[spooge demon]

I remember Ceenda wanted to see this thing, so i thought I would expand the frame a little, with mixed results.

[jasonN]

Very nice Craig
I like the green glows and is that a reflection in the ball? How do you calculate where to place the reflected image and take into account all the variable factors? (curve of ball etc..)
Do you have any other commentary regarding this piece?

[CapnPyro]

very neat and enjoyable picture.

i'm still upset i missed the dune series on sci-fi

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http://home1.gte.net/capnpyro

[Binke]

This is really really nice Craig.
Your colors always come out extra neat with a little twist.
Ehm nevermind :P


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Art Dimensional

[Eorand]

I really like the colorscheme and the environmental reflections. It captures the Dune feeling pretty well.

This picture reminded me about this wonderful Escher sphere as an example of reflections...

(click for bigger image)


[This message has been edited by Eorand (edited January 09, 2001).]

[coconutmonkey]

This one is really great, I love all of your pieces, It'd be cool if you took this one further and refined it because it looks pretty awesome in the state that it is.

[ceenda]

spooge demon: That really kicks ass! I loved the original version but this update has given an almost cinematic feel to the piece. I notice that you've also 'grounded' the Baron which now makes him closer to the book desciption. I have a couple of questions if you're not too busy.

1) Do you use the lassoo tool much in your pics (I'm kinda guessing from different bits on the globe here), and how do decide what bits are appropriate if you do use it?

2) Do you have a prefixed 'image' of the scene in your mind when you start a pic like this or do you work more roughly and build up a picture from more basic shapes?

3) Do you use layers much, or do you try and keep everything together?

Thanks again spooge for putting this pic up (someone told me later that you have a forum section on your site) and the expansion of the original scene is greatly inspiring. Thankyou.

[Frost]

I like this version better than the previous ... like the panascan look, and the pic expresses itself better that way I think - getting the complete picture, the setting...

One question Craig, do you find yourself using hue/saturation/contrast adjustments throughout your image development, or do you just lay it in correctly from scratch? Your values are so delicate and the colors very bright yet non-intrusive and non-agressive, something I am having a very difficult time getting (hard yet soft look - all a matter of precise color management). Because of the hard-edge strokes, it's hard to tell if there is actually color banding from such manipulations. I expect you don't do the sort of crap I do... any help or enlightment would be very appreciated.

[This message has been edited by Frost (edited January 09, 2001).]

[Blitz]

Very cool
I love the look of these paintings you do, I think my fave from your site is that King Uther.

Just one question, do you use much opacity in your brushes when you paint these? If so what do you normaly set the opacity to?

Well, catch ya around Spooge

Blitz

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BEER,
helping white guys dance since 1842

[TheMilkMan]

Hmm really like this image spooge!!

[Axl]

I like this spooge, especially the reflections on the orb. One thing I notice about the majority of your works and is also apparent in this piece is that they all look very organic I can't put my finger on it but I think it's mainly due to the tones and colours you use.

[El Caseron]

Woooaaaaah! The man who created a new word!!!!!
How old are you again? How many years do I have till I have to be good like this?

How long did it take you? That pic? And which resolution is it in original?

[This message has been edited by El Caseron (edited January 09, 2001).]

[shardik]

Thats hot spoogey..

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-matt

[Capt.FlushGarden]

Mmmmm, spooge..GrlGrlGrl (homer simpson impression)

Can I ask you a question too?

do you use the lasso tool or do you use the technique that I learned about in you "armored suit man with weapons" tutorial?

Oh, and I sent you an email, hope your're not mad... =)


[This message has been edited by Capt.FlushGarden (edited January 09, 2001).]

[Kjetil Nystuen]

Wow, this is cool. I'm very happy I'm on a Mac, so I get PERFECT colors!

I see many people here have lots of questions, mee too.. I looks like you're using green as a "canvas color" a lot.(excuse me my bad english, hope you understand me) The results are incredible, but.. Why green? I don't get it. Maybe I'm a complete idiot....

[edible snowman]

haha, that guy in the background looks kinda like that guy dabih did a while ago. Well not really, but they're both fat and egg-shaped.

[Akolyte]

He looks like a big fat Mon Calamar touching the hologram plans for the Death Star ;D Really cool atmosphere spooge.

