Critique > Pixel Art

[Feedback][WIP] Neon glow in Cyberpunk scene (Trigger warning: Drugs and Nudity)

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Boraka:
Hi there!

Recently I'm working on a piece that I'm liking a lot so far, but I'm kind of stuck trying to add some depth to the neon lights in the top part of it. I already added some reflections and highlights, which I like, but I also want to add a general glow to them.

This is my "best" attempt, which I don't like a lot:



I'm also attaching a version of the picture without the glow just in case someone wants to play a little bit with it and make some edits  ;D



I will appreciate any tips and tricks that you guys have to glow up those cute neons!

eishiya:
I feel the biggest things holding this piece back are
1. The scene is very well-lit, so the neon doesn't have the chance to stand out as glowing/bright. Darkening the pavement, dumpster, and interiors would help with this.
2. The neon lights don't colour the environment around them. You have some immediate reflections here and there, which is good but barely noticeable in the image overