A Second Look at Older Work - Shadow Opener

This coming June will mark twenty years for me in the gaming industry, and this is also my twenty-sixth year as a working artist. I have made a lot of work over these years, and as I focus on larger projects with multi-year timelines, it is hard to keep this blog updated regularly. I have kept this thing going since 2009, and I would like for it to continue. To that end, I thought I would look back at works I particularly liked, enjoyed making, or seemed to fall through the cracks and went unnoticed.

Today, I have ANOTHER piece for Pathfinder released for Paizo fourteen (but painted fifteen) years ago. This was a transformative piece for me. I brought in a lot of reference for this one to get the lighting and figure correct. It also has more of an environment compared to a lot of what I was doing around this time. It is by no means perfect, but it was a big leap for me. This was the piece where I learned that reference can be misleading and that you can not be beholden to it. If it doesn't look right in the reference, it will look even worse in the reference, and you need to be able to correct what you are making so that it is informed, but also correct in its appearance.

Shadow Opener

Digital

Undead Revisited
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

 

As a side note, if you want to look back at what I said about this piece when it was newly released and when I shared the process, they are all available here on the blog. Also, this is the only Iconic Pathfinder character I was asked to depict dead. Over the years, I depicted many of the Iconic characters in peril, but none after their hit points had reached zero.

That's all for another exciting Monday on the blog. See you back here Wednesday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Undead Revisited: marks on paper

Earlier this month I shared with you the work I contributed to the Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Undead Revisited gaming supplement. I mentioned I would be sharing some of the work that went into the assignment and that is what I have for you today. Since the main focus of the assignment was the opening illustration, I will be just talking about that one piece.

It always begins with a thumbnail or thumbnails. For this piece is was a matter of making sure I got all the required elements together into on cohesive image. I needed the alley, the dropped torch, the dead alchemist and the horrific shadow on the wall. Though the thumbnail is really rough it gives me a starting point and a way to show the kind of reference I will require.

It may be rough, but it am a necessary step of the process... and I usually do not make a habit of showing them to people.

Did somebody say reference? Get that camera out, we have reference to shoot! Lighting and angle was key to this piece and there is only one way to nail it and that is to set it up and make sure I can see how really looks. Take more photos then you need and don't be afraid to try different things, happy accidents are awesome and allow you to discover things you would have never imagined.

Another roll I was born to portray... a dead elf.

Now to work out all the elements and compose the scene. Still working digital I can move elements around and quickly add, delete and change everything till I have a finalized draft. Some things are still really loose and other are much tighter but all the key information is there so that I can move forward on a final drawing.

It is all coming together.

Looking at the reference and using my draft to work off of I create the final drawing. I am adding detail and addressing areas that my not have been correctly resolved in the draft. This is the most fun part of the whole process for me and I really can loos myself in the drawing.

Shadow Opener Drawing
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

There was one note to make the shadow monster more horrific and twisted as I moved from the drawing to the final painting, but that is easy to address. The rest is time and hard work in photoshop and on the other end of several days is the final painting. And if you look closely, you should still see my drawing peaking through in places... which I kind of really like!

Shadow Opener
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

That is all for another exciting day on the blog, I will see you back here on Friday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Undead Revisited

I am pleased to bring you more recently released new work on the blog today. Just like the Dungeon Magazine work posted on Wednesday this work also came out while I was at the Illustration Master Class. This time around the work was for the Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Undead Revisited just released from Paizo Publishing. Not only did the assignment have monsters... well, their shadows, it also had allowed me to paint my favorite type of elf... DEAD...

Shadow Opener
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

Dragon Shadow
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

Bat Shadow
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC

This was a really fun assignment and got me out of my comfort zone a bit. Even so, it came together really fast for me and I am very happy with how it all turn out. Composition and lighting were key and I focused on them to make sure it read well and explained the situation well. Since the supporting quarter page and spot pieces were less involved I had to make sure the opener piece was really strong and carried the weight for the rest.

I will be sure to bring you the drawings and maybe even some of the reference that went into these pieces in the near future... still getting ready for Gen Con and that it really taking up a bit of time. Hopefully in the near future I will also have some more new Paizo work to share with you! More on that soon.

I would like to extend a huge thanks to Sarah Robinson for giving me the opportunity to work on this fun assignment! And for baring with my rather full schedule at the end of last year.

That is all for another exciting week on the blog, see you back here on Monday for another new piece of work! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com