Spirit Whale (WIP)
Printed From: Pixel Joint
Category: Pixel Art
Forum Name: WIP (Work In Progress)
Forum Discription: Get crits and comments on your pixel WIPs and other art too!
URL: https://pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13404
Printed Date: 30 September 2025 at 6:42am
Topic: Spirit Whale (WIP)
Posted By: jambox_josh
Subject: Spirit Whale (WIP)
Date Posted: 21 November 2011 at 8:01pm
|
So I'm doing a piece using the above palette. It's going to be sort of a celestial Whale like creature as part of a set. one of My major issues is Jaggies, I've read and re-read the tutorial on removing jaggies, but just cannot for the life of me get the back and "arms" to look good. any help/advise would be awesome. (note this is REAL early stage and the eye and mouth are not permanent, forgot to remove with upload) http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/854/wipghast.png/">  |
Replies:
Posted By: showtime
Date Posted: 21 November 2011 at 10:08pm
|
At this point I'd be more likely to assume that this is some kind of seal. I don't think this whale looks too whale-like at this point... You might want to take a look at some photos of whales to check out what kinds of shapes you could go for. If you're thinking anything along the lines of "pfff, references are for realistic art and I'm going for something stylized", check out http://www.pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12395&KW=whale - this thread which not only has good examples of how to incorporate references into something stylized, but also depicts a whale! http://www.pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12395&KW=whale - |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 22 November 2011 at 9:21am
| cool thanks for that, any advice on line art though? |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 22 November 2011 at 1:00pm
|
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/259/wipghast3.png/">  EDIT(2:07 PM): uploaded incorrect img, below is the updated fins http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/804/wipghast3.png/">  Put more "whale" details onto the piece. I think that the back and fins still look like complete garbage  no matter how I pixel them they always looklike 45 degree angles instead of rounded(i'm blaming inexperience  ). I really don't want to use AA because I'm wanting that super cartoon flat look. and just 16 colours... the outline is potentially going to stay, but ultimately just there to make the shape more visible for critique, so yep, let me know what you all think! |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 22 November 2011 at 2:26pm
|
with B.G. and earth being eclipsed by the whale : *UPDATE* recoloured,shaded, changed a few minor details:  still worried about his Back... it feels so flat :( does no one have any advice for me today |
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 22 November 2011 at 9:29pm
ummm... well not for shading the back. But, two things really strike me as needing work. The curve of the back, the line art could be improved and rounded. There is a diagonal staircase of like 20 pixels. It just looks bad. I feel the mouth is not great. There is no shape or form to the mouth, just a single curvy line on top of an oblong shape.  Unless you have it how you do by choice. I like the colors. Seen a lot of space whales oddly. Is it a meme of sorts? |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 23 November 2011 at 12:35pm
|
I know the back is bad... look at the previous posts in the thread and you'll notice I've been asking for help on the back for 2 days :/ http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/695/sunwhale.png/">  I wanted the whale to be like an epic sun god sort of thing, like he is making light on Earth. thought it looked cool but critiques are always welcome. (as long as you give me a little advice on how to fix/change it) |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 28 November 2011 at 7:47pm
|
Still looking for help on the back if anyone has any advice :( if it helps here are my inspirations for piece 1) for shape and curvature a manitee: http://www.mekdesigns.com/images/manitee2.JPG 2) for details and theme Blue whale: http://www.dkimages.com/discover/previews/775/196307.JPG |
Posted By: Partack
Date Posted: 29 November 2011 at 12:29am
|
I didn't really get that the creature was the planets light source until i really looked hard at the picture (and read that that's what you're going for..).. i thought the creature was. .. like... laser beaming it or something.. kinda a destroyer of worlds..
I don't think it should conjure light from its eyes. that spoils any hope the creature has of looking friendly. perhaps it could conjure light with its fins or maybe the whole thing could have a radiant glow? I think a sun deity would have a radiant glow regardless.. an emitter of light normally does that.. i dunno. some things to think about since nobody else has any critiques for you. Good luck |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 29 November 2011 at 12:20pm
| awesome ideas, thanks Partack |
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 30 November 2011 at 2:29pm
here are three possible ways you could improve the back.    Arranged in order of what I think is best to worst. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 05 December 2011 at 3:54pm
|
been a while and I haven't done a bunch of changes, but I did get rid of the whole light-ray idea. http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/684/whale5r.png/">  Opting for the other option I had been juggling. now the whale will be sort of eclipsing the earth and moon, to emphasis just how massive it is. want it to feel like some massive ancient beast...like a whale  but I'm definitely keeping my shape because Its a made-up creature so I'm calling creative freedom on that
|
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 05 December 2011 at 7:32pm
| If I were to submit this would it be accepted? |
Posted By: mdog95
Date Posted: 05 December 2011 at 7:36pm
|
The whale has no texture at all. Give it a texture like in this picture:
|
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 05 December 2011 at 10:09pm
|
don't worry about whether it would be accepted or not. Focus on improving on your pixel art skills. It isn't bad currently, but it still is far from great. The whale is still very flat. You need to better define your shading and your light source. If the whale was covering the planet like that, then the whole planet would be mostly pitch black/purple whatev judging from where you seem to have depicted your light source. The shading on the whale needs more contrast Again don't settle with the lowest standards! |
Posted By: mdog95
Date Posted: 05 December 2011 at 10:16pm
| And your color choice wasn't very good either... I'm a fan of tinting primary colors. For example, a slightly blue tinted brown. Before you do anything else to that piece, get colors that pop. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 06 December 2011 at 11:45am
