An Unfortunate Meeting With A Critter

[Chender]

Done in Photoshop. The main light source is the guy's torch, held off screen. The initial inspiration for the piece came from my spiteful musings about dungeon crawling adventurers and how it's not always all fun and games.
All critiques/comments appreciated.

Little story:
"Hearing a noise down the hall the brave adventurer sweeps over his torch and looks back for a split second. Just as his gaze drifts, this little prankster pops out of a hole in the wall to dispatch our unsuspecting hero."

[Robert.B]

Im not exactly sure where to start criting this because there are so many things that need fixing, so ill just point out obvious things. Um your monster looks like its made of beef jerky. I have absolutly no idea whats going on with his anatomy, your guy to the right feels extremely muddy as with the color handling infact every thing in this image feels as if it has been exhausted with the burn tool, and the composition overall feel incredibly cramped.

[dogfood]

Yeah, the image is also very flat. And Slim Jim's eyes are dry, dry, dry.

OK, overall, I'd say this was a texture exercise. The forms seem to be suffering because of it and the creature's construction has been sacrificed before it. The man's face isn't poorly done, but it's not a very convincing face (meaning it's obvious your reference was limited).

The composition is one of the main problems. You have no eye path, multiple focal points, and there's just no room for any potential action. You've squeezed everything into a very tight space and Slim Jim isn't going to have room to leap onto Franco and nibble at his ear.

Oh, and a fire light gives a much warmer light than this. It looks more like a modern white light bulb that's illuminating the scene.

So, you've got some really nice textures going, but as far as everything else goes, it might help to reconsider some of the foundation decisions.

[Heat]

its not so bad for a Blizzard art competetion piece.

but do what these guys are trying to mention and clarify the shapes and stay away from using blacks and deep hues with too much opacity.

i would also try and rework how this shot is framed. its too cramped expand out the view a bit more. you're right to zoom in and show the detail of this small creature but shit dude that is cheating with how small you have it as is.

[Gilead]

The light and shadow is good. The texture is good. The carving on the wall is very nice. The guy's face is very structured and 3-dimensional, but the critter is rim lit and shaded just like the carvings on the wall so he looks flat. He needs a reflection on his evil eyeballs and a spot of light on his knife to make it more menacing and bring it forward.