The Dog Wallpaper!!

[ImJacksAmygdala]

OK I really wanted to do a wallpaper on the dog, but there just isn't much stuff on this thing other than a simple concept sketch. (Legal media anyway)

So I had to get really creative to bring that sketch to life. Now I'm still learning, but considering what I had to start with I don't think this is too bad. The filters I used really added some depth and color and it turned out much better than I had hoped! I learned a ton about filters on this project. I really hope you Dog fans enjoy this one...

Please give me feedback if you have any ideas or suggestions... I'm still learning so maybe you could tech me something I'm not aware of yet.

 

[LoneDeranger]

Nice, but using a lens flare in wallpapers is a big no-no.

 

[ImJacksAmygdala]

Ya Im just discovering that! It seems only photoshop knows what it should look like! Damn it!

Got any suggestions? I could edit out the rings and just leave the light maybe?

 

[ImJacksAmygdala]

My biggest problem is that I needed the lens flare to bring the sketch to life. The Dogs blinding eye was supposed to give the sketch character and provide a focal attention point that envoked fear or curiousity in the Dog as a character.

If I can't use the lens effect I'm at a loss right now with what to substitute with that will provide the effect I need.

Did you say lens flares were a no no because they are played out in wallpapers or is there a specific reason. I realize that they look better in photoshop, but for this piece I was relying on the lens flare for the reason I stated above...

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[The Dark Elf]

Originally posted by ImJacksAmygdala
My biggest problem is that I needed the lens flare to bring the sketch to life. The Dogs blinding eye was supposed to give the sketch character and provide a focal attention point that envoked fear or curiousity in the Dog as a character.

If I can't use the lens effect I'm at a loss right now with what to substitute with that will provide the effect I need.

Did you say lens flares were a no no because they are played out in wallpapers or is there a specific reason. I realize that they look better in photoshop, but for this piece I was relying on the lens flare for the reason I stated above...

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

lens flares have been done to death for years now, their either best avoided altogether or used in such a way their barely noticable. Otherwise they'll just scream crapness (don't mean to be vulgar but thats how lens flares are viewed these days)

little bit of bloom and glare, specular effects, atmospheric effects would do a better job. At the moment it looks pretty basic (again I don't mean to sound nasty in this)

What you could try doing, is coloring in the sketch to look like a syd mead concept, or give it an oil painting look to it. It's more work but ultimately more enjoyable, and avoids the need for lens flares and will look much better

or how about create a mock up blueprint wallpaper of dog. Granted you'd have to make a lot up from guess work, and draw everything from scratch, a front and side view, blueprint style white on blue paper, give it a little effect like its real paper (maybe scan in a slightly crumpled sheet of A4 to use as a base for the background to get the appearance of paper crumple to it looking more realistic) add little notes and arrows to what you'd imagine things are made of and how they work. Fun stuff like that. Doesn't matter if its not super accurate, it'll look good though, and apart from using their original design, all the creative work in the image would be yours, just the design of dog wouldn't be yours. So you'd have more you could be proud about. heck who knows, maybe if Valve saw it and liked it they might want to use it, you never know right

 

[ImJacksAmygdala]

Well I like this one better. I've alreeady spent too much time on this one. I learned what I wanted to get out of it. Thanks for the reply, but I can't devote that much time to it, and frankly I just don't have that kind of talent yet either.

I like this latest one. It looks alien...

 

[The Dark Elf]

Originally posted by ImJacksAmygdala
Well I like this one better. I've alreeady spent too much time on this one. I learned what I wanted to get out of it. Thanks for the reply, but I can't devote that much time to it, and frankly I just don't have that kind of talent yet either.

I like this latest one. It looks alien...

better, but still got the lens flare

where's the concept image again, I saw it on a site once before but long since forgotton

 

[WARLORD]

yeah post the concept image so we can have fun too ^^

 

[EVIL]

myeah. the lensflare suxx. thats why valve didnt included a lensflare effect in hl2 when you look into the sun. its not natural. you dont see a lensflare when you look into the sun or see something bright. or whatever.

 

[BWMASTER]

Originally posted by EVIL
myeah. the lensflare suxx. thats why valve didnt included a lensflare effect in hl2 when you look into the sun. its not natural. you dont see a lensflare when you look into the sun or see something bright. or whatever.

If you have glasses you do....and gordon wears glasses so it's a mistake on their part.

 

[WARLORD]

Originally posted by EVIL
myeah. the lensflare suxx. thats why valve didnt included a lensflare effect in hl2 when you look into the sun. its not natural. you dont see a lensflare when you look into the sun or see something bright. or whatever.

no but the screen should became brighter and if you stay to long you should be a little blinded

 

[The Dark Elf]

Originally posted by WARLORD
no but the screen should became brighter and if you stay to long you should be a little blinded

As I understand it there are little touches like that in it. I know there's one where, if your out in the bright daylight and you look into a house its difficult to see clearly in there until you move in and then the outside becomes brighter. and I read on some faq (probably that one from before) about audio effects and ringing in the ears with loud explosions, which is all pretty cool. Though I imagine lots of people who've no idea what these things are will complain about them happening, not twiggin its just realism

 

[theotherguy]

thats called HDR, its a really cool effect, and it also allows for realistic dynamic lensflares, reflection, depth of field, and motion blur, but the real heavy hitter is the actual "high dynamic range" part of it, where if youre in a dark area, bright areas seem really bright, while dark areas seem just right, until of course, your "eye" adjusts to the "light", and you can see again. HDR also allows for light scattering, which makes outdoor areas seem perfectley exposed.

 

[Flyingdebris]

instead of using a photoshop lense flare, make one up yourself

Step 1, study how lense flares look

Step 2, draw a lense flare

Step 3, color the lense flare and tweak around with it until it looks good.

or better yet use the dodge tool and brighten up certain areas to suggest lens flare.

Just don't use the actual lense flare button.

 

[WARLORD]

look what lensflare are good for ^^
(i made that with a tutorial)

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/3486183/

 

[The Dark Elf]

Originally posted by WARLORD
look what lensflare are good for ^^
(i made that with a tutorial)

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/3486183/

Maya Paint Effects? or that galaxies creating program (I forget the name, was a handy tool though for doing images from space)

looks cool, though the ring around one of the flares spoils it a bit.. Flare's are bad unless they look like glows and don't have rings on them. Unless its just one, very faint, in an atmosphere shot, and slightly anamorphic (squashed) but even thats over used everywhere now thanks to the phantom menace giving kiddies idea's heh

 

[WARLORD]

it's a photoshop tutorial here:

http://gallery.artofgregmartin.com/index.html

 

[The Dark Elf]

oooh i know that tute. Never tried it but was always impressed with the result he got. Neato

 

[GhostValkyrie]

Nice Wallpaper!

-Ghost.

 

[jww10789]

thats cool, but anyways here is the concept art of dog(i think this is it anyways)

 

[Anwar]

I like the first one.