and the ruins has a blue tone that dominates the painting more than what I had in mind. To quickly correct the color tone, I make a Color Balance adjustment layer and shift the mid-tone values more towards yellow and red.

CHAPTER 10 | Learn texture skills

05

Shifting values: I have also noticed that the values of the hunters are a little bit too bright since my intention was to have them in the shadow. So I select the characters with my previous preserved masks and use the Levels adjustment layer to modify the values.

Adding some more detail to the left side of the ruins

Picking out areas in the image to refine to create atmospheric depth

Applying vegetation to the tops of the ruins to composite the building into the scene

Color and mood adjustments on the fog around the hunters and ruins Tweaking the values of the hunters to suit the scene 73

3DTOTAL EBOOK | Step-by-step Photoshop environments

“I always bring my Photoshop image into ArtRage to give it a brushstrokes effect, then export it back Photoshop”

06

ArtRage texture: Since I started traditional painting before using Photoshop, I always love the traditional oil brushstrokes on the canvas. I try to mimic this traditional aspect of the oil painting whenever I can. ArtRage is a very handy software that serves this purpose. Compared to Painter, ArtRage is much more compact and easier to load. It aims to mimic all kinds of traditional media such as oil, palette knife, pastel, roller, pencil, pen, and so on. I always bring my Photoshop image into ArtRage to give it a brushstrokes effect, then export it back Photoshop. (See the pro tip on ArtRage for a full introduction of this software). I make a quick sample on the right side of the image here. There are still a lot of effects to be discovered in ArtRage, and you can try it out to give a traditional painting feel to your Photoshop image, or create entirely a new painting in ArtRage from scratch.

07

Final highlights: If well-worked outlines or silhouettes give paintings a

74 | 3DTOTAL.COM

PRO TIP A brief introduction to ArtRage

There are four important windows on the interface: Tool Picker, Presets, Settings and Layers. I try to stick with those basic tools without getting too fancy with the software. In the left-bottom corner, you can select any of the traditional media that you want to use. Once the tool is selected, oil brush for instance, its related presets will appear automatically in the Presets window. They cover a wide range of variations of oil brushes, such as dry brush, day clumps, dry varnished, normal square, thick gloss, and so on. What is cool about this software is that you can select one preset as your basic setting, and further tweak it in the Settings window by adjusting its pressure, thinners, loading, and so on. After few adjustments, you can really get a brush which is very close to what you have used traditionally. The last window Layers is very similar to what we have in Photoshop, but more simplified. It stays very useful for organizing your painting layers. One of the cool characteristics of ArtRage is that the colors can be blended very naturally together, and create subtle color nuances in the mixing.

more finishing quality, then adding some crisp highlights to selected elements is another trick to reach a higher level of rendering.

there; this is because I don’t want to break the oil painting quality that has been achieved in this image has for now.

Those highlights make the elements stand out to catch the viewer’s attention. I don’t want to make them too obvious and bold on this image, so I just apply them very loosely to suggest that they are

You can notice that I mainly add highlights on the hunters’ hair, the right-side ruins and the tree branches, this is because our light source is from the left hand side of the canvas.

CHAPTER 10 | Learn texture skills

painting here.

08

Birds: For any outdoor environment, it is always nice to add some birds. They are very useful for enhancing the sense of scale to the setting.

09

Subtle color aberration: Color aberration is a type of distortion where there is a failure of a lens to focus all colors to the same convergence point. Under Filter > Distort > Lens Correction, you have the option to add or to remove color aberration. I add some subtle aberration so the image has some kind of photographic quality.

10

Final level adjustments: We are really close to the finished painting! I want to make a final contrast adjustment to boost up the central part of the canvas in order to make the point of interest even more evident.

11

Final image: Now it is time to put your signature, and you can see the final

Adding texture detail with ArtRage Some highlights added to the scene to complement the position of the light source Placing birds in the scene to create a sense of scale Applying some color aberration to the scene to give a photo-effect Boosting the contrast adjustment to focus the point of interest

75

The Artist

Donglu Yu

donglu-littlefish.blogspot.ca

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