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Wallpaper!

HalleysComicHalleysComic Registered User regular
edited March 2007 in Artist's Corner
EDIT EDIT!!:

I fixed up the color a bunch, I think it's final at the point where I'd actually be glad to look at this as my wallpaper. YAY!! Thanks guys!

pluto1920800ar5.png

EDIT: I took advice and looked at the tutorial and other tutorials... I think it's a big improvement, I just did the whole thing again from the ground up.
What do you guys think?

800Pluto.png

___ORIGINAL POST___

I haven't really used Photoshop for original works that much until now, I've know how it works and how to do stuff, but I wanted to start experimenting with it.

So yeah, this wallpaper I did based on this comic of mine in one of my first PS endeavors, it'll probably be a while before I really get smoother with it. But any tips in the mean time?

PlutoWallpaper800.png

Thanks!

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HalleysComic on

Posts

  • drinkinstoutdrinkinstout Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    in your comic it looks like they're dancing... :) and visor dude's line kinda enforces it heh...

    drinkinstout on
  • HalleysComicHalleysComic Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    in your comic it looks like they're dancing... :) and visor dude's line kinda enforces it heh...

    Hahah!

    No one has ever thought that before, but now the comic is funnier then ever.
    "Get down!!" XD

    I never thought about that.

    HalleysComic on
    1761-1171138911.png
  • EdmanEdman Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    I'm not sure what kind of "look" you are going for as far as painting goes. From the way it looks, you seem to be gravitating to a smoother look. In that case, you may want to tone down the opacity on your brush and blend a helluva lot more.

    If you want a rougher look, keep up the opacity, but use rougher brushes.

    Either way, I totally see them dancing, and it made me laugh.


    Edit/Addendum:
    After actually viewing the comic upon which this piece is based, I have to say that I really like the look of the original comic, with the nice mix of greys and smooth, one-level shading. Maybe just because it's a personal preference, but I'd definitely wallpaper it if was just an extension of the original frame.

    Edman on
  • NightDragonNightDragon 6th Grade Username Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    I'm going to be a little harsh with you. Please don't take it personally.

    In all honesty, I think everything needs to be redone. I think you need to look at every aspect of this "wallpaper", and piece-by-piece, work on improvement. Check out what typical wallpaper designs look like, figure out what makes the good designs look so good. Try to emulate your findings.

    The composition isn't good, and the background looks thrown together and makes no sense. You have a number of "tangents" going on with the characters (and text), and it looks like absolutely no thought was put into placement or "empty space" or any element of the design. Text-warping every single word isn't a good idea, either. It makes the text harder to read, as there is no consistency, because every word is warped *differently*. Design-wise, it just doesn't look good. You really need to consider placement, size, relation, etc with every element you're introducing to your design. You need to look into how things are going to be read...if there is a main "focus" (or multiple "focuses") you need to bring the viewer's attention to that. A few ways of doing this are through literal focus (blurry/sharp...your characters/BG aren't doing this now, as the characters are so messy and don't commmunicate "sharpness" at all), contrast, "lines" or curves in the drawing that move the eye along a "path" to the main focus, different colors, etc etc. I'd suggest making a number of thumbnails before attempting a larger-scale design. It will help you brainstorm and develop ideas, as well as give you examples to choose from when looking for "design ideas that work".

    The entire color palette lacks contrast - everything is a midtone. You have no dark parts or bright parts. This is making everything look rather dull, and nothing is really "popping" out as being important, or differing in "depth". The coloring on the characters is incredibly messy - and you've only used black and white to highlight and shade. Doing this with anything usually makes the coloring look amateurish, and generally makes everything look horrible. Your light source is vague, and the shadows on the characters conflict with eachother regarding that. If the background is supposed to be an explosion, why is it not bright? Why are the characters not lit brightly as a result? Why are they not lit with the color the explosion would be giving off (yellow/orangish)? Think about how the colors are going to be interacting with eachother. Paint accordingly.

    [edit] I think this link would help you out quite a bit. http://www.itchstudios.com/psg/art_tut.htm

    NightDragon on
  • HalleysComicHalleysComic Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    yeah, again I'm just started to mess around with Photoshop, and did this is just one sitting.

    In terms of a lot of the crits though, I was trying to emulate one of though old poor taste B-movie posters, so a lot of stuff can be written off as "right" in that respect. I guess.
    Plus I personally hate it when wallpapers have a lot of contrast and stuff to focus on, then it's kind of hard to just look at my files or whatever.

    But yeah, most of what you say sounds like good advice. And I probably will try doing the whole thing again from the ground up :D

    thanks!

    [edit] OHhh!! that tutorial looks very helpful (and sexy)
    thanks much! (again)

    HalleysComic on
    1761-1171138911.png
  • HalleysComicHalleysComic Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    New better wallpaper!

    HalleysComic on
    1761-1171138911.png
  • jpegjpeg ODIE, YOUR FACE Scenic Illinois FlatlandsRegistered User regular
    edited March 2007
    That's much better than the first one, by far. I know you mentioned it being intentionally low contrast, but I think it would help to have some darker darks on the stuff in the foreground (the guy with his hand up, mainly).

    jpeg on
    so I just type in this box and it goes on the screen?
  • Kewop DecamKewop Decam Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    The bright outline on the font makes it a bit disjointed, but overall... MUCH better.

    Kewop Decam on
    pasigfa7.jpg
  • HalleysComicHalleysComic Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    The bright outline on the font makes it a bit disjointed, but overall... MUCH better.

    Yeah, sounds good, and while I was at it I when and adjusted the color for all the other layers!
    Thanks, I probably would never have messed with that hadn't you mentioned the font color!

    HalleysComic on
    1761-1171138911.png
  • Kewop DecamKewop Decam Registered User regular
    edited March 2007
    the more you play, the better it gets.

    good stuff

    Kewop Decam on
    pasigfa7.jpg
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