Hiatus with a side of rant

So while I was planning on not doing any paintings this month while I work on the NaNoWriMo, it turns out that I don't have the option to at the moment if I wanted to.

As it turns out, the auto-update to Maverick screwed my system up. Shocker. I came out of the update with a knowledge of how to turn off auto-updates, that recently cleaning my backup drive to give it room for new backups was a really poorly timed decision, and that the Cintiq 15x I use will likely not work with Maverick. Since its last Mac driver update was in 2012, I don't foresee the problem being fixed. I now find myself pondering the joys of either needing to shell out for a newer Cintiq or trying to find a way to downgrade that doesn't immediately void my Mac's warranty, neither of which is a very pleasant option.

Spiritus

The finished painting of the Ghost Hunt anime.

Made between October 3-October 29 (with lots of distractions between)
Materials: Poser 9 (Alyson model), Photoshop CS6
Total Time: 12 hours

Tattoo Illustration

Someone on an Aspergers Facebook page I follow was looking for a tattoo design, and what she was asking for gave me an idea. It's simple, but I think it would work as a tattoo.

The Making of "Spiritus"

Because I was feeling a bit nostalgic, I decided to re-watch a fantastically creepy anime called Ghost Hunt, which inspired this painting.

Step 1: Lineart (2 hours, 10 minutes)
I first made a pose reference in Poser 9, which I used to set up the character of the piece, Mai Taniyama. I used some references for older Japanese schoolrooms for the background, as well. I then illustrated the digital rough with Photoshop CS6's round brush, with flow set to pen pressure control.







Step 2: Color, Texturing, and Shading (6 hours, 20 minutes)
Because of how I was doing this painting, everything basically became one step, starting from the texturing in the background up. I used several photos I've taken over time of woods, as well as a filter gallery effect, to create the classroom, desks, and board. I also used an explosion brush at various opacities to layer various effects into the wood. I also made a photo of the woods into a painting effect, and put it beneath the window and its metal textures.
When that was done, I again used the explosive brush to texture the chalk portion of the chalkboard, and created some bloody Asian text for the board. I created the flames around Mai's body in much the same way, using a mask.
Finally, I created various apparitions using the round brush and various opacities, along with the gaussian blur filter.





Step 3: Contrast and more detail work (2 hours)
I went in and, using the lineart as a guide, masked in shadows and highlights to the desks and Mai, as well as working a bit more on the spirits around her.





















Step 4: More detail work (30 minutes)
I added more details to the floor, support beam, and Mai's hair. I also put a creature in the back corner to try to make it seem like the unnatural dark had a source other than the spirits in general.

Step 5- More Touch-ups (1 hour)
To finish things off, I added adjustment layers for the contrast and saturation. I added more detail for the desks, as well as Mai's eyes and hair. Most importantly, I worked on the lighting so there wasn't half of the image seeming burned off.


















Made between October 3-October 29 (with lots of distractions between)
Materials: Poser 9 (Alyson model), Photoshop CS6
Total Time: 12 hours

Quickie- "Feast"

I decided to try my hand at a vampire piece. That it happened to coincide with my 7 Deadly Sins project in my advertising class certainly gave me some motivation.

Council Cup Photo Op Take 2

Here are the best photos I took at Council Cup this time around.

Quickie- "Have a Very Lovecraftian October"

I decided to kick off Frightober, my favorite month of the year, by doing an illustration of H.P. Lovecraft, one of my all-time favorite writers.

Made from October 4-October 6
Materials: Photoshop CS6
Total Time: 3 hours

October Preview

I've had a busy two days in Poser setting up a few of this month's illustrations. Here are some things to look forward to:

Week of September 31- Results of Boredom

While not doing a planned illustration this week, I am still doing some design work. Here are the results:




















A self portrait made in MangaStudio EX4 and Photoshop CS6.

Update- The Weeks of September 23 and September 30

So, I got a bit distracted with some recent fantastic reads, as well as doing some copywriting work and a general lack of energy. So, while I rather like the Joker/Harley/Batgirl painting I started this previous week, I'm shelving it where it currently is done to, until some time later in October, after my planned break next week. On the plus side, one of the weeks in October should have more than one illustration out, and I might get some work done on a comic idea I have when I'm not relaxing. Though I just got a deal that got me Poser 9 and MangaStudio, so I might just be doing that all next week instead. Cheers, ET