VOTE! Open Challenge of Ultimate Destiny!

[Jason Rainville]

To recap; this challenge was to create an illustration that followed the theme "Divine Prophecy" Vote for the one you think is the best!

Great job guys, hope to do this again sometime.


In alphabetical order...

Asatira...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/Asatira.jpg



ChaoticKnight...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/ChaoticKnight.jpg



Etcheberri...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/Etcheberri.jpg



Ilaekae...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/Ilaekae.jpg



Jason Rainville...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/Jason%20Rainville.jpg



Lake...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/Lake.jpg



lord_regenschirm...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/lord_regenschirm.jpg


The Whistler...
http://photos.imageevent.com/aljmary/cadevineprophesy/The%20Whistler.jpg

[Shmaba]

went with Lake on this, close call on some though.

[Lake]

Voted for ChaoticKnight - I'll toss up crits later :)

[Jason Rainville]

Panda-man's got it. Great job :)

[Ilaekae]

ChaoticKnight got mine... I can see this as Divine Prophesy--maybe not looking too good for us mortals, but certainly Divine Prophesy...

The first thing I look at in a competition like this is how well did the artist portray the theme (solve the problem), then I look at execution. The best combination gets my vote. Many of the other entries didn't come across as Divine prophesy so much as they did Salvation/Dogmatic Rules/Inspiration/discovery. This bothered me a bit...

Overall, very nice art from all, though, and some nice imagery.

[MattGamer]

great work guies!
mike good jorb!

[Asatira]

Ilakeae got my vote.

[Rockett]

Had to go with Lake, though this was an amazing batch. His really tells a story to me; and it's a badass one.

[Lex.W]

Voted for ChaoticKnight I liked the overall execution of his piece, and it does portray the theme very well.

I also liked Etcheberri's as well, good use of elements, but to me the focal point seems to be the door in which the soldiers/guards are coming in, rather than the figure, as was probably intended. But that's just my silly opinion.

[The Whistler]

Lake got mine too, I voted it because I think it's technically very well done, it has the 'epic' feel for me, and it very well fits the subject

There were more I wanted to vote for but I had to chose one only...

Now for the other crits (not that I'm in a position to give those since I don't draw that well... YET ;) ) :

Asatira- I don't think you've overused the textures on this one, and it's not the textures that bother me here. As the face is the main focus of your picture you seem to have some problems with it's anatomy, and by that I mean that her nose is a tad long and her mouth are too low on the chin. You also seem to hide the other hand which is not that good. Still I think that this sis one of your better ones (I visited your DA gallery since I had some problems with accessing your sketchbook) and it does show some improvement

ChaoticKnight - wow, I don't even know what to say about yours, I'm definitely not in a position to crit, it's wonderfully done, the skull looks almost real, I really like it.

Etcheberry - really well done also, but I agree with Lex.W about the focal point, the figure and the door seem to be fighting for my attention. But as far as technical stuff goes, you did great

Ilakae - his mustache rock, and for some reason I can't stop staring at his nipple :) I like this one too, it's nice to finally see some work by you. I can't really crit this since there's nothing wrong with this. If I understood correctly you used only vectors for this thing? Man, how much patience do you have? ;)

Jason Rainville - I really like the composition and I thing your piece fits the subject very well, my only crit would be that her face seems a bit masculine but that's all. Your clouds kick ass...

lord_regenschirm - I like the fairies and your character looks good overall, but the painting seems messy and unfinished (which is also the problem with my entry). Otherwise nicely done :)

[Etcheberri]

great job everybody!
@LexW and The Whislter.
Thanks guys. yes i screwed up on the focal point, at least i learn something out of it :)

My vote goes for Lake, really nice composition and i love the speedpainting look.

[Gorgoleon]

My vote goes for Lake, i love the colours and pretty much everything else about it.

