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Project two Setting the scene

01 Dont be afraid to begin by creating an abstract image. The beauty of working digitally is that it is very forgiving take advantage of that and see how abstract you can go, then reel it in. 02 When you have created some shapes that you like, try laying down a perspective grid. At this stage I usually suggest a horizon line and some perspective cues, so that you can visualise where the camera will be, and how the scene will be laid out. 03 Start to think of the foreground, middle ground and background, and begin to create some depth. I think of value patterns to help me get a sense of depth. Here the closest elements are at a value of 9-10, middle at 6-7, and furthest elements at about a 2; see how far you can go.

Create a videogame environment

Adobe Photoshop

Rain elements and water reflections can be tricky to master. Jos Emroca Flores shares his top tips on illustrating a game environment

As a senior concept artist for an award-winning games studio, I have created environments for games including EAs Medal of Honor Airborne and Vivendis The Bourne Conspiracy. In this project I explain how to create an interesting scene for a fictional videogame, while working freely and intuitively. Taking unfamiliar risks during the creative process can, at times, seem scary. But my favourite works are always the ones where I allow my mind to flow naturally and let the shapes become what they want. I demonstrate how to incorporate distinguishing elements into your game environments, such as atmosphere and mood, and how to handle effects like falling rain or snow so that they dont clutter your painting. I also share some valuable industry tips and techniques that I use every day, such as how to speed up your work-flow, so that you can work spontaneously and creatively.

Jos Emroca Flores Senior concept designer at Highmoon Studios, California, Flores art has been published in magazines and books; he is also an active gallery artist. www.emroca.com

On the disc Youll find the files you need for this project, including a rain layer, on your cover disc in the Resources folder

Skills Build an atmospheric game environment Add rain effects to illustrations

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Create a videogame environment

04 Photoshops Lasso tool can help you sculpt lately it has become one of my favourite tools for solidifying strong shapes, particularly hard surfaces. 05 Try a new approach for each environment you create, so as not to rely on the same old habits. Working at a studio has taught me to attack my work in many ways; I aim to start each project differently, depending on time restraints, my mood and the tools at hand. If I have a lot of time to really explore an idea, I will create many sketches. 06 Dusty old sketchbooks can be golden for inspiration: look back and revive some of your previous ideas, injecting newer skills that youve learnt since then. I came across this old idea of the Alien Dia De los Muertos.

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Hot keys! Hot keys! Hot keys!

Use them; love them. These are your best friends. Force yourself to get to the point where you dont even need to use the Tool box or menus. It could shave a couple of hours off your working day more time for being creative instead of stumbling around with excessive movements. A friend of mine knows every hot key in the book, and is extremely fast: watching him paint is like watching a musician play an instrument.

07 Begin by introducing minimal colour, and then bring more in its a lot easier to add colour than it is to take it out. I usually start with a basic tone for the overall piece, and then inject more as I get further into the process. Here, I began to see my palette after I blocked in the sky. Since it was going to be a rainy piece, I wanted a lot of cool tones.

08 Its always useful to have a basic idea in mind for the project, but dont be afraid to take risks. I had a good idea of where I want this piece to go, but I tried to keep an open mind throughout. Sometimes you should flip or even completely hack up your work to create a different composition, and then make order out of the chaos.

www.computerarts.co.uk

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Project two Setting the scene

01 Let your image take on a life of its own. At this stage I could see the direction in which the piece might go: to keep the visual language cohesive, keep pushing and exploring the shapes you have established earlier in the process.

02 Block in an impressive sky early on, as this will help solidify your painting. It will also provide a sense of what the overall palette will be. Once you create a sky for an environment, your imagination is able to really connect with the piece and gain a sense of what the mood will be like.

03 Dont be afraid of commitment! The fewer layers I use, the faster I am able to work, as I spend less time fussing around looking for the right one to paint on. At this stage you should have four layers: the foreground; background; mid-ground (the alien buildings); and rain.

04 Dont wait too long to introduce the effects and, unless directed, be careful not to let elements like rain and snow overpower the rest of your image. It helps to think about how the rain will look during the beginning to mid stages of the creative process so that there are no surprises at the end.

Dont overdo the effects

Try and maintain an artistic harmony so that the effects accentuate your project, rather than overpowering it. Dont skimp in treating your rain or snow: spend time designing all the effects.

Computer Arts Projects _March 2009

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05 Put placeholder art in areas that youre not ready to concentrate on. I usually do this when Im not yet sure what Im going to do, as here with the raw sketches for the dead alien characters and the landscape. It can be helpful to put down shapes that you might react to, instead of staring at an intimidating blank area. Even the most obscure shape could spark your imagination.

06 The exception to my aforementioned layer rule is to keep all effects on their own layer you dont want to paint out a few thousand raindrops only for the art director to change their mind. It can also take a bit of tweaking to get the effects to look right, especially if youre working on a highly detailed piece that requires some massaging. 07 To create natural, organic-looking rain, draw some vertical lines on the rain layer, duplicate them, and move them around at random. Vary their size and spacing, and rotate them; then add a Blur filter. The direction of the raindrops isnt parallel, hinting that wind is influencing them. You could also add splashes, and drops of water running down certain objects.

08 Be a kid again. This stage is where it really becomes fun, because you can start to invent stories for the characters and add details. Again, if you have enough time, it can be useful to leaf through old sketchbooks and revive some of your favourite ideas.

www.computerarts.co.uk

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Project two Setting the scene

Puddles
If you have puddles in your scene, add some horizontal lines to the surface of the water. These will work as ripples and break up the reflection a little.

01 If youre ever unsure about how something should look, take some time out maybe an hour and digest some reference material. A great instructor once told me that he spends more time looking for good reference than he does painting. With good reference you never get stuck; its the best advice Ive ever received.

02 Take regular breaks, and come back to your project with fresh eyes. Flip it; flop it; take a nap. Look around for more inspiration and let your ideas marinate before returning. By keeping your energy going, the image will stay fresh. If you feel laboured and stagnate, so will the painting.

03 Playing with the atmosphere in a composition can help fade out unimportant details, and let you zoom in on the focal points. Dont be afraid to obscure some of your older atmospheric details its an effective way to force your viewers to look where you want them to.

04 When adding reflections, remember that wet surfaces become reflective like glass, and more contrasty in value. Observe the behaviour of wet surfaces around you and try to capture the essence in your painting.

Computer Arts Projects _March 2009

www.computerarts.co.uk

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05 Enjoy what you are doing, as people can tell from a piece when you havent. I hate to see paintings in an artists portfolio where you can tell the artist was in excruciating pain while he painted it: dont be that person.

Reflections
Keep your reflections well-designed and well-placed so that they look deliberate, not messy or sloppy. Let them absorb hints of the colour that they are reflecting.

06 To wrap up this project, begin to refine all the placeholder shapes that you blocked in earlier. Often at this stage I will return to paper, and then scan my drawings back into Photoshop. As well as the buildings, the two dead alien characters developed far more effectively when I took the time to refine them on paper.

07 Every stroke counts. Beautiful markmaking, in my opinion, is what separates the good artists who make natural strokes look easy from the bad. Never forget the importance of good craftsmanship: dont get sloppy with your brush work.

www.computerarts.co.uk

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