[Seeg]

Nice painting. Kudos. Your work is very impressive. What I have seen is very good. Nice color but better use of value.

[Jaymo]

Impressive lighting and colouring, as always. Good atmosphere.
Please do answer the questions asked by the others, I'm very interested in the answers, too. And I guess I'm not the only one.

[feebsaint]

Craig! (Spooge!)

Good grief, is it ever amazing to have just come here for the second time, and see that you post here! I'm coming back for sure, now. I saw your piece up top, and recognized the approach immediately.



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Mike May

mikespencil.com

quote

Quote:

I Draw Stuff

[Frost]

Hi feebsaint, is that image and quote part of your signature?

[spooge demon]

I did not intend that the sphere be reflective, but if it reads that way, hmmm ok If I remember the passage in the book it says something about the globe being a swirl of caramel colors with fine inlaid gold lat and long lines, of the finest imperial manufacture.

Ceenda, I use all the tools a lot. The lasso thing you see on the globe is a little �technique-ey�, I should probably stay away from it.

I sometimes have a picture in my head, or a particular lighting condition, but sometimes I just start painting and let the image suggest things. Digital is nice because you can work it endlessly with no media problems, and you can try overlays and wacky ideas all night. It is a great tool. I use layers to keep spatial order and as convenience in masking, but sometimes it get to be a bother when you have to search which layer is where, so with sketches like this, I use just a few layers and as things progress, I flatten them. Once it is flattened I can manipulate edges if needed. But I mainly use layers to allow freedom to be gestural and free and not worry about things. This helps the artwork and just cannot be done with something like watercolor.

Frost, I will use the adjustment tools, but not for major changes. This will mess things up with banding and crushing. Try to keep your values to the middle of what you think they should be, without going really dark. Then you can tune it later with the adjustment tools and rest assured that you won�t have far to go. If you look at some of the edges that your eye sees as hard you will see that the value steps on either side are pretty close. This softens the apparent hardness of the edge. It is still crisp, but not jumping. I think you are making a lot of progress with your work Frost. Work from life more

But ya know I worry about anyone taking what I am saying too literally.

Blitz, now that i like my wacom, I generally block in things with a large brush with the size turned off and the opacity turned on. Sometimes I might reverse this to get other effects, but do play around with it. The big brush opacity block in does look like watercolor. I try to keep some of the freshness that that brings. Despite what I said above about media buildup, you can overwork something into a big mess. If this happens, it is usually because I am not understanding the forms well enough to simplify and design things well. time to start over and refocus on what is important.

El Caseron, I am 36, old man. The figure and part of the globe was from an old sketch, and when Ceenda mentioned it in his thread I brought it up and thought to expand it a little. I would guess there is about 2 hours in the things total. The original is 2000*1000 pix

Flushgarden, no I am not mad about your email! But it bothers me that I can�t answer them anymore. I can�t believe you are 19. Your apple man is great. Not only did you understand the forms, but you simplified them beautifully. The rib cage is a great design. Fix those ellipses on the joints, though. They are really important to get right, no matter how fast the sketch.

Don�t think if I used one technique or another. Mix and match as you see fit. I do see you put that suit tutorial to very good use. hehe...

Kjetil, If you are on a mac, this image is probably washed out and green. But nothing can be done...

Mike, I like your site. Pretty looney stuff. If i had 9 lives I would love to do caricature.

[burn0ut]

Ahh Mike, you stopped by, awesome and welcome

[Light]

Nice work. The composition seems a little boring though (not very dramatic) which is not a problem in itself but the guy is also standing a bit like he's at a job.

It might be more interesting to throw some light on his face and clothes coming off he ball thing. I think his face needs more emphasis.

[hydrid]

I have to say the thing that I appreciate most in your art is the effective color ambience. Cool!

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"There are two things for sure in this life... the universe and the stupidity of humans. And i'm not even sure about the universe."

[feebsaint]

Frost: Nope, the image is not a part of my signerature. The quote is, though.

burnout: I'm extremely thankful to you for alerting me to this message board. These types of boards are becoming my favorite thing to go to in my free time (I've even created a message board community for my family thant they never use, and took me nearly a week to create: Here. This place, however, is friggin' perfect. A community for artists! Hooray!



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Mike May

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

[This message has been edited by feebsaint (edited January 10, 2001).]