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August 22, 2013
February 19, 2013
February 14, 2013
Secret Valentine 2013 - touched up
Secret Valentine gift for Kumashige on Deviantart. I still really love how this one came out. All it needed was a few small touchups to really make the characters pop.
One random memory I have of working on this is adding some final touches when my computer crashed. All sorts of funky colors and buzzing noises. I still have no idea what that was about, but it never happened again.
January 31, 2013
January 20, 2013
Snowy Owl Forest
I don't look back on the 2010s with much fondness or nostalgia. What the heart recalls is a long spell of stagnation. But every once in a while I would put out something I liked.
July 13, 2012
Art style restoration: Toshiaki
This was done for an art trade.
What do I like about this that I would continue using in my art?
I made special note of this picture because I like the use of textures and ornamentation. The textures are a nice cherry on top. It's a subtle paper-like texture that helps give the artwork a little more oomph. This picture was a good reminder that I should use more textures in my art.
I like the Japanese ornamentation influence. The clouds are represented by thick horizontal bands. I also like the subtle floral patterns on his robes- the white-on-white doesn't stand out much, but it still glistens.
I like the fern-like plants and the fact that they're all slightly different in color and brightness so they don't compete with each other. I like that the design is more ornamental than realistic.
I like the colors used for the giant flowers. Minimal shading with shifting gradients and a texture overlaid on top. The whites are mostly represented by pink hues, and in the shadow they turn blue-purple. I also like the green and blue used for the leaves.
Subtle use of stock images. Probably some Photoshop brushes I downloaded back in the day. I would love to make my own ornamentation graphics that I can use whenever needed.
What didn't work and how would I have done things differently?
I used a letterbox effect, but I wish some objects had popped out of the frame.
Not a fan of the yellow/green shading on his skin and clothing. I would have given his skin more of a pinkish hue, especially for the darker shaded areas.
OMG. Did I forget to color in one of those flowers/leaves? The one by his leg is neon green. I didn't know about Fill Layer back then I guess.
The setting is vague so I'm guessing it was improvised. I want to improvise the things I'm confident in (colors, texture), but plan for things I struggle with, like composition.
Art style restoration: Kan-nah
Art reflection: Kan-nah
Date drawn: August 2012
What do I like about this that I would continue using in my art?
- A cutesy kawaii art style
- Very thin lineart and soft feeling
- The coloring style in general is fairly minimal. Mostly flat colors with soft gradients where needed, and the occasional hard shading used sparingly.
- Soft pastel colors that bleed together. Lots of light blue and pink
- Hair is light blue but the glow of her skin makes her bangs glow pink. I definitely used the pin light filter when fine-tuning at the very end. I can tell because the lineart in that area is pink.
- This was during my blurry eyes phase. Honestly, I still love the look. It’s not everybody’s taste, but it’s certainly mine. I love the soft ethereal effect.
- There is a vertical letterbox effect, with some objects extending past the borders to give it a more 3-dimensional effect.
What didn’t work, and how would I have done things differently?
- I remember struggling a lot with the backdrop. Eventually I settled for an aesthetic that I’d seen on Pixiv, inspired by the artist Suou. Flat organic patterns with a fringe effect. If I did this again, I would give the plant backdrop more definition.
- I would give more emphasis to the dango motif with soft round shapes repeated throughout. Soft round shapes are a visual symbol for soft and cute.
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