Pixel Joint Forum: [WIP] Twily and the Firefly

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Nikonani
Midshipman

Joined: 08 October 2021
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Posts: 42

Topic: [WIP] Twily and the Firefly
Posted: 18 July 2012 at 8:22am

Just a pixel I've been working on lately :)

Trying to keep the color count pretty low, right now it's at 13 but I have plans to get it back down to 12 or 11 again. Probably not until it gets to a later stage, however. I'm planning on making a background for this as well (with other fireflies and a moonlit sky) to make it a bit more interesting. As for the face, it's looking rather flat I'll admit, and it doesn't quite reflect the light perfectly so I'm still working on that. Also gonna go back and touch up the dithering more. I'm working on it right now but I'm at work and the latest rev is on my laptop, and it can't connect to the place's network so I can only post my last rev I had up online. I guess I can at least start the thread now and then post the latest WIP later today anyways :)

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grinningCat
Seaman
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Joined: 30 April 2010
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Posts: 30

Posted: 19 July 2012 at 6:13pm

This is overall great, and my only nitpick is that the back of the head looks a bit flat.

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Nikonani
Midshipman

Joined: 08 October 2021
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Posts: 42

Posted: 19 July 2012 at 6:34pm

Originally posted by grinningCat

This is overall great, and my only nitpick is that the back of the head looks a bit flat.

Thanks, and I'll agree to your nitpick and even admit the same is true about the front of the face :D Since I posted this rev I've gone back and added better reflection from the firefly (which fixes the front of the face) improved the back of the face, added highlights to her hair, etc. Also edited the palette a lot to be more interesting and tight as opposed the to boring hue-shifts and brightness-ramps going on in this one (made the buffer shades act as neutralizers better by having them have less saturation, bigger hue shifts, etc.) I was even trying to reduce it down to CPC colors but couldn't find a unique shade for one or two needed colors even after scrapping it down to 8 colors :P so it's still stuck at 13 non-CPC colors.

Should be able to post my update (before I start working on the background for this) by sometime tomorrow!

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Mikebissle
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 14 July 2012
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Posts: 17

Posted: 20 July 2012 at 6:37am

Looking good so far--the way the light is reflecting off her hair does not look right to me. It's hard to put into words, so I just made an edit.

I also tried to do some work on the horn. Right now it looks like a nub. What I've Googled of official art of Twilight Sparkle is somewhat inconsistent-- sometimes her horn looks like a little lump poking out of her head, other times it's longer and pointer. Either way I tried to make it look more conical. It doesn't mesh at all with the rest (dithering is not my friend!), but I hope it helps.

I inverted the inside of the ear, but after doing some more referencing of real-life horse ears in profile and 3/4 view, you may have been on the right track after all. Sorry, disregard that change.

Looking forward to seeing what this will look like finished!

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Nikonani
Midshipman

Joined: 08 October 2021
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 42

Posted: 20 July 2012 at 6:48am

Thanks for the edit! :) Yeah, I think you're definitely right on both accounts -- the lighting looks a lot more correct with your rev, and while the horn you made is rather long and maybe slightly thin, mine was way too dithered (though to match what I've already done I'm going to have to have it somewhat dithered still) and "nub" looking -- I didn't use a reference for what I've done so far, but following your suit and looking at one for the horn does indeed show, while inconsistent with how much it sticks out (well, it is a cartoon show, so the artists probably aren't too strict on something as minor as that :P) it definitely is more pointed than what I have.

Hopefully I'll have an edit included what you suggested and what I've done behind the scenes since posting this tonight -- I'm hoping to put a bullet in this one by the end of the Weekend, which will take lots of work to get the background done by then but I'm really hoping that I do :)

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Nikonani
Midshipman

Joined: 08 October 2021
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Posts: 42

Posted: 24 July 2012 at 5:08pm

Meh, still playing with a reflection of the light on the hair, but... Meh. Essentially done with Twily herself. The firefly I was gonna change the (hard to see) dark blue surrounding it with the lighter blue on the bright part of her hair -- I tried it out in MS Paint real quick (had no access to Gfx2 earlier) and it works great, but when I try to save/copy the image MSP complete mucks up my colors, so I'll have to do the recolor in grafx2 tomorrow.

After fixing hair and stuff, I'll be onto the background.

Also, mike, as for the dark "highlights" in her hair you continued into the shadow area -- while it looks good, I thought it was slightly distracting to the viewer when I tried it out. Did try it out however, and it was definitely something work considering, so thanks for that third great part of that edit :)

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Yuran
Commander

Joined: 10 November 2024
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Posts: 329

Posted: 24 July 2012 at 8:43pm

A drop shadow of the horn?

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AirStyle
Commander

Joined: 13 November 2017
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Posts: 376

Posted: 24 July 2012 at 8:56pm

Technically, the horn should pop out of the hair at the very top. If this is a true profile of the unicorn, then the horn shouldn't be anywhere else, otherwise it'll look like it's sitting on the forehead at an angle.

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Blarget2
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 18 June 2012
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Posts: 14

Posted: 24 July 2012 at 9:17pm

you obviously have not seen official images of Twilight, Airstyle.

Edited by Blarget2 - 24 July 2012 at 9:18pm

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AirStyle
Commander

Joined: 13 November 2017
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Posts: 376

Posted: 24 July 2012 at 9:41pm

:| huh....okay then...

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Nikonani
Midshipman

Joined: 08 October 2021
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 42

Posted: 25 July 2012 at 6:08am

Originally posted by Blarget2

you obviously have not seen official images of Twilight, Airstyle.

^ this.

While I am stylizing certain parts of Twily's face, the horn's positioning is something I'm trying to keep the same the best I can.

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tzen
Seaman
Seaman

Joined: 15 July 2012
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Posts: 35

Posted: 25 July 2012 at 10:04pm

I think maybe the horn should be a tad pointier at the tip. Right now it kind of looks like a... carrot? But not pointy like it was before, it needs to bevel down a bit on the top side.

Can't say I understand the appeal of these ponies, but I think it's a nice take on the official with your own style.

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

Author	Message
Nikonani Midshipman Joined: 08 October 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 42	Topic: [WIP] Twily and the Firefly Posted: 18 July 2012 at 8:22am
	Just a pixel I've been working on lately :) Trying to keep the color count pretty low, right now it's at 13 but I have plans to get it back down to 12 or 11 again. Probably not until it gets to a later stage, however. I'm planning on making a background for this as well (with other fireflies and a moonlit sky) to make it a bit more interesting. As for the face, it's looking rather flat I'll admit, and it doesn't quite reflect the light perfectly so I'm still working on that. Also gonna go back and touch up the dithering more. I'm working on it right now but I'm at work and the latest rev is on my laptop, and it can't connect to the place's network so I can only post my last rev I had up online. I guess I can at least start the thread now and then post the latest WIP later today anyways :)
	IP Logged

grinningCat Seaman Joined: 30 April 2010 Online Status: Offline Posts: 30	Posted: 19 July 2012 at 6:13pm
	This is overall great, and my only nitpick is that the back of the head looks a bit flat.
	IP Logged

Nikonani Midshipman Joined: 08 October 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 42	Posted: 19 July 2012 at 6:34pm
	*Originally posted by grinningCat* This is overall great, and my only nitpick is that the back of the head looks a bit flat. Thanks, and I'll agree to your nitpick and even admit the same is true about the front of the face :D Since I posted this rev I've gone back and added better reflection from the firefly (which fixes the front of the face) improved the back of the face, added highlights to her hair, etc. Also edited the palette a lot to be more interesting and tight as opposed the to boring hue-shifts and brightness-ramps going on in this one (made the buffer shades act as neutralizers better by having them have less saturation, bigger hue shifts, etc.) I was even trying to reduce it down to CPC colors but couldn't find a unique shade for one or two needed colors even after scrapping it down to 8 colors :P so it's still stuck at 13 non-CPC colors. Should be able to post my update (before I start working on the background for this) by sometime tomorrow!
	IP Logged

