Category Archives: Character of the Week

You know, sometimes my own rules do kinda get in the way in terms of this post. The rule about not including entries for current CDC's was included because I didn't want to sway the votes at all, but this week the one image I wanted to feature was an entry for the current contest. But, I don't want to remove it from the contest (despite the creator giving me their permission to do so) because it will probably win. So instead let's have a look at another piece which, while I don't have as much to say about it, is just as good.

Last week, I mentioned about how certain 'machiners have their own styles that make them stand out. Well this is another case in point. All of Al's signatures are present and correct, dynamic pose, moody background with gradient effect sky and awesome energy effect. I will say, the bottom of the character is rather hard to make out against the background, but it doesn't make the pose any less striking.

The colour coordination really works as well and is a good example of defining layers in a picture. You have the dark colours of the character, which comprise the first layer, which merge with the colours of the third layer, being the background. Now if it were just those two layers, the picture would be very dark, dreary and dull, despite the posing prowess. But then you have the vibrant greens and blues of the energy effect, the second layer, that sits in-between these two layers and spaces them out, adding depth to the image and breaking up the dark hues. And then it's tops off with the back-most layer, the sky, which has a light colour at its lowest point, the point where it meets the layer in front and then becomes darker at its highest point, the point where it diverges from the forward layer. I must also say, I love the neon lines that Al has included in the background layer to break up the black. I love how on the floor they change from purple to green at random points and are then blue for the background . Apart from breaking up the black, they also provide a really interesting eye-catch, and complement the energy effects quite nicely as well.

Mod Note: Quick question you guys. When it comes to this post, are you actually interested in what I have to say about the art? Because sometimes it's quite hard to write these posts because I feel like I'm just repeating myself. I always talk about the same things. And the intros are horrible to write. So do you guys want me to keep the text part of the post, or would you mind if I just showcased the pictures instead?

I originally wasn't planning to do a COTW this week, I figured most people would be too busy with festive pursuits to have time to spare, especially considering its Friday. However, it would seem Vampyrist has other ideas. I nip on to the forums for a quick look, to see if anything has been posted whilst I was having my dinner and this is what I was greeted with.

Vampyrist is one of those classic 'machiners (not a term I tend to throw around lightly) who have a style that is truly their own, much like AMS or dblade, you can try and copy it as much as you like, but you'll never get it exactly right, it will never look as good as what he does. And this is as fine an example of the breed as I have ever seen.

If we just set the obvious aside for the moment, we'll kick off with something that has always impressed me about Vampyrist's work. He always seems to do very minimal shading at first glance, you notice a few sports of highlighting on the pants, the glow from the flames that is reflected off the leg, and you don't really think too much more of it. Then you look again and you notice the very subtle shadowing on the left foot, then the chin and the stomach and then the arm and chest. His subtlety with shading on his characters always gets me. It shows you don't have to use masses upon masses of light and shadow to get the result.

And now that that's out of the way, we can move on to the obvious. Masking the skeleton onto the flame effect (*wheels out COTW slogan board*)- simple but so effective. Now this is where you use masses and masses of light and shadow to get the result. I'm not even going to bother trying to count the layers of colour here, it would be pointless, but you have to give Vamp massive props for how good this looks. The fire looks so real and alive, you can feel the heat, and the black, almost charcoal look, of the bones in the flames contrasts so wonderfully against the vivid colour engulfing them. Best examples, just look at the right hand. And that right eye looks positively evil (as I'm sure was the intent). If people are still umping and erring over what to nominate for the Hall Of Fame (nominations are still open btw), you could do a lot worse than to nominate this.

Note: Obviously there won't be a COTW next week, I doubt much will be popping up on the forums next week and anyway, I'll be too busy to write it. Though you can of course expect a review of the Doctor Who Christmas Special on Thursday.

This weeks COTW was a hard one to decide. There were a few that at different points of the week I was planning to write this post about. In the end I had to go back and go through them all and basically see which one I would have the most to say about. And this wonderful piece of surrealism came out on top.

Now, obviously the most striking thing about this piece, is the fact that his head and shoulders have been reduced to bubbles. If you just look at the lowest bubbles, you can see where Rob has masked the hands and arms to the energy. Plus the fact that some of the bubbles are skin coloured, you really do get the impression that this person is actually dissolving.

And then, once again, Rob is being sneaky and testing me on my skills in try to explain how he does these effects. I am of course talking about the white shine he has created on the chest and legs. And I'm kinda at a loss. I at least figured out that the abs come from the really muscular Male-Alternate body and the glow effect on them is the shading circle set to colour 1 as the skin colour and colour 2 as white, but I actually have no idea how he did the chest. Rob, once again I must ask you to explain your methods.

Now, I have literally now just spotted one thing that needs to be changed on this piece before I could truly say its perfect. The feet. They aren't the same colour as the rest of the skin. It's not that noticeable when you first look, what with everything else going on in this picture, but now that I've noticed it, it's really nagging me. But otherwise, I would have to say that this picture is sublime (if you'll excuse the pun).