Yodelheck's digital baby steps

[» jodisattva]

where is this <wave> effect? i've never seen that in PS.

[» yodelheck]

Filter>Distort>Wave and then fade the wave, I think using Shift+Command+F but I forgot, you can just look up "smoke effect" online, that's how I learned it.....

[» jodisattva]

oh, right. I've used that before, but it never came out looking like smoke.

thanks. I seem to be whipping around a lot of learning curves this week. This forum is like an invisible college.

[» Viradical]

That first smoky piece is phatt, nice effect.  As you're developing your digital flow, keep in mind that you've got a lot more leeway to play around with depth of field.  Since your style gravitates toward strong silhouettes borne of sketchbook flow, watch out for the tendency to remain flat.  The smoke effect ameliorates that to a degree, but consider giving your pieces some more background layers so the primary design hurtles forward into the viewer's consciousness!  I can see you're working with this more in the 2nd piece.  Keep up the great work!

[» yodelheck]

Good call Geo. That's definitely my learning edge right now.

 

So here's a piece that is pretty much flat. Feels like it wants something to tie the flow together, maybe something a little more flowy that can dance around the rigidity of the established forms. Not sure if the lower third wants more heavy forms.....the "Y" with illuminated jewel seems to hang awkwardly without a clean transition from the dark, popped-out forms to flat, light curves. So this is kind of indicative of the edge of my abilities right now.....looking to move into more depth and learning some new textures/feels. I just got Zbrush which could be a nice addition.

 

 

 

[» Viradical]

Nice Elven Warlock vibes!  I like the subtle gradient from dark at the top to light at the bottom, lovely composition.  Maybe you could try running with it further and put some more bright layers on the bottom 1/3rd?  They could be wisping upwards like the vapor in your previous pieces, good opporunity to play with texture.  That would enhance the contrast, and a couple of small bright shapes like eyes or head adornments up at the top could be a nice balancing touch.  The Y doesn't offend me as it is, might look good with some zbrush shapes too.  Z-brush is a crazy versatile tool and a terrific anti-flattener.  It's looking great man, rock on.

[» yodelheck]

working on creating depth:

 

 

[» yodelheck]

Starting to wonder whether I should make a more concerted effort to bring more light into my art. But I think there is a deep depression that wants to get out of me, and this seems to be how I can accept and honor that.

 

 

 

  

[» yodelheck]

[» Viradical]

Cool patterns.  Yeah, try defining the shapes with lighting as you mentioned, imagine where the light source is and give the pieces highlights and shadows in accordance.  That first one is giving a greater impression of depth.

 

The second one has some layers out of alignment that make it look a little wonky, but deciding on a centerline and forming them all up over it wouldn't take long.  Consider adding something beautiful and detailed in the middle where all the roots converge for an exciting focal point.  Take the blues and make them darker and less saturated at the edges for a depth pull. 

 

One thing to try: take all the 2d cutouts and turn them into 3d shapes by giving them a faceted look.  You could just draw a single line that travels inside the shape from one end to the other, then shade each side of it lighter or darker, then add highlights.  That will create greater value range, brighter brights.

 

You could also try taking photos of yourself or a model and using the warp and liquify tools to distort your shapes over a face or body, kinda like the card you did of Geoff, creating an organic flow in the shapes.  Have fun

[» yodelheck]

hey podlings, haven't posted in a while- here are a few for the digital baby steps  scrap-book:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[» yodelheck]

 I finally got some time away from worldly project work to do some art, and my roomate brought home a 1920x1080 LCD so I spent the better part of two days painting this. Its the largest image I've worked with- 8,000px square. There's a 3,000px version here. 

 

Two things I want to eventually work on: more work on the eyes, and ground the mandala a little bit or create more of a mouth where all this sound can be streaming from.