Human Mage portrait

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thespaceinvader
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Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

Taking some inspiration from Kitty;s tutorial, and some from the fact that one of my recent sketches turned into a head for the Mage, i thought i'd give the male Mage portrait a try. A trace over of a photo taken with my laptop's webcam, and of the lines from the original sketch.Con crit gratefully received as usual - i'm happy with the posing, i think, but the costuming could probably use some work.

The square shows the probable final crop, hence there being a slight lack of detail outside it.
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turin
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by turin »

Not bad at all. The proportions look about right (though of course I'm no expert on the matter).
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mesilliac
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by mesilliac »

I like the pose :). A few things I noticed:

The fingers on his left hand need a bit more articulation.
His face seems awfully chubby in relation to his body.
His broach seems to be facing the viewer (not the direction he is facing) and it and the sash are centered a little strangely.
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thespaceinvader
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

I think i can fix those issues - the sash, however, is supposed to be one side of a robe which closes in the middle (the best analogy i can think of would be a dressing gown...) - i can see how that's not clear, though...
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Sgt. Groovy
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by Sgt. Groovy »

I think the top of the head could be slightly higher (arent these mage types supposed to be brainy fellows :P ). Also, the position of the staff is a bit odd. If it would be leaning on his shoulder, the the hand holding it would also fit within the cropping frame.
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thespaceinvader
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

He's just holding it - the level 1 mage has more of a wand than a staff to my eyes - it's small enough to be held comfortably in the hand. I might broaden the crop a little, though, and add a ball to the staff tip just where it leaves the crop... Not clear i know. it will be when i post the next version...

And the top of his head's already higher than mine in the reference shot, so i might take offence that you imply i'm not a brainy fellow =P

EDIT: rework to fix mentioned issues, and add flats and line colours. The staff head looks odd at the moment, but i will fix that at colouring using the same technique i used for Ratheln's and Perrin's staves in tHoT.
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Iris
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by Iris »

The staff's top is too big.
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tsr
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by tsr »

I think maybe you should crop it a bit higher, so that there is some air above the head and his right hand doesn't show at all.

/tsr
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by torangan »

The intersection of the globe on the staff and the book doesn't work for me. I can't decide which 3D setting this should indicate...
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Blarumyrran
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by Blarumyrran »

Shadow Master wrote:The staff's top is too big.
i concur.

imo the size would better be something like this:
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thespaceinvader
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

You're right - i might change the angle though - having something solid visible through the glass of the globe makes the effect better than having it over the black background. And it does work once the globe's coloured, or it has in the past.

Or alternatively, i might just scratch the idea of a transparent globe altogether and go for a solid one, possibly with a marbled effect or something.

EDIT: Beginning shading - I wanted to get some crit on how it's going - i'm not totally sure about the cloth folds...
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mameluke
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by mameluke »

This white stuff under his scarf confuses me.
What is it?
It's better a brown nothing than a confusing something, imho.
Or do you plan to change it?
I don't see any problems with an elf-woman hitting somebody with a mace...
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thespaceinvader
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

An undershirt or tunic of some sort. I might just make it brown as you suggest.
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Guidrion
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by Guidrion »

Nice work. The shading seems fine to me.
Nothing more to say except one thing: the ring which hold his neckerchief seems to be floating in the air. :hmm:
This white stuff under his scarf confuses me.
What is it?
I would say that it's his shirt. It makes me think to a djellabah but it's not that odd.
Perhaps more details to unodd it? :P
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thespaceinvader
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Re: Human Mage portrait

Post by thespaceinvader »

I should add, the book, shirt thing, staff, hand and belt are WIP and still need shading...
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