Mikebissle Seaman Joined: 14 July 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 17	Posted: 20 July 2012 at 6:37am
	Looking good so far--the way the light is reflecting off her hair does not look right to me. It's hard to put into words, so I just made an edit. I also tried to do some work on the horn. Right now it looks like a nub. What I've Googled of official art of Twilight Sparkle is somewhat inconsistent-- sometimes her horn looks like a little lump poking out of her head, other times it's longer and pointer. Either way I tried to make it look more conical. It doesn't mesh at all with the rest (dithering is not my friend!), but I hope it helps. I inverted the inside of the ear, but after doing some more referencing of real-life horse ears in profile and 3/4 view, you may have been on the right track after all. Sorry, disregard that change. Looking forward to seeing what this will look like finished!
	IP Logged

Nikonani Midshipman Joined: 08 October 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 42	Posted: 20 July 2012 at 6:48am
	Thanks for the edit! :) Yeah, I think you're definitely right on both accounts -- the lighting looks a lot more correct with your rev, and while the horn you made is rather long and maybe slightly thin, mine was way too dithered (though to match what I've already done I'm going to have to have it somewhat dithered still) and "nub" looking -- I didn't use a reference for what I've done so far, but following your suit and looking at one for the horn does indeed show, while inconsistent with how much it sticks out (well, it is a cartoon show, so the artists probably aren't too strict on something as minor as that :P) it definitely is more pointed than what I have. Hopefully I'll have an edit included what you suggested and what I've done behind the scenes since posting this tonight -- I'm hoping to put a bullet in this one by the end of the Weekend, which will take lots of work to get the background done by then but I'm really hoping that I do :)
	IP Logged

Nikonani Midshipman Joined: 08 October 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 42	Posted: 24 July 2012 at 5:08pm
	Meh, still playing with a reflection of the light on the hair, but... Meh. Essentially done with Twily herself. The firefly I was gonna change the (hard to see) dark blue surrounding it with the lighter blue on the bright part of her hair -- I tried it out in MS Paint real quick (had no access to Gfx2 earlier) and it works great, but when I try to save/copy the image MSP complete mucks up my colors, so I'll have to do the recolor in grafx2 tomorrow. After fixing hair and stuff, I'll be onto the background. Also, mike, as for the dark "highlights" in her hair you continued into the shadow area -- while it looks good, I thought it was slightly distracting to the viewer when I tried it out. Did try it out however, and it was definitely something work considering, so thanks for that third great part of that edit :)
	IP Logged

Yuran Commander Joined: 10 November 2024 Online Status: Offline Posts: 329	Posted: 24 July 2012 at 8:43pm
	A drop shadow of the horn?
	IP Logged

AirStyle Commander Joined: 13 November 2017 Online Status: Offline Posts: 376	Posted: 24 July 2012 at 8:56pm
	Technically, the horn should pop out of the hair at the very top. If this is a true profile of the unicorn, then the horn shouldn't be anywhere else, otherwise it'll look like it's sitting on the forehead at an angle.
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Blarget2 Seaman Joined: 18 June 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 14	Posted: 24 July 2012 at 9:17pm
	you obviously have not seen official images of Twilight, Airstyle. Edited by Blarget2 - 24 July 2012 at 9:18pm
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AirStyle Commander Joined: 13 November 2017 Online Status: Offline Posts: 376	Posted: 24 July 2012 at 9:41pm
	:\| huh....okay then...
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Nikonani Midshipman Joined: 08 October 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 42	Posted: 25 July 2012 at 6:08am
	*Originally posted by Blarget2* you obviously have not seen official images of Twilight, Airstyle. ^ this. While I am stylizing certain parts of Twily's face, the horn's positioning is something I'm trying to keep the same the best I can.
	IP Logged

tzen Seaman Joined: 15 July 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 35	Posted: 25 July 2012 at 10:04pm
	I think maybe the horn should be a tad pointier at the tip. Right now it kind of looks like a... carrot? But not pointy like it was before, it needs to bevel down a bit on the top side. Can't say I understand the appeal of these ponies, but I think it's a nice take on the official with your own style.
	IP Logged