11 replies to this topic

[Kakaru]

I wanted to draw Takua but I got carried away with the clouds.

Here's a nice small version for those of you who don't want to load 2.2 MB images, and here's the original full-size image.

Done with a Wacom Bamboo Create tablet using Autodesk Sketchbook Express. I'm still relatively new to this, so any C&C is greatly appreciated.

Thanks for viewing!

this took way longer than I'd care to admit and it still looks horrid :c

[Nuparu1995]

Very epic!! The shading says it all.

[thebeggerpie]

I think I like the clouds more then Takua.

Seriously, that's pretty epic. Any chance you'll do a more closer one of just Takua? My eyes kept drifting to the clouds like a bad car wreck.

[Dwanny]

Wow, those clouds took my breath away.
Perhaps you should focus a little more on takua, but even so, great work!

[Kakaru]

Very epic!! The shading says it all.

I don't know what to make of that comment. What shading says what?

I think I like the clouds more then Takua. Seriously, that's pretty epic. Any chance you'll do a more closer one of just Takua? My eyes kept drifting to the clouds like a bad car wreck.

Wow, those clouds took my breath away. Perhaps you should focus a little more on takua, but even so, great work!

Nope, the point was to contrast the sky against a small figure to show how vulnerable he was on the island as the lone chronicler. If I were to focus on Takua it would take away any sense of dramatic effect created by the massive storm clouds. Thanks anyways guys. :/

[Wotsiznaim]

this took way longer than I'd care to admit and it still looks horrid :c

I beg to differ

I love how the clouds get darker as they go up, it creates this feeling of omnipresence (for Makuta) and that there's this constant threat all around Takua but he's still shining through with the bright sun.

Although, I don't really get the flag. Is it symbolism for something?

[Kakaru]

this took way longer than I'd care to admit and it still looks horrid :c

I beg to differ

I love how the clouds get darker as they go up, it creates this feeling of omnipresence (for Makuta) and that there's this constant threat all around Takua but he's still shining through with the bright sun.

Although, I don't really get the flag. Is it symbolism for something?

:3

FINALLY

YOU UNDERSTAND THE CLOUDS

THANK YOU

(No, the flag is just a reference to the blizzard sequence in MNOG where you have to follow red banners to keep from getting lost. Wait, I guess that is kinda symbolic.I just put it in because I like making references to the game, which is the inspiration for most of my art.)

[Jithra]

Beautiful work! I did get a feeling of foreboding from the clouds, (which I'm glad, having just read that that was your intent) and they do make Takua look small and vulnerable. They are, however, distracting in the sense that my eye kept on wandering away from Takua's smallness and towards "Makuta." If you wanted us to focus on Makuta, than perfect! If we're suppose to focus on Takua, then something has to happen to bring the viewer's eye back down. What, I'm not exactly sure, because I absolutely love the textures you've created in the clouds and the almost-silhouette of Takua.

Perhaps playing with the distance between cloud/Makuta and Takua? My thought being so that they're not as separated from each other and also so that the blue sky doesn't act quite as much as a severing of the two but as a bridge instead. (I'm not sure if that would help lead to Takua or not, but it's the only thing I can think of at the moment.)

Again, beautiful work! I enjoyed it very much.

[~garnira returns~]

Awesome! It would be neat if you could add a MN stone somewhere in the picture.

[Taka Nuvia]

Aw, I wanted to comment on this earlier already, but somehow I always got distracted ;n; So sadly, there's not much left for me to say any more... hm, let's see what I can come up with.

First, and probably most obvious: the clouds. Oh, the glorious clouds. They're absolutely beautiful, and look almost perfect, IMO. I mean, they really look like clouds. And that's quite tricky to do. For me, at least.

The 'almost' is there because there could be a bit more of a transition between the dark clouds and the blue sky. The way it is now, they appear somewhat separated, like two completely different entities to me. Of course, it makes sense in a way, if the clouds are supposed to represent Makuta, who is "always watching", but never really there...
But IMO it kind of disrupts the harmonic 'flow' of the composition a bit. Just a tiny tiny bit, though.

Takua, despite his small size in comparison to the clouds, plays a bit role in the image, too, that's for sure, since the whole composition leads towards him. It might be because of the light, but his head seems a little small in comparison to the body.

But don't get me wrong, I really had to look at the image for a long time to find these things, as it took me quite a while to get over the feeling of awe hat struck me after first clicking the link. The atmosphere of this artwork is absolutely brilliant. And the clouds, as already pointed out so often, are simply amazing. I also like Takua's shadow, looks great too (although that's probably one of the minor details...)