|
thanks for the advice! this is really only my 2nd attempt at pixel art so i still have a horrible time shading/colouring. if anyone has any ideas as to better palettes or what not that would be grrrrrrreat! p.s. @mdog95 your pic never showed up for me :/ |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 06 December 2011 at 12:23pm
|
Ok, so here we have an attempt at better colour choice for shading on the whale and earth. I have displayed where my light source is with the white Ball/'rays in top right corner. The palette I am using is to the right :) so let fly those shading / colouring tips http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/832/whale6withinfo.png/">  |
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 06 December 2011 at 2:09pm
|
the colors you gave to the whale definitely give off a more deity-esque vibe. It does clash much with the purple space environment in the background. It is perfectly fine for it to be purple, but try to experiment more with hue to add more to the timeless quality you are going for, rather than a cartoony style you are depicting. It's all about mood. As for the shading tips, I struggle greatly there, but try this. Close your eyes an relax. Picture this exact whale you have drawn in your mind. Then add in the light. In your mind, see if you can move the ball of light around in 3D space, and try to imagine how it would affect your whale. Then after a while of doing this, bring your light source back to where you want it. See it as clear as you can. Then it is just a matter of pixeling it. Good luck! |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 06 December 2011 at 2:33pm
Great advise as far as figuring out shading, I tried to do some edits with that in mind, let me know if It looks ok or if I'm completely off track http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/705/wipwhale13.png/">  as for the right fin: better filled dark or light? |
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 06 December 2011 at 3:06pm
|
I can't say for better or worse. I don't know what you want to depict, or if you even know what you want to depict yourself. I would guess that you are a bit unsure yourself. I'd suggest settling in your mind with a mood/style and going for it instead of trying random colors. |
Posted By: Partack
Date Posted: 07 December 2011 at 8:48am
| I liked it a lot more before the colour edit.. |
Posted By: feyincognito
Date Posted: 07 December 2011 at 11:47pm
|
Is there another light source affecting the bottom of the globe? Otherwise it would be entirely eclipsed. Sorry if that was already addressed, I just skimmed the discussion. And I agree with Partack. I especially liked the way the gold looked against the green skin; like the swirls were made of light.
Also, the sky area is super one dimensional; are those space clouds? Maybe they could be galaxies? ------------- "Can you build websites with firefox?" "Can you build cars with roads?" |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 11:29am
|
-@frost Butt: I think I'm going back to my initial colour choice, I really liked how it looked and want that cartoony style to the image. -also @feyincognito: how would I go about making the space be less 1dimensioned? yes those are astral clouds similar to: http://www.wallpaperbase.com/wallpapers/space/nebulas/nebula_9.jpg - http://www.wallpaperbase.com/wallpapers/space/nebulas/nebula_9.jpg http://www.cosmicworlds.co.uk/images/Nightsky_and_clouds.jpg - http://www.cosmicworlds.co.uk/images/Nightsky_and_clouds.jpg and http://www.snoron.com/view-deep_space_clouds-wide.html - http://www.snoron.com/view-deep_space_clouds-wide.html |
Posted By: shampoop
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 12:42pm
Here is a test on one of those picture references you should check out.
It uses 6 colors but could probably make a similar effect with 3 purples, star color, and space color. Then, use a stylized dither effect and you should be able to achieve your desired result. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 12:50pm
|
nice example @shampoop, I'm trying to stick with this colour Pallet from the challenge a few weeks ago: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/27/palletjs.png/">  using the Dark Purple as my space I though the Dark Blue and light purple (marked in img) would work, but I'm thinking they're to contrasting |
Posted By: shampoop
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 1:35pm
So more like this?
btw, this was created by taking the original image, indexing to a few colors and replacing those colors with the ones in your palette. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 2:01pm
|
Decided to use HSL of 221,91,21 as my "space" colour, then using a new colour 154,85,180 with the 2 purples as my "cloud" colours. Reason I wanted to stick to above pallet is 'cuz of my bad colour choices. never been good at picking out colours. so far the b.g. will use 5 colours the 2 purples as clouds, the white as stars, and the additional 2 colours. began dithering now, but please bear in mind this is my very first attempt at dithering so : just B.G. : http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/685/wipbgforwhale.png/">  with Whale/Earth: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/850/wipwhale14.png/">  any comments on what needs changing, Dither technique? Colour choice? suggestions and examples are welcome as always. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 2:15pm
| according to pj:specs I'm using 15 colours. I wanted this to be a 16 colour limit piece so should I add a colour to enhance shading on whale? if so, does anyone have colour suggestions? |
Posted By: Friend
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 2:50pm
|
you could opt for another highlight color. Maybe one with a purple tint as you have purple galaxies now. You could definitely improve shading on the whale by using the dark blue on the planet. Kinda confusing why the whale's underbelly isn't s as dark as the eclipsed planet. Don't be too worried about color count until you are done. After you finish, you can go back and work on reducing and unifying your colors. |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 5:54pm
| sweet, I'll try using that dark blue, only concern is that it's really the darkest colour in my pallet for the whale, so by shading the underbelly that colour the detail lines will disappear, any ideas? |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 08 December 2011 at 6:12pm
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/600/shadingbynumber.png/"> attempts to bring the Dark Blue into the shading mix, #1 is the orig. and go from best to worst (my opinion) any thoughts if i'm on the right track or if I missed the point completely? |
Posted By: jambox_josh
Date Posted: 12 December 2011 at 4:58pm
| still trouble w/ shading any ideas from anyone?? |