tried an edit :
but it looks like a soap bubble :/
see the shadow on mine, it could help you, I hope

you would believe me, but i was studiying a glass ball ligthing just this morning... i'll try to se what can I add to the thread as soon as posible sir     

Best of the three from my perspective is #2, though I think your best bet is somewhere between 2 and 3...Maybe 3's upper portion and 2's lower...

I think that it's a very cool sprite. It looks like an old crystal ball. I think that Pumpkin's shadow is really cool and realistic, I suggest you trying to make it similar to his.

Cheers
HSm,

My attempt of a sky and a bit of the hedges
coming at the sides. Just thinking that most of the
time there will be hedges around.




Any further comments?


Best regards from

M.E.

you should stay away from dithering IMO.

Something that might work would be the same effect I have for the eyes of the creatures from my game. You might try adding a darker "core" in the inner sphere.
It's not realistic, but it could give it a certain "omph" factor.
I could do you an edit later or tomorrow.

Youll maybe find better referrences when searching for acryl instead of glass..
http://www.seriousjuggling.com/images/OtherBalls/acrylic_clearT.jpg

http://www.jugglingdb.com/shop/img/product/1462_t.jpg

http://www.contactjuggler.com/php/gif.php?imagenum=13113&resolution=images_medium

http://www.magic.org/store/images/Acrlic_CntctBall.jpg

A big thank you to all of you who made the effort of
commenting.

This was great help!

@SquirrelSquid: Indeed dithering was bad!
        Tried the darker core but it
        looked like that there was something
        inside the glass.

@Lawrence: The grass board is 600+ by 400+ pixels.
       It might be having a new look. But it is
       so much work that I'm focusing on other
       things first. But I do agree with you
       that it is more a pack of worms than grass

       On the glass. That actually helped me allthough
       I didn't went all the way turning the sky
       downwards. But you made me look better at second
       reference and I noticed that it was the sky at the bottom.
       So I slapped some blue in and immediately
       it became better! THANKS!

@Lollige: Thank you for those balls, but I really would
      like the glassy - shiny effect.
      I do appreciate the effort!   Bedankt Man!


@Doomcreater0: You were of big help by indicating
           that it was still too green. Jalonso had said
           that as well but I kept the sky small.
           I enlarged the sky which I think works
           better now! Also reduced some of the green
           in the middle and by simplifying it had a
           greater effect.


So here are the latest versions:



7 has more and stronger dark
8 has a softer dark and less of it
9 has an even softer dark but the same volume as 7

I think all three are already much better and
personally I prefer 9.

Is this a wrap?


Best regards from

M.E.

Edit: Bad text wrapping


Edited by M.E. - 10 November 2007 at 12:30am

it's looking much better than before...but personally I think it just needs some more form to it...I made a really quick edit

I think number eight is awesome; nine is okay but eight's dark areas are more concentrated and less rough. skamocore's edit seems to make it look more like a glass plate with a raised edge than a sphere.