Pixel Joint Forum: Need guidance with Pixel Art album cover

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wayfarer
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 27 January 2018
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Posts: 3

Topic: Need guidance with Pixel Art album cover
Posted: 28 January 2018 at 3:24am

I'm learning Pixel Art and attempting to do a Pixel Art cover for an album I'm working on. Perhaps I could've worked on it a bit more before posting, but I figure the earlier I post this the better.

My lighting and shadows are probably all way off :P
Was just hoping someone could explain their thoughts on it.

The trees down the bottom will be made to go up higher (and have more visually interesting shapes, maybe creating a sort of border on the sides) and obviously the title text needs to be done properly.

Because my skill level is quite low I'm not sure what to focus on, and how wrong parts of it are - if that makes sense - but I'm sure someone with experience can clarify everything that's wrong with ease

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Hapiel
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Joined: 30 June 2023
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Posts: 3266

Posted: 28 January 2018 at 6:22am

Welcome to PJ and I'm glad to see you managed to get into the forums ;)

Please upload your image unzoomed, it makes it easier for others to edit them, and the forum has a zoom function (click/shift+click/alt+click on an image)

As for the piece itself: What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...?
Why is the sky bright with dark stars?
Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side)

Excessive dithering makes everything look very textured and a bit dirty, it might not be necessary at all on the ape!

What's the album occasion? Is it yours, or are you doing this for a friend?
Good luck with it, I'll be keen to follow your progress :)

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wayfarer
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 27 January 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3

Posted: 28 January 2018 at 9:42am

Thanks for the reply :D

It's my own - if it was for a friend I'd suggest someone else to do the pixel art :P
Because it's my own I'm willing to spend some time learning how to do pixel art (and maybe in the future have someone do a digitally painted version).

Originally posted by Hapiel

Excessive dithering makes everything look very textured and a bit dirty, it might not be necessary at all on the ape!

Yeah, that makes sense; I feel I've done it to cover up the fact I don't have a clear definition of what I'm drawing :P

Think I'll remove the dithering then. I also had done it to keep the palette simpler - though I'm probably better off just using a few more colours here.

Originally posted by Hapiel

As for the piece itself: What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...?
Why is the sky bright with dark stars?
Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side)

Thanks for all of these. It helps me understand what someone else sees when they're looking at this!

Originally posted by Hapiel

What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...?

The pink stuff was supposed to be clouds (or maybe smoke), but I can see how it appears like rocks also. So I ought to fix that. Should I just try to look at how other people structure clouds / smoke pixel art-wise?

Originally posted by Hapiel

Why is the sky bright with dark stars?

The sky being bright with dark stars would be a bad design choice :D
I thought about making the sky get slightly darker towards the top and show lighter stars that way. Maybe that'd be better?

Originally posted by Hapiel

Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side)?

If I made the horizon evenly curved on both sides would that be better? Or would it look more natural to have it flat? I know realistically the horizon would be flat but I was trying to kinda make it an overview of Earth (even if that doesn't jive with the foreground perspective).

When I flip everything horizontally (to see work with fresh eyes) I can see how off things are!

Thanks again. I'll reupload this as 1:1 version.

Edit: Should I also keep the 2:1 version up as well, or is it better just to post one size?

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Hapiel
Rear Admiral

Joined: 30 June 2023
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3266

Posted: 28 January 2018 at 2:01pm

You can totally curve the horizon, a curved lens would do that too. If it's consistent that is..

As for the clouds, find a reference picture. Preferably real photos, not drawings. It doesn't help here that your cloud is connected to the ground.. a floating cloud looks more like a cloud!

Speaking of reference pictures, do you have one for your monkey? If not, find one now and show us what you got!

No need to have the 2:1 version, but you do as you like :)

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wayfarer
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 27 January 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3

Posted: 28 January 2018 at 9:33pm

Thanks. I'm thinking now I'll reduce the size to 120x120, might make things easier.

The reference photo I was using was really generic. Hmm, maybe I should find something from a different angle?

With the clouds, if there's a gap... what should I do composition wise? I liked the idea of the cloud (or smoke) kind of engulfing the monkey (even if I didn't really execute this correctly).

