Sunday, February 28, 2010

Sketches for Project II

Here are some rough sketches for Project 2. I decided to go with showing a section of an aqueduct because with an aqueduct the viewer is allowed the chance to wonder were it starts, where it ends and why it was built there, amongst other questions. The sketches are pretty rough and the perspective is off but the general idea is there. The last sketch is pretty close to what I envision for my final composition. I'm not to sure where I should start with this but I think I might have to use a lattice for the arches and weight painting for the mountains. Two things that I don't know much about, so the idea may change a bit depending on how well that will go.

*Update*

After talking with the group about composition it was decided that the sundial/other element took away from the main focus and was unnecessary, which as our guideline's for the project decree, is not allowed. So, as it stands that element will not be apart of the final image.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Project One Completed

A scanned version.

Above is the completed version of project one. The idea behind it is an investigation into old and new media. This is a subject that I happen to be interested in and wanted to explore. By using this idea, I chose a classic botanical illustration. What interested me in this is that due to that fact that we now have hi def cameras and video, the classic botanical illustration is an art form that is becoming obsolete. There is no longer a need for someone to draw delicate illustrations for the purpose of study. So, with that as a starting point, I chose certain areas of the illustration to build in blender. I took great consideration on what elements I would model, I wanted the models to be evenly dispersed throughout the image. I didn't want the image to be to heavy with either the real illustration or the 3D modeling. After modeling I used photoshop to place the models over the illustration and smooth out the edges a bit. Once this was completed I printed it out and used coloured pencils to go over the modeled parts. I chose to do this and not leave it totally in its modeled form because I wanted to make the viewer have to examine the image to find what was made with technology and what was done by hand. The idea came from wanting
a seamless combination of the two so that the viewer has to go into the image and investigate it at the same level as one who was studying a real scientific illustration for information. From the top I heavily colored the models and left a few traces of blender showing through, like the wire frame. The farther down the image the less hand coloring I did, and the more of the pure model can be seen. I wanted to have the wire frame element visible because I liked how it was clearly made in the computer yet it mimics the idea of the internal structure a plant has. For the background I decided to place a close up of the pure wire frame versions of the bud and pistils of the flower. I came to this decision after a conversation of why would you use a computer, what could blender do that the illustration can't, what was the advantage. By using the wire frame and placing the pistols inside, it goes with the idea of being able to see the internal workings of the plant, following the classic botanical theories but taking it further by doing it in a style that was never done. Then by making them lighter in colour and placing it behind the main image it creates another element, an image that the viewer may not have initially seen. I chose to present it like a classic scientific botanical illustration because I felt that it added to the idea of an old tradition that is not seen any more.
I'm rather pleased with how the whole thing turned out. I was worried about how my colouring would be because I hadn't done anything at that level of precision in quite a long time. I really enjoyed doing it and would like to continue making more in the same style. I would also like to experiment with printing it on different qualities of paper. This is an idea that I would like to pursue because I believe that I can push it further.

Here are some close ups of the image.




Thursday, February 18, 2010

Final Stage

I printed my project out and proceeded to colour it in. It was great to see it printed and I was a little hesitant to start coloring on top of it because it actually looked pretty good as it was. However I stuck to my idea and went ahead. I actually think it did improve it and adds another layer of interest, also I really enjoyed using the colour pencils. Pictures will be up after critique.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Ready to Print

Here is the latest version of the project, as you can see it has changed some since the last version. Parts have been cleaned up, smoothed out and finished. I also added something more to it that was not in the original. I think that the add really helps bring the piece together and pushes it to be more attention grabbing. The next stage will be to print it out and add the highlights/shadows with colour pencils. I'm rather interested to see how it turns out in the end, its been a while since I've done anything with color pencils, but I think it's a chance worth taking.

Source Image


Here is the source image that I am working from, it was taken from an old book that had pages of botanical illustrations. I chose one that I thought would be dynamic and interesting to look at, but still very formal.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

The Next Step

Here is the next part of my project, combining the flower parts from blender with the scanned image of the illustration. It still needs some work in this area, but it's heading in the right direction of what I wanted.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Sketches for Project One

Here are some sketches for my first project. I plan to modify a traditional scientific botanical illustration by adding certain elements in blender. I want to use part of the actual scanned image and combine that with the blender created parts. Then I will print everything out and add the highlights/shading by hand, this would be done with either color pencil, pen or something in that general are. I am interested in the idea of combining a classic and traditional method with current technology.