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Wind in the Woods by *Peachfuzz:iconPeachfuzz:


©2008 *Peachfuzz
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Submitted: January 27
File Size: 2.6 MB
Image Size: 5.1 MB
Resolution: 800×1246
Comments: 89
Favourites & Collections: 31 [who?]

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Artist's Comments

Finally, finished at last. :D This is the most time-consuming piece I've ever done. It's an entry for *xx-rin's contest, the prompt of which was to draw your original character wielding some sort of "artistic tool," with an element springing from that tool. Now, two of my characters have elemental magic anyway, and of the two, Normoon was demanding to be drawn. That's a traditional Asian ink stink and grinding well she has there, like would be used for Sumi-e. I know I didn't draw them well, but that's what they're supposed to be. And her element, of course, is wind.

The background is referenced from ~TheDynamicLight's photograph Rhododendrons and Ferns, with inspiration from another of his photos, Redwood Sorrels. He's a wonderful photographer, be sure to check out his work! (And before anyone gets on me with the "That's not STOCK photography, you ignorant jerk!" argument: Yes, I asked his permission ahead of time to reference his photos in my work.)

This didn't scan so great. =/ Her "white" parts scanned particularly bad, with one of the three grays being bleached to a screaming white, the middle one disappearing all together, and the darkest one becoming grainy and horrible. Her clothing also decided to scan wrong. ;__; It's a vibrant orchid purple in real life, not that blue-ish color. Same with her eyes and cuff bracelets.

I tried a different approach to the wind magic than I usually do. Rather than a conspicuous glowing opaque mass, I went for more of a subtle look. Real wind isn't visible unless there's something in it like dust, so it's magical to have it visible at all. I let the wind colors bleed freely over the outlines. Not sure if it looks good or bad, but at least it looks a little more natural than if it was perfectly within the lines.

Lots of things are messed up in this, I won't point them all out. ;p Feel free to let me know if something jumps out at you as needing improvement, but don't be surprised if you get "Yeah, I know" as part of the response. I really went out on a limb and did a lot of things I didn't really know how to do, so naturally it all couldn't come out perfectly. But the mistakes aside, I think this is my best piece to date. :heart: I made something I'm proud of and learned a lot from it. Whether I place in the contest or not, that makes me a winner.

Col-Erase colored pencils (sketch only), Staedtler Triplus Fineliners, fine-point Pitt Artist pen, size 01 Sakura Pigma Micron, Prismacolor markers.
Normoon and artwork © me, *Peachfuzz. Reference/Inspiring photographs © ~TheDynamicLight.

Devious Comments

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~FelixAndrews:iconFelixAndrews: Jan 27, 2008, 3:29:37 PM
Required viewing! That transparent smoke effect is all kinds of awesome... how you do that in traditional media, I haven't the foggiest. The colours have scanned really vibrantly too, which is nice to see.
If I must pick, I'd say her chin seems a little misaligned - could do with being a wee bit less distinct from the neck at that angle, and perhaps more pointed. But really: it's nice. I wouldn't change it for the world! X3

'Felix'

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*UnstableIceDragon:iconUnstableIceDragon: Jan 27, 2008, 3:38:10 PM
Hahah such a well detailed and ungodly beatiful picture as usaul my dear.*snicker* I swear I love everything you do. I love her dancing, the flowing element and the motion of her haaair.

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*Poo7878:iconPoo7878: Jan 27, 2008, 3:51:35 PM
this is really amazing Peach! <3 I've been looking forward to this picture, and just..wow! <3! Lovely! The background...and especially the wind...=3 as well as her see-through clothing (mainly the part behind her legs :D) is just awesome =3 I love the colors you put into it. Very nicely done overall! Good luck in the contest =3 I'm still working on my first picture ^^;

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My current avatar is by ~Kittara-mirrou-exe

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~NiaraSusarin:iconNiaraSusarin: Jan 27, 2008, 3:54:16 PM
Lovely plant details, and I love the way you're drawing hair these days. ^^
*Peachfuzz:iconPeachfuzz: Jan 27, 2008, 3:55:25 PM
Definite agreement on the chin! :nod: I really struggled with it, and was further thrown off by my lack of understanding as to how the head connects to the neck. Necks, shoulders, and chins, that whole area is my anatomical bane. Shortly after inking this and frustrated with the problem, I asked my talented friend *robertsloan2 to make me a How to Draw the Human Neck tutorial, so hopefully it won't happen again.

Thanks a ton for the kind comment and the helpful input. :hug: I need all the help on that pesky neck/chin area that I can get.
*Peachfuzz:iconPeachfuzz: Jan 27, 2008, 3:56:10 PM
Thanks so much, Cit. :dance: Normoon always seems to come out in a dancing pose when I draw her.
*Peachfuzz:iconPeachfuzz: Jan 27, 2008, 4:13:18 PM
Of course, I can't wait to see yours, either. :D Thanks so much for the kindly comment! I still need to tweak my wind-drawing technique a bit, but this is much closer to what I had in mind than my previous attempts.
*Peachfuzz:iconPeachfuzz: Jan 27, 2008, 4:18:09 PM
Aw, thanks so much! :thanks: I tried something new at the ends of her hair, but I think it came out a bit too ribbon-ey and I probably won't be doing it again.

My current hair-drawing style is largely inspired by the amazing ~SnowFlurryCat. I know you can't see the incredible artwork she used to have posted, but believe me, her skills with hair knocked me off my feet.
*Poo7878:iconPoo7878: Jan 27, 2008, 4:19:55 PM
I have the colors started =3 finished with most of the shading on Tigur. <3 You're welcome. :D I think it's great. =3 I love how you did that @.@ ...Scyhnthil's going to be so boring compared to Normoon :giggle:

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My current avatar is by ~Kittara-mirrou-exe

*is in ~day-care, ~utsukushii-yajuu, and *FloonsUnited*
~Zapydos2:iconZapydos2: Jan 27, 2008, 4:24:22 PM
Absolutely amazing. The way you let the wind colors bleed was a very good idea, since wind can be wild anyway. XD

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