Town Near a Quarry

[pyrandon]

This is looking very nice, Rob. I can't wait for the coloring, because I think that will really make all the features pop! Awesome fun.

(And no, I have no pointers for inking on screen--I can't get the same smooth feel with my tablet either. I wonder if that is true on a high-end tablet, too?)

[RobA]

First start at colouring. I am using Don's city palette, and it just feels bleah to me.

Think it is time to look at other maps and start borrowing colour schemes...

-Rob A>

[Kagehito]

I like how you drew the water around the rocks, makes the map seem more "living."

Good eye for detail, and the colors look awesome thus far... Not really screaming "bleah" to me, but I guess that just a personal taste thing.

Keep up the good work!

[Badger]

lessons learned while trying to ink with a tablet:
1) use a hard round pen with no pen pressure or dynamics.
2) slow and steady wins the race. patience is a virtue.
3) like inking with pen and paper, spin the canvas around so that you don't have to turn your wrist at an awkward angle. This was actually harder to do if you didn't stick to 90° turns, as the canvas got bigger and bigger and bigger if you used the arbitrary rotation command... I found that creating an action for 5° turn, 1° turn helped to quicken the process of turning it. And cropping the image when it got too big. Pain in the neck? YES... but the benifit was that the inking was easier and smoother than trying to ink a line that I had to turn my wrist a certain way which would cause a mistake or less than desirable look. Also, when rotating, it's easier to ink lines that are generally in the same direction while you have it rotated is better than having to rotate multiple times to that same degree just to ink one line here.. and one line there...

Hope that helps... actually.. I hope that made sense....

This was in PS, btw... I don't know GIMPS commands... sorry.

[The Cartographist]

RobA - Just a thought, but maybe your bleah feeling has to due with the fact that the majority of your colors are greens and blues. Maybe adding some more gray, brown, and tan would liven it up. Maybe even some reds or oranges (somehow) thrown in to liven up the palette.

[pyrandon]

Okay, first of all, it's hilarious you said that about the colors because when I first looked at the map and not your comments I said to myself, "Wow--those colors are awesome!" Hahahaha. I guess I just showed where my wagon's parked, didn't I. (and PS: watch whose color palette you "bleah," buddy! )

Del--that advice is golden. Have some rep.

[RobA]

Now maybe I just though bleah because I have used that palette too much! Even too much of a good thing, you know

-Rob A>

[RobA]

OK - think this in almost done Here are two variation, one with the colours punched up a bit, and the second with the inking set to overlay rather than multiply. What is the preference?

Thanks for the tips on digital inking. I might have to give it another go...

(Lesson learned 3....decide up front if you want to ink shadows, or colour them )

-Rob A>

[rwaluchow]

I agree with the Cartographist. I think if you gave the trees and grass an autumn look it would really pop nicely.

Other than that I think it's looking great.

[Kagehito]

Concerning the two that you just posted. Number one looks better in my eyes. The second one just seems to have to much glow to it. There are points where it looks better because of the glow, but as an overall piece applied to everything, it kinda takes away more then it gives.

So my vote for #1.