*Edit* Here's another entry that came in a little later.
Kristi G.
I am happy with the characters and am feeling more confident in my drawing skills, but once I pull out the paints, I feel like I ruin the piece. I am a little frustrated with my picture - I have the intended look in my mind, but totally failed when trying to put it on paper. The background was not supposed to look that way, I just thought if I filled it with doodles, it would cover the shabby painting job - but I am afraid it just turns out looking way too busy and messy. I know this is a working progress and I am excited to grow and learn more every day. -Kristi
Nate S.
I continued with the Tooth Fairy book cover. After thinking about the critiques that were given I decided on the design with the border, somewhat subdued. As for the character in the middle, I am going with the tooth fairy by herself, looking at the tooth…the one in the middle from the last submission. I stayed up too late and I have to get to bed tonight for Biochemistry tomorrow morning at 7 am. I’m still working on this one, specifically with my costume designer (my wife) on exactly what she will end up wearing. It’ll be done soon; I promise. I wanted to see what everyone thought of the border first as I spent a whole day on it. Whew!
*Edit* I added two more pictures above with words to show two diverging ideas on the background, either fading the objects or leaving them in all their boldness. I brought the tooth out to make it stand out better. Let me know if either are working for you. After spending 3 or 4 hours on it last night I gave up on the picture of Nellybug, the tooth fairy for the middle of the picture. I'm going to try it another way.
Scott W.
I'm going with the bottle. I wasn't going to at first, but it became a great part of the story idea...and I love flipping the whole situation on its head. Thanks for the suggestion! Sketched in Pencil, rendered in Photoshop.
Well Nate, you're not alone. I was also surprised at how long this took and can see why illustration could be a full-time job. But the exercise was also fun...fun to experiment and really reach for a vision. I think you did just that and yours is some of the best work you've done. My only comment is that the lower right leaf has brush strokes that may look too much like the Photoshop default brush...you may want to polish that area. I'm excited to see how you integrate the main picture and how it relates and differs from the border! Keep it up.
ReplyDeleteJust a weird thought...it would be kindof interesting if she were looking at the tooth in the border.
ReplyDeleteSorry I have not submitted anything yet...It is coming. I love the color choices in your border nate! I can really see that catching a buyers eye on a shelf. I did not notice the tooth at first. That might be your intention, but if you set the leaf behind it, the tooth might be more noticeable if you had a darker color behind it. Scott, the characters really come to life with color. We love that you chose the bottle one. We love it! I wonder if the title should be a little bigger though.
ReplyDeleteGreat work everyone. Kristi, I do not think the colors are a total loss. You could try it again possibly if you're looking for something else, try a few smaller test samples to see what colors or blending techniques will work for you beforehand. I'm not decided on the pen marks in the background. I like it, it could be strengthened but it looks like a great idea and you're almost there with it.
ReplyDeleteScott, I like the composition of your picture. I enjoy the way you played around with sizing of the characters. It's a very fun cover that pulls you in to the book...what you want if you're illustrating the cover. I know you don't have a lot of time for manipulating the picture in time to submit it but the only critique I can think of would be that the characters have extreme poses that denote motion but I was wondering if you could show their movement somehow (like swirling bubble solution or something along those lines)? All in all I love the cover, I just know that you like critiques.
Mine, well, I'll get it soon I hope. I get so frustrated sometimes with not having an eye for a masterpiece everytime. That's how it is I guess, an eternal pursuit to make your hand perform what your imagination dictates. I'm impressed with you contributors, your work inspires me.
Hey Nate, I like the way you broke the border with the tooth - dynamic choice. I also like your typography alot...though your completely is missing an "e" and it would be nice to see the word Nellybug bolded - because my eye goes straight to the word true instead of your main focus in the title. (In photoshop, you can get that by double clicking the empty space of the type layer and adding a stroke...if the font doesn't allow).
ReplyDeleteKristi, I really like how you played with the blue and pink idea, and noted the jump in your drawings as well. On drawing, be careful where his thumb is making a "tangent" with his pants...you want them to either overlap or pull it out a bit....just for future reference. For now, the text at the time could use some adjustment to even out spacing and on the bottom text, would be great to move the y away from the edge of the page.
Great work and see you soon!