Overall, this is definitely something you should be proud of.

_{And oh look, this turned out longer than expected ^^}

[Kakaru]

Remind me to reply to comments as soon as I get the time or I end up forgetting entirely.

Beautiful work! I did get a feeling of foreboding from the clouds, (which I'm glad, having just read that that was your intent) and they do make Takua look small and vulnerable. They are, however, distracting in the sense that my eye kept on wandering away from Takua's smallness and towards "Makuta." If you wanted us to focus on Makuta, than perfect! If we're suppose to focus on Takua, then something has to happen to bring the viewer's eye back down. What, I'm not exactly sure, because I absolutely love the textures you've created in the clouds and the almost-silhouette of Takua.

Yeah, I should have made Takua far less distinct to the point of simply being a black silhouette since the clouds were meant to be the real focal point. Thanks!

Perhaps playing with the distance between cloud/Makuta and Takua? My thought being so that they're not as separated from each other and also so that the blue sky doesn't act quite as much as a severing of the two but as a bridge instead. (I'm not sure if that would help lead to Takua or not, but it's the only thing I can think of at the moment.)

Again, beautiful work! I enjoyed it very much.

Yep, I may have to play around with this again someday. It occurred to me later that the gap between the two really is too large and it's pretty jarring. I really appreciate the ideas, thank you!

Awesome! It would be neat if you could add a MN stone somewhere in the picture.

I get where you're coming from but I don't see any way to put one in without distracting from the overall setup, sorry. I might try painting a separate picture like this focusing on the stones. Thanks!

Aw, I wanted to comment on this earlier already, but somehow I always got distracted ;n; So sadly, there's not much left for me to say any more... hm, let's see what I can come up with.

First, and probably most obvious: the clouds. Oh, the glorious clouds. They're absolutely beautiful, and look almost perfect, IMO. I mean, they really look like clouds. And that's quite tricky to do. For me, at least.

Thank you! I'm incredibly happy with how the clouds turned out and I haven't quite been able to replicate the effect again, so I'm glad you like it! : D
(And no worries, I always appreciate the comments!)

The 'almost' is there because there could be a bit more of a transition between the dark clouds and the blue sky. The way it is now, they appear somewhat separated, like two completely different entities to me. Of course, it makes sense in a way, if the clouds are supposed to represent Makuta, who is "always watching", but never really there...
But IMO it kind of disrupts the harmonic 'flow' of the composition a bit. Just a tiny tiny bit, though.

Yep, hindsight again. I should have made the clouds a little lighter and brought them straight to the horizon instead. I guess I didn't have a consistent tone that I wanted to achieve when I started and it really shows. :c

Takua, despite his small size in comparison to the clouds, plays a bit role in the image, too, that's for sure, since the whole composition leads towards him. It might be because of the light, but his head seems a little small in comparison to the body.

woah what

*goes back to look*

Ohh, I see. That's sorta because his head is turned, but you're absolutely right, it's still a little too small.

But don't get me wrong, I really had to look at the image for a long time to find these things, as it took me quite a while to get over the feeling of awe hat struck me after first clicking the link. The atmosphere of this artwork is absolutely brilliant. And the clouds, as already pointed out so often, are simply amazing. I also like Takua's shadow, looks great too (although that's probably one of the minor details...)

Overall, this is definitely something you should be proud of.

_{And oh look, this turned out longer than expected ^^}

Thanks a ton! I'm elated to hear that it had an emotional effect on some level, and that sort of feeling was really what I wanted the viewer to come away with. I watch clouds for long stretches of my day and it's otherwise impossible to relate the feeling of absolute awe I get from towering storm clouds, blue skies over mountains or simply wisps of blue shadows hanging over the sunset.

Thanks for the replies, everyone!

[Janus]

I first saw this when it was posted--and I've got to say it stuck with me the whole time. Now that's not to say that I remembered every piece of the composition, but I certainly remembered the overall feeling I got from it.

It really is a great piece, the more 'blurry' look for Takua being a perfect way to demonstrate that he's unclear on his goals or his motivations--in fact he's more than a little lost, but he's going to keep following that light (which has a beautiful composition) meanwhile the clouds all around him serve to not only heighten the sense of his isolation, but also to show him that "every light has its shadow"

Beautiful piece, thank you for making this.

-Janus