Saturday, January 19, 2013

A Simple Process


Another unused concept art from last year. The setting is suppose to be somewhere in contemporary Toronto during summer so I had to look for some online references. I've been asked a lot about my drawing/painting process so here's one of my simple, speedy but effective process. There's no secret other than first and foremost, lay out all the basics: readable shapes, composition, values and lighting; then proceed to color. I don't even think about textures and overlays for the most part since they're just secondary for me. Enjoy.

Draw the linework. Keep it loose and control the shapes and amount of details. Have fun like when you were a kid. 

Apply values using the lasso tool. When done correctly, it gives controlled but bolder, even looser shapes than your line work. This is crucial for it is the very foundation your color. Define the skin tone of elements and apply consistent lighting.

Completed value.

Apply color without loosing the values. I don't use multiply but color brush instead.

Make adjustments in color balance and apply highlights. For those familiar with how I work, I use the old #19 preset brush. No fancy stuff :) Then on the finished piece, I did some last minute adjustments on the lighting for a slightly different time of day, added the ball, applied a simple texture overlay, then turned off the lines layer.


©Armand Serrano.

25 comments:

Douglas Ferreira said...

This is super nice,thks for sharing!! kind regards from South america!

Théo said...

Thanks for the tutorial, really nice and effective. Love the picture too, inspiring shapes and lights!

Mauricio Abril said...

Beautiful piece, and thanks for sharing your process, Armand! It's so true what you say about making sure everything's working in the beginning.

Nicholas Hong said...

Wow! love to see b&w to color version process. Your design is really delicate and beautiful!

m3ng said...

Hey man, nice work! Thanks for posting the step by step, it's good to remember simplicity and retaining control of the piece. Some might see it as an unneeded separate step, but I love seeing that you establish the value structure first and then use the Color blend mode and enhance from there.

Ian Jun Wei Chiew said...

Really nice!

Ian Jun Wei Chiew said...

really nice!

Tegan Clancy said...

Wow this really identifies the stage I am missing when approaching my art! thanks Armand!

Joe Tirasuwan said...

Thank you so much for posting these and share your process!

Phill said...

This is great, thanks for uploading, however I am confused on the color part. You apply color with a color brush? Or with a layer mode? Do you paint it in or do you use the lasso and select?

Phill said...

This is great, thanks for uploading, however I am confused on the color part. You apply color with a color brush? Or with a layer mode? Do you paint it in or do you use the lasso and select?

Unknown said...

A,

Awesome breakdown of your process. I wonder if our Krylon collab informed your doggie mailbox. I think I like yours better. But the bulldog one was cool too.

:)

...ryan

Armand Serrano said...

@phil: I use brush on color mode over a flattened bw layer. I use both lasso and brush to paint it in.

Armand Serrano said...

@Ryan: Its a cool thing collaborating with you on commercial projects. I get fresh ideas and they cross over :)

Esaulov Ilya said...

I have several years using a lasso. And paint pictures with his pomoschyu.Mne enjoy.
I am glad that I have such a supporter :)

oigres1012 said...

Hello,
I'm 3d artist , model , texturing and lighting
I'm in a practice time, and i will like make this deviation.
¿can i use this deviation like a concept art to my 3d scene?

oigres1012 said...

Hello,
I'm 3d artist , model , texturing and lighting
I'm in a practice time, and i will like make this deviation.
¿can i use this deviation like a concept art to my 3d scene?

oigres1012 said...

Hello,
I'm 3d artist , model , texturing and lighting
I'm in a practice time, and i will like make this deviation.
¿can i use this deviation like a concept art to my 3d scene?

Dave said...

Excellent work! Interesting to see the grayscale to color process you use. I sometimes use a similar process but use 3D software to rough out values. Reading this kind of validates that thinking and makes me feel like I'm not wasting my time. Thanks!

Venkatesan said...

Really amazing..

chanko said...

Terrific!

Thanks for sharing the process.

chanko said...

Terrific!

Thanks for sharing the process.

Renato Rena said...

awesome! thanks for sharing!

Stacy Lesser said...

Really amazing stuff. About how long of a time frame do you give yourself for an environment art piece like this one?

Stacy Lesser said...

Really amazing stuff. About how long of a time frame do you give yourself for an environment art piece like this one?