[lord_regenschirm]

Chaotic Knight got my vote, although I have to say that the (sorry for being that harsh) totally messed up socket-design kinda confuses me :D ...

@ Asatira: You maybe should have given your character something to interact with for the paintings expression seems (besides the technical composition) too flat to me; the rising smoke binds your worshiper pretty well though.

@ Etcheberri: Cool staging of the monk and the lighting is done pretty well ... Unfortunately the silhouettes of the two guys entering the hall seem to be out of proportion to me.

@ Ilaekae: What is it with you and these variations of my name you lunatic cat :D ...?! Btw. your graphic went out nicely (especially that nippel which definitely has something hypnotic ...); the hand with the eye on it shoud have been done with a bit more concentration on perspective.
On the other hand you explicitly went for an egyptian motive ... you clever litte quadruped ... :P

@ Jason: Technically bad ass, really like this nebula-like gate ... Just went for Chaotic because of the cooler motive ... ;)

@ Lake: I'm regularly astonished about what can be achieved with a few well placed strokes ... Great job on that one!

@ the Whistler: The classic motive of the newly discovered inscription ... A bit worn out for my taste, but you did a solid job on that one; as far as your characters anatomy is concerned take a look at her right arm ... Seems to be a weird angle she splays it out in.
Btw thanks for you crit, I already mentioned the problems I had with the too early merged layers ... I'm definitely not the illustrator yet ... :)

[Asatira]

the Whistler: Thanks for the crit. I agree on the face. More practice and study needed.
lord_regenschirm: Thanks.

[Ilaekae]

OMiGawd! I actually got a vote! Thank you, Asatira... :P

Whistler, the main piece is vector, as are most of my things. I lay down the basic color structure (usually a dark complementary base) in vector fill, then transport the whole thing layer by layer to PS for a kind of "dry-brush painting" with textured brushes, working from dark to light. So it's not all vector, just the original base art.

I went for a "flat" head-on stiff presentation because I wanted to reinforce a classic "religious" feel, something like a Russian icon.

[lord_regenschirm]

No comment on my offense Ilaekae ... :D? How untypical :P
Seemingly nobody likes my goat ... xD (<-- and why is there no smiley with cross-eyes ...?)

[Ilaekae]

Aaaaaahhhhh...

Did I hurt your feelings, my little Herr Lard Squirmy...? :P

...and i do thank you for the kind words about my piece. I enter for the fun of it and to annoy people because I don't really do what this place is all about...

[lord_regenschirm]

Hehe ... Naah, it made a nice change after all ;)

[The Whistler]

Ilaekae - oh so that's how. I was just amazed by the vector thing because, as far as it was explained to me, it's something like the pen tool in photoshop and I hate the damn thing, it never seems to do what I want it to :)

[Ilaekae]

Vector is counter-intuitive for most people at first. In real life, we draw from end of line to end of line, changing direction so to speak at each end. Vector is mathematical, where you draw from end point to end point, but the change in direction of the line occurs in the middle (more or less) of the line you're drawing. It's kind of like drawing with springy pieces of metal wire and joining them all together at the ends.

But, once you get the hang of it, it's the best way to draw a flowing line ever created...and you can go back and refine it when you're done.

[AsaB]

Cool challenge, the topic is way cool, wish I had seen it earlier so I could've participated!

Really nice entries, I like how different they are. I do agree that not everyone nailed the concept, IMO, but good illustrations nonetheless.

My vote goes to Jason. Technically awesome! Really dig the compositionm how the rest of the environment is just this rural village with the little houses to the left--and then, bam! One huge divine prophecy.

I know some have pointed out her being masculine, but I actually rather like the androgynous feel. Makes the prophecy somewhat unreal and otherwordly, which she is.

Again, nice round. Any chance you'll make another one someday soon? :D

[Lake]

Vector is counter-intuitive for most people at first.

...

But, once you get the hang of it, it's the best way to draw a flowing line ever created...and you can go back and refine it when you're done.

Agreed. I recommend that any digital painter learn how to use illustrator - I used the pen tool in photoshop to map out the curves of the scroll in my image. Perfect curves are a MUST, especially when you're trying to simulate gravity.

[ChaoticKnight]

@Asatira: I like the animated-feature look of it as well as the texture! Only thing I'm confused by is where the light source is coming from.
@etcheberri: The dude in the foreground is rendered out really well, and the church curves add a nice touch to the composition. However, the right side is largely empty. Maybe some props would've done well? Like pews or hanging incense. And, as was said, Those knights look kinda cartoony in comparison to the main figure.
@Ilaekae: I love the overall feel of the piece. There's some beautiful line work going on (I don't know vector either), and the texture and overall look of the piece reminds me of a page out of a book about mythology.
@Mr. Jason: I really like the essence of light in this pic, especially the rune behind her head. As I'm sure was said, her arms and swords are looking a bit odd with the foreshortening you gave them. Maybe put some more intricacy in those swords too, they kinda look like painted cardboard. Nice job!
@Lake: This got my vote! Beautifully rendered piece. I love the atmosphere and the way his arm goes back into space and the color affects it since he (it) is so huge. I'm not sure how "divine" he is but I definitely see the prophecy part. The arm with the sword is the best haha.
@lord_regenschirm: Nice piece dude. I love the blending and rendering in his face, and that goat is pretty awesome. The goat reminds me of something from one of Kev Ferrera's comics.
@The Whistler: Her pose is confusing to me, she must be uncomfortable with her hand like that. I see what you were going for, but its still a bit awkward. It might be because her proportions are a bit long. Love the stone and the glowing writing. Also, next time you may want to make the fire more saturated.

Whew. Nice round everyone! Let's do this again soon!

[lord_regenschirm]

Haha ... That deserves an extra large pot of phinest highland goat-milk ... :D Thanks Chaotic :)

[The Whistler]

Thanks Chaotic! Yeah, a huge mistake by me was not using reference for this one, that's why she's all wonky but I couldn't help it, It frustrates me that if I ever want to draw something right I have to look at reference. I guess it's still a must until I get my skills fixed up...


I'll do better next time :)

[lord_regenschirm]

@ the Whistler: I bet many guys told you so before but the absolute must-do is to study anatomy ... there is no other way existing. To work with references will become exhausting pretty soon especially when you are searching for a very special pose.
You don't necessarily have to know about each and every muscle or the exact form of each bone but an abstract knowledge of the most important characteristics of the overall composition is very useful. Start with proportions and extremity-lengths and you soon will be able to constuct individual poses by very simple rules.

[The Whistler]

Yeah I know that but right now I'm at a point where I know how e.g. a knee looks underneath the skin, I know what kind of muscles surround it and how it should look like, but I just can't get it right without looking at reference and it's driving me crazy and making me feel incompetent. It's about practice basically...

[Ilaekae]

We gonna do something like this again, Guys, so I can prove I'm not just a one-shot loser? :P

[deepbluehue]

My favorite is the painting by lord_regenschirm mainly for its dramatic angle and dappled light. My second favorite would be the painting by Lake for its colors and drama.

[Izi]

close second ilaekae, I didn't even notice it was yours, i really dig the use of color in your piece but not so much the eyes....

i had to go with chaoticknight because death just rules...

[Jason Rainville]

This is painfully close. Great job Mike and Lake for giving us one hell of a bout :O

Ilaekae: I have no real plans to do this soon (as in within a week or two) but it was fun and we should try it again. I still don't know the best way for coming up with a random idea from a third party; when I ask for something, I either get more than one subject (forcing me to choose, defeating the purpose of an outsider) or something completely inappropriate :P

[Asatira]

Congrats, Mike and Lake. Well earned victory.

[Ilaekae]

Oh gawd, I was hoping for something in a month or two. Two of these in a row would kill me... :P