Pixel Joint Forum: A newbie and his cactus

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ptr
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 17 September 2010
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3

Topic: A newbie and his cactus
Posted: 21 September 2010 at 3:51am

Hey folks!
I'm a programmer trying to learn how to do pixel art so I can do my own graphics, it's a lot of fun!
Anyway, my first attempt at shading:

My untrained eye says it looks too flat, at least the upper part of the trunk, and it's too smooth. It needs some texture. Dunno how, though.
I don't know how it goes, but I'm thankful for any input :)

Edited by ptr - 21 September 2010 at 3:53am

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onek
Commander

Joined: 19 May 2009
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 416

Posted: 21 September 2010 at 5:38am

looks alright for a beginner.... but there are some things to improve...

if zoomed in, u have quite obvious banding issues, most recognizable on the right branch......
there are some (quite over the top discussions ;) in some pixelation threads about banding which i can seem to find atm, maybe u can...
ur color ramp is to linear (dark green - green - light green). try hue shifting. for example add a yellow tint to ur highlights and a blue tint t ur shadows, that looks more natural...
also u could try selective outlining.... which means that, instead of just having a black outline, u somewhat try to shade ur outline... like outline facing towards the light beeing lighter and opposed...
also since its a cactus u shpuld add some spikes, even if it looks a bit exagerated on this scale, but in pixelart its often good to exaggerate to help readabilty...

heres an edit to illustrate the things said

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ptr
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 17 September 2010
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3

Posted: 21 September 2010 at 7:51am

Originally posted by onek

looks alright for a beginner.... but there are some things to improve...

if zoomed in, u have quite obvious banding issues</a>, most recognizable on the right branch......
there are some (quite over the top discussions ;) in some pixelation threads about banding which i can seem to find atm, maybe u can...
ur color ramp is to linear (dark green - green - light green). try hue shifting. for example add a yellow tint to ur highlights and a blue tint t ur shadows, that looks more natural...
also u could try selective outlining.... which means that, instead of just having a black outline, u somewhat try to shade ur outline... like outline facing towards the light beeing lighter and opposed...
also since its a cactus u shpuld add some spikes, even if it looks a bit exagerated on this scale, but in pixelart its often good to exaggerate to help readabilty...

heres an edit to illustrate the things said

Thanks for your quick reply! :)
Yeah, I've been reading a bit about banding but still fail to identify it. Maybe right where the branch merges with the trunk?
I will try to make the color ramp less linear but I'm having a hard time with colors. The colors I used in my initial palette were sampled from a picture, maybe this is a bad approach? Anyway, I'll keep it in mind.
I tried selective outlining and spikes, but it turned out like total crap. Your version was great, though.

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WIP (Work In Progress)
Pixel Joint Forum : Pixel Art : WIP (Work In Progress)

Author	Message
ptr Seaman Joined: 17 September 2010 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Topic: A newbie and his cactus Posted: 21 September 2010 at 3:51am
	Hey folks! I'm a programmer trying to learn how to do pixel art so I can do my own graphics, it's a lot of fun! Anyway, my first attempt at shading: My untrained eye says it looks too flat, at least the upper part of the trunk, and it's too smooth. It needs some texture. Dunno how, though. I don't know how it goes, but I'm thankful for any input :) Edited by ptr - 21 September 2010 at 3:53am
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onek Commander Joined: 19 May 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 416	Posted: 21 September 2010 at 5:38am
	looks alright for a beginner.... but there are some things to improve... if zoomed in, u have quite obvious banding issues, most recognizable on the right branch...... there are some (quite over the top discussions ;) in some pixelation threads about banding which i can seem to find atm, maybe u can... ur color ramp is to linear (dark green - green - light green). try hue shifting. for example add a yellow tint to ur highlights and a blue tint t ur shadows, that looks more natural... also u could try selective outlining.... which means that, instead of just having a black outline, u somewhat try to shade ur outline... like outline facing towards the light beeing lighter and opposed... also since its a cactus u shpuld add some spikes, even if it looks a bit exagerated on this scale, but in pixelart its often good to exaggerate to help readabilty... heres an edit to illustrate the things said
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ptr Seaman Joined: 17 September 2010 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Posted: 21 September 2010 at 7:51am
	*Originally posted by onek* looks alright for a beginner.... but there are some things to improve... if zoomed in, u have quite obvious banding issues</a>, most recognizable on the right branch...... there are some (quite over the top discussions ;) in some pixelation threads about banding which i can seem to find atm, maybe u can... ur color ramp is to linear (dark green - green - light green). try hue shifting. for example add a yellow tint to ur highlights and a blue tint t ur shadows, that looks more natural... also u could try selective outlining.... which means that, instead of just having a black outline, u somewhat try to shade ur outline... like outline facing towards the light beeing lighter and opposed... also since its a cactus u shpuld add some spikes, even if it looks a bit exagerated on this scale, but in pixelart its often good to exaggerate to help readabilty... heres an edit to illustrate the things said Thanks for your quick reply! :) Yeah, I've been reading a bit about banding but still fail to identify it. Maybe right where the branch merges with the trunk? I will try to make the color ramp less linear but I'm having a hard time with colors. The colors I used in my initial palette were sampled from a picture, maybe this is a bad approach? Anyway, I'll keep it in mind. I tried selective outlining and spikes, but it turned out like total crap. Your version was great, though.
	IP Logged