Introduce the Dragon to the Outside World
Hey, I'm continuing the experimentation around this two characters. I also start to like these two, they also let me express a visual metaphor of what I'm living. Maybe I'm finding a simpler form of storytelling.
On a technical point of view, they are super challenging with their difference of size. Thanks to the blond sorceress, I can train expression, pose and anatomy. Thanks to the scene with the Dragon, I can train perspective, shot, composition, more material and background interaction.
The original 'direct painting' fail
But I failed when I first started this test. I tried to start "direct painting". It means I tried to bypass the thumbnail, the sketch and went directly at painting shapes with a brush to get done the color flat. Maybe I was a bit too bold about it because I quickly reach a dead-end. One advantage: I could quickly set the general idea of the scene and it was readable. On the downside, I really had poor shapes, flat perspective and fixing a start-up like that felt immediately that I'll need hours and hours to adjust all the shapes into something better.
So I started over.
I went back to 1.Sketch, 2.Color Flat, 3.Shading, 4.Paint-Over. Discipline.
1. Sketch
2. Color Flat
3. Shading
4. Paint-Over and adjustments
I also posted on the way a feature request on Krita artist for better Quick Clipping Group on Krita. It will be more constructive than what I wrote on the last blog post where I complained about the usability of the group in Krita.
This time, I also decided to not flat all the layer stack after the shading was done. I also tested a big change: using a single layer for the shading as I did for some episodes of Pepper&Carrot. The illustration had 6 top level groups (more than for other this time), and I couldn't imagine managing three layers for the shading only per groups. I went to the 'Hard Light' blending mode, and I found new tips to keep a global mood on the piece without having to rely on a top 'paint-over' paint layer or a projection to do my color adjustments.
It's too bad I spent way too much time on this one. Definitely not yet a suitable workflow for comic and a Pepper&Carrot episode. So, I have to continue to explore to find where I crunch things down or not. My dragon instinct will guide me, I'm trying to not overthink it and I'll just follow two never-failing partners: curiosity and fun.