Edit:
Maybe I should start with something simpler?
Not sure if how this looks:

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

Author	Message
wayfarer Seaman Joined: 27 January 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Topic: Need guidance with Pixel Art album cover Posted: 28 January 2018 at 3:24am
	I'm learning Pixel Art and attempting to do a Pixel Art cover for an album I'm working on. Perhaps I could've worked on it a bit more before posting, but I figure the earlier I post this the better. My lighting and shadows are probably all way off :P Was just hoping someone could explain their thoughts on it. The trees down the bottom will be made to go up higher (and have more visually interesting shapes, maybe creating a sort of border on the sides) and obviously the title text needs to be done properly. Because my skill level is quite low I'm not sure what to focus on, and how wrong parts of it are - if that makes sense - but I'm sure someone with experience can clarify everything that's wrong with ease
	IP Logged

Hapiel Rear Admiral Joined: 30 June 2023 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3266	Posted: 28 January 2018 at 6:22am
	Welcome to PJ and I'm glad to see you managed to get into the forums ;) Please upload your image unzoomed, it makes it easier for others to edit them, and the forum has a zoom function (click/shift+click/alt+click on an image) As for the piece itself: What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...? Why is the sky bright with dark stars? Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side) Excessive dithering makes everything look very textured and a bit dirty, it might not be necessary at all on the ape! What's the album occasion? Is it yours, or are you doing this for a friend? Good luck with it, I'll be keen to follow your progress :)
	IP Logged

wayfarer Seaman Joined: 27 January 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Posted: 28 January 2018 at 9:42am
	Thanks for the reply :D It's my own - if it was for a friend I'd suggest someone else to do the pixel art :P Because it's my own I'm willing to spend some time learning how to do pixel art (and maybe in the future have someone do a digitally painted version). *Originally posted by Hapiel* Excessive dithering makes everything look very textured and a bit dirty, it might not be necessary at all on the ape! Yeah, that makes sense; I feel I've done it to cover up the fact I don't have a clear definition of what I'm drawing :P Think I'll remove the dithering then. I also had done it to keep the palette simpler - though I'm probably better off just using a few more colours here. *Originally posted by Hapiel* As for the piece itself: What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...? Why is the sky bright with dark stars? Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side) Thanks for all of these. It helps me understand what someone else sees when they're looking at this! *Originally posted by Hapiel* What is the pink thing in the background? Is it clouds, rocks...? The pink stuff was supposed to be clouds (or maybe smoke), but I can see how it appears like rocks also. So I ought to fix that. Should I just try to look at how other people structure clouds / smoke pixel art-wise? *Originally posted by Hapiel* Why is the sky bright with dark stars? The sky being bright with dark stars would be a bad design choice :D I thought about making the sky get slightly darker towards the top and show lighter stars that way. Maybe that'd be better? *Originally posted by Hapiel* Why is the horizon curved (inconsistently on the left side)? If I made the horizon evenly curved on both sides would that be better? Or would it look more natural to have it flat? I know realistically the horizon would be flat but I was trying to kinda make it an overview of Earth (even if that doesn't jive with the foreground perspective). When I flip everything horizontally (to see work with fresh eyes) I can see how off things are! Thanks again. I'll reupload this as 1:1 version. Edit: Should I also keep the 2:1 version up as well, or is it better just to post one size?
	IP Logged

Hapiel Rear Admiral Joined: 30 June 2023 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3266	Posted: 28 January 2018 at 2:01pm
	You can totally curve the horizon, a curved lens would do that too. If it's consistent that is.. As for the clouds, find a reference picture. Preferably real photos, not drawings. It doesn't help here that your cloud is connected to the ground.. a floating cloud looks more like a cloud! Speaking of reference pictures, do you have one for your monkey? If not, find one now and show us what you got! No need to have the 2:1 version, but you do as you like :)
	IP Logged

wayfarer Seaman Joined: 27 January 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Posted: 28 January 2018 at 9:33pm
	Thanks. I'm thinking now I'll reduce the size to 120x120, might make things easier. The reference photo I was using was really generic. Hmm, maybe I should find something from a different angle? With the clouds, if there's a gap... what should I do composition wise? I liked the idea of the cloud (or smoke) kind of engulfing the monkey (even if I didn't really execute this correctly). Edit: Maybe I should start with something simpler? Not sure if how this looks:
	IP Logged