Structure Turnaround: Geode

I wasn't planning on using this thumbnail, but after playing around with #78 I decide I wasn't that into it so I changed to a different drawing (#65). With this thumbnail I imagined it as a sort of cave when I was originally drawing it, so I decided to expand on that idea only I turned it into a geode building/structure. I enjoy collecting crystals and I always found geodes interesting to look at but I never tried drawing them. I also wanted to go more colourful than my machine and to give it a more organic feel vs. mechanical/artificial. I wanted to focus on a more fantasy theme instead sci-fi so I wouldn't get bored of it since the light bulb creature was sort of sci-fi. I've been looking at some concept art from World of Warcraft too since I've been playing Hearthstone recently and some of the artists I follow make art for those games. I really enjoy the colours used for the art in those games so that helped inspire me to create something more fantastical.

Overall I'm happy with the outcome, I found it a lot of fun to make because of the colours. Since it's not symmetrical I decided to draw both sides of the structure which was pretty difficult. I'm not used to thinking of the different points of view, I usually only think about what is visible on one side because I'm used to 2D work but I'll need to get used to considering all perspectives. I think the little chunks of vegetation add a lot to the structure for some reason, maybe it's just the extra detail. Now onto the life form turnaround.

Machine Turnaround: Light Bulb Bug

So I made my selection from my thumbnails, I decided to start with the machine first as I figured this would be a challenge. I find drawing/painting both glass and metal to be very difficult so I was prepared to spend a long time on this. I spent a while researching references...mostly light bulbs and a few Steampunk-themed insect sculptures to help me out.

Even though I liked the thumbnail because of how the bug was lit up in the darkness, I decided to not do it the same way for the final design. I wanted to focus on it looking really fragile and dainty, so I though making part of it transparent and its legs really thin would be a good idea. I also got rid of the fuzzy looking bit on the wings as again I wanted it to look fragile and simplistic (the wings are meant to look sort of like glass). I really enjoyed making this, especially the challenge of drawing the glass somewhat realistically but practice will help me improve I hope. Overall I'm really happy with how this turned out despite it causing me a lot of frustration to start with.

Summer Project 2015: Thumbnails #72-101

So these are my last thumbnails, I've loved this summer project so far and I'm really looking forward to selecting 3 to refine then make turnarounds. I'm not completely sure which ones I'm going to choose but I have an idea of which ones I prefer. These last thumbnails are a mix of both traditional and digital because I ran out of space in my little A5 book, I enjoy mixing things up anyway.

I loved trying out different styles, from more detailed to more painterly...cartoon-ish to more realistic. It helped me come up with a lot more ideas than I thought I was going to be able to think of. I think it's obvious that I prefer life forms/creatures more so than structures or machines...I really struggled with the machines but I have a few from each group that I like so that's a start at least!

Thanks for reading,

-Deanna

Summer Project 2015: Thumbnails #36-71

Here is another group of thumbnails I've made for my summer project. I continued with making silhouettes which ended up being quite a challenge so I started combining different silhouettes I've made or adding bits on/removing some parts to see how it looked. I like how some of them turned out while others I find dull but I suppose that's the point of making thumbnails, not all of them work out the way you want.

I've also made a group of thumbnails traditionally using pen, pencil and marker. I really enjoyed making these, it's been a while since I drew traditionally just because I've been
preferring using a graphics tablet. I feel like doing these sketches in an A5 book has really helped me come up with some new ideas.  

When it comes to favourites in these groups, I like #38, 39 and 49 the most for the batch of silhouettes. For the traditional sketches I really love #64 (both drawing it and the result) and I also like #52, 55, 59, 65, 71 but I don't really dislike too many of the, it's fun to experiment anyway.

I'm not sure if I'm going to do traditional or digital sketches for my last group of thumbnails or if I'll add colour but I'm just going to do what I feel is right at the time and see how it turns out. I'm really enjoying this project so far though, it's interesting to see my outcomes and compare it to what others have come up with.

Thanks for reading!
-Deanna

Summer Project 2015: Thumbnails #1-35

So far the summer project has been a challenge but I'm enjoying trying to imagine structures, machines and life forms from such a small selection of objects. I like drawing life forms the most, but that doesn't really surprise me. There are definitely objects that I prefer using, but I keep forcing myself to try new things. It's been fun so far, I'm used to drawing with a photo reference so it's nice to just do it from my imagination. I've also practiced a few silhouettes and found it more helpful than I thought.

I'd mention a few that I prefer most so far, but I actually like quite a few of them to be honest which is a good sign I suppose. I'll probably make more silhouettes then make some drawings based off of those. I've done all of mine on a graphics tablet so far so I might also do some traditional ones soon to mix it up. Maybe I'll try adding some colour or using colour instead of black and grey just to add some more variety too.

-Deanna