Corvvs' Thread of Ill-Fated Portraits: Merman Hunter

[Corvvs]

^ good catch on the bump - it's supposed to be raised a bit, but not like that. Fixed it, update:

[kitty]

hmm, you're definitely making progress , but you still have ways to go .

some of the problems with this guy:
check your ear placement (and design), the eyebrows are strange, the hands have only four fingers, the musculature of the torso looks painted on, the shoulder piece doesn't curve properly. lightsources are not unified. don't shade with pure black and white.

sorry to say that but this is no mainline quality yet. i'm not sure if you can polish him enough by just fiddeling with details. how about looking for a nice campaign and practising your anatomical and rendering skills by doing a series of portraits for it? and then come back to generic mainline portraits - we'll still have enough to do!

[thespaceinvader]

I've spent some time going over this with Corvvs on IRC - he's gonna give it one last try, then take a run at some UMC stuff to hone his skills for a while if it's still not quite there.

So watch this space =)

[Corvvs]

^ Thanks. Here we go *drumroll*. I spent about an hour reworking the anatomy and armor. Here's what I did:

-moved the collar bone
-added a sternocleidomastoid muscle
-redid the trapezius muscle to go with the new collarbone
-reworked the deltoid muscle, separating it from the pectorals
-gave him triceps
-added bony bumps to the elbow
-reworked the muscles to the sides of the abs
-reworked the abs
-moved the cheekbones
-fixed the fingers on his right hand so that the javelin will be held at a different angle
-gave him a pointier beard

I haven't fixed everything, but this is a start I think.

and then, having one of my brilliant ideas, I decided to make this actually be a portrait of the lvl 2 merman spearman, as then I can add more armor to cover up the anatomy issues on his right shoulder. I...

-added fancy flaps of armor over the existing shoulder armor
-added shoulder armor to his right shoulder, as per the above
-gave him a helmet like the sprite has
-shifted the forearm armor around a bit

I hope the level change is ok - if it's not, I can remove the new armor and helmet. Also, a lot of the anatomy changes are not visible due to the new armor. If necessary, I can go to the xcf and bring that layer back to show what it would look like without the right shoulder armor.

So, the big question: do I keep at this, or do I go off and work on some UMC stuff I have waiting for me until I'm good enough.
*waits with fingers crossed*

[thespaceinvader]

Looks significantly improved. I'll post a more detailed crit tomorrow or catch you on IRC, but suffice it to say, this looks better.

For now, though, I must sleep.

EDIT: minor bit of redline to clarify IRC crit.

[Corvvs]

I did some nicer, cleaner, weighted lines, taking into account the red-line. *yawn* /me goes off to bed

oh, btw... is that bump on his right shoulder a bit too big, or is it just me?

EDIT: the armor has been removed after discussion with TSI on IRC. He's back to level one again.

[Turuk]

oh, btw... is that bump on his right shoulder a bit too big, or is it just me?

I think so. The bump appears to be the deltoid of the shoulder, but given the position of the arm, I feel that that line should be about two of his fingers lower given the placement of the trapezius muscle. This may or may not correct the issue, but it was my thought on the matter, as it's current position seems a bit off.

[Corvvs]

I didn't fix the shoulder because I think it looks ok now that the straps are there. Flats, etc. C&C please.

... and btw, does his forehead recede to fast? Should it go up further so his face/head ratio is lower? I think it got kinda messed up when I took the helmet off.

[Turuk]

... and btw, does his forehead recede to fast? Should it go up further so his face/head ratio is lower? I think it got kinda messed up when I took the helmet off.

A bit, though it's not too bad. The perception is thrown off by the strip of skin that extends up where the ear would be on a human. This makes me think that would be about the back of his neck area but then there is still all that hair that appears behind it.

[Corvvs]

Ok... I actually talked with TSI about it (the anatomy and lines, esp. the forehead) on IRC and went ahead with the shading a _while_ ago, but got swamped in work almost immediately. I'm finally having time to continue chugging along, so here we go.

Shrunk down to normal portrait size and sharpened a bit, just to see what it would look like (I'll still be working at 1000x1000):

[Turuk]

It's coming along nicely. The only bit I would like to offer critique on is the armor on his shoulder, as it's current positioning seems a bit odd. I would imagine that it covers his shoulder, with the center of it shooting out and up from the point in the middle of his shoulder at the bone. His positioning would rotate it forward a little, but I find the fact that it extends across to the middle of his chest a bit odd, especially since that part is one solid piece and it feels like it would restrict his the movement of his shoulder joint. I would limit it more to covering slightly over his chest, perhaps just beyond the spot where the chest meets the shoulder (keeping it just below/around the armpit).

[Corvvs]

I can't quite understand what you're saying, but I gave it a shot anyway. Is this what you mean?

[Turuk]

Yeah, it would have been easier to explain if I could actually show you by pointing or something, but yes, that is what I meant. The armor is now situated more on his shoulder and less across his chest, which would have been too restricting and a bit improbable before.

[Corvvs]

Bronze shading done, I suppose. How does it look?

[Skizzaltix]

Looks good!
Though, something about the shading on the shoulder plate makes me feel like it's a really thick solid lump of metal
I'm thinking it's that highlight towards the edge there... Given the lightsource, shouldn't the highlight be closer to the center of the plate? I'm not sure...
Anyway, great work! Keep at it