How to Transform Your Imagination to Reality

Posted on 28. Apr, 2010 by DAS Team in Articles

Hello, my name is Nick Deligaris. I’m 28 years old and I have studied graphic design for 4 years. However, I work professionally mostly as a freelance illustrator and 3d artist. I was keen on pencil drawing since I was a child, I came in contact with Photoshop 3 and 3ds max 2 for the first time when I was still in high school. I instantly fell in love with them, because of the vast range of creative tools they offer to an artist.

However, back at those times the industry was very primitive, so I was forced to learn things on my own. That was both a blessing and a curse, from the one hand, because with a tutor-tutorial someone could learn faster, but from the other hand, I had the chance to experiment a lot, going through a lot of trial and error, and gaining much more experience in the process. By now, I have pretty much tried every possible method there is out there, and I keep inventing new ones as I move on. The learning curve could be steep for a beginner, but only when someone gets the hang of it can then start focusing on the artistic part of the process.

The method, technique, or strategy if you prefer, that someone will follow in the artwork creation process play a critical role in the final outcome. So, the big question every artist comes across is: There are multiple ways to reach a goal, but which is the easiest and the quickest way to achieve a specific result? Of course, there is no definite answer, although many people falsely think that there is, because they learn a technique and they stick on it, but that is wrong. In fact, every project requires a different approach, because there isn’t a fixed method that works well and efficiently in every single situation. The artist must always be versatile and intuitive, adapting his/her strategy whenever required. However, there are some basic rules that apply to everything. With some good organization and brainstorming, we can save a lot of time and hussle. So, I’m going to describe some basic steps from the process of transforming a picture of imagination with the use of software.

My favourite software tools are Photoshop, 3ds max and ZBrush, and my hardware tools are a PC and a Wacom tablet. I chose these tools because they are the industry standards, and they are all the best for the work I’m doing. Sometimes, Photoshop is complementary to 3ds max/ZBrush (making textures for 3d models), sometimes it’s the other way round (importing 3d elements in a 2d scene). In this article I’ll focus on the second case – using Photoshop as the main platform. I won’t get into technical details, just describe the workflow.

1. Sketch

The first step of creation is always a rough sketch, and it is usually the most difficult and sometimes the most time-consuming part. So make sure that you devote enough time on this, because this is the foundation of everything that follows later. If the base composition is weak, then the final will be weak too.That’s the stage where we try to materialize the hazy concepts we have in our imagination. Since everything is cloudy in this stage, we need to experiment a lot with the composition, going back and forth many times until we end up with a pleasing result.
That can be done either a) on paper, or b) inside Photoshop canvas. That’s a matter of what media you’re more keen on. Every method has its pros and cons. With pencil and paper there is more direct and natural contact. With a Wacom stylus there is a lot more flexibility, since you can zoom, cut-copy/paste, warp, move, rotate, undo and redo at will, but there isn’t so much control in the strokes like with a pencil. However, because I feel very comfortable with my Wacom, I make the sketches in Photoshop, because it’s much faster.
Also, in Photoshop there are two ways to make sketches: We can describe forms a) using outlines or b) using volumes. In the first case the result is more precice but takes more time. In the second case however, it is faster, but the forms are more rough. The best thing would be a combination of both. So, we can work on a very rough concept using thick B&W brush strokes, and after we nail down the base volumes we can refine the outlines some more, in a similar way that sculptors work. It’s better to start working on a neutral gray background. The resolution of the document doesn’t need to be too large at this point, and working in the background or a background copy layer is fine. Remember that in this stage we need to make just a sketch, so avoid adding many details, just make blocks of light and shadow. After that is done, we can move to the next step.

2. Layers and Organization

The second step is to organize all the scene elements in layers, so that we can work on the composition more easily and efficiently. If we’re going to make just a concept sketch, i.e. for a character or environment, there’s no need to use layers, we can paint directly over the sketch and continue refining and adding details until the end. However, if this is going to be in production quality, the use of layers is necesary.

In case we have an outline sketch ready, we place that layer on top of the stack in “Multiply” blend mode, with all the rest layers added below that. We need to block out all the volumes of each scene element in its own layer, either with a hard edged brush or filling a selection made the lasso or the path tool. In case we have a rough volume sketch, we can continue working over it, after we separate the various elements into layers, for easier management. For example, if in the composition there are a couple of characters and a background, it would be much easier to deal with each of them if we separate them all into different layers, especially if one element overlaps another one. In order to avoid confusion, we place the layer hierarchy according to their distance from the viewer. So, if something is very close, it’s on the top layer, and the rest are behind that layer, with the background image layer being in the bottom of the stack. We can easily separate the elements into layers using the lasso tool, and if we need more precision we can ue the path tool. Between the layers containing the elements, we can add more layers containing things like shadows, textures, fog or other fx, and in general parts that we may need to to tweak again later. We can even add elements created in another software, such as 3d models, for example, and continue tweaking them in Photoshop. Be sure to name all your layers so that you can identify them easily. Beware though, adding way too many layers can become very confusing, and can also cause a serious drip in the overall computer performance, so it will actually make things worse instead improving your workflow.

When dealing with many layers, it’s good to organize them in folder groups, and assign them various colors. One important use of the layers is to use them as layer masks, especially when applying texture overlays.
After organizing the layers, we can start refining each individual element. If we haven’t raised the resolution already, now it’s time to do so. Also note that we can change anything in the composition during the entire process, making corrections here an there, add new things or remove others. And since everything is in its own layer now, we quickly can try many variations without much difficulty. Then we can move on to the next step, adding colors.

3. Color

This step includes establishing the mood of the painting by choosing a color palette, and making the lights and shadows. With the H/S/B pallette we can easily apply the basic color and tone, and then we can start adding details with the brush tool, preferably with a hard-edged brush. We can use “Screen” blend mode to add highlights and “Mutliply” blend mode to add shadows. This way we can mimic how light works in real life. Also the color picker is very useful tool to choose quickly colors. Also the “Lock Transparency toggle” is very useful when painting on layers, in case we don’t want to paint outside the boders of an element (which is the transparent area).

Be careful not to screen or multiply with the same colors, because it creates a monotone effect that looks fake. It needs some practice and experience though until we can pick the right colors. Choosing the correct color to add light or shadow on a surface depends on the properties of the surface itself and from the surrounding environment as well. Some materials look matte, other look shiny, some are more reflective than others. Some are more specular than others, some are semi-transparent (i.e. wax, skin, paper), and some are tranparent and refract light differently. Every surface tends to be more reflective when viewed at extreme angles (i.e. towards the edge of a sphere). Also, we must take into account that light and color bounce from one surface to another, creating that “color bleed” effect. People who have worked with 3d software can identify these material properties more easily. The ambient lighting and the proximity between objects creates an “ambient occlusion” effect. So, there’s a ton of factors to take into account before choosing the right color. Some basic knowledge of optical physics and photo studying would help a lot to understand the behavior of color.

4. Finalizing

The last part of the process is to brush up all the details in the picture and maybe create some textures, either using a texture brush or a layer mask in “overlay” mode. This could be the part that takes the most time. As we progress, we continue making minor tweaks in forms and colors, until we are satisfied. In some cases, the final composition could vary from the initial sketch; that happens to me very often, since new ideas emerge in the process.
In order to make sure that you are done with the composition, just check a few things like: a) Does everything (like forms and colors) look balanced? If not, try moving/resizing adding/removing or changing the color/brightness of some elements. b) Does the image produce depth, or someone might not understand well the size of an element or how distant it is? If not, try overlapping this element with something else, so that it gives better the perception of distance. We can also give the impression of depth by adding a slight “mist effect”. So, the greater the distance is, the more faded out an object will appear. For shorter distances and objects too close to the camera, we can use a “depth of field” effect. So, objects closer (or sometimes farther) than the focal point would tend to appear more blurry, as they are out of focus. c) Try mirroring the image horizontally and vertically. This way we can discover and fix easily things that look weird or out of proportion. After many hours of work, our eye get used to the picture, so many imperfections may slip away unnoticed. A very good advise is to take short breaks while working, so that we can relax and clear our mind for a while. When we look again at the picture, we may find a lot of things bothering us, and that we haven’t noticed before.
And the most important: d) Is my subject easy to read for the viewer? Is the focal point obvious and where I wanted it to be, or is there something that causes confusion or distraction from the main theme? In visual communication, it’s a fundamental rule to have focal points; first, secondary, and so on. This way, we can “guide” the viewer’s eye where we want, otherwise it will get lost. This is a common problem in comics, for example, where everything appears flat and vivid, so the eye is confused, and we have to study an image for a while until we figure out what is going on. If every element in the scene has the same value, it becomes confusing, and that has to be avoided. To make sure you emphasize on the focal point, there are some ways you can do that like: a) Adding more detail in that area than the rest of the composition. If everything appears crisp and clear, the eye would get lost into all the details. b) Making that area more vivid and throwing an extra artificial light that draws attention, like products showcased in ads. We don’t want the background draw more attention than the character in the foreground, for example. c) Make other elements that may draw the attention from the focal point appear slightly out of focus/blurry or darker. That’s the opposite of a) practically. After we go all over these checks, we can assume that we are done at last with the painting. That’s all, I hope you enjoyed reading this article and my advise was helpful enough.

For more information, visit:

http://www.deligaris.com/

Tags: color, imagination, layers, nick deligaris, photoshop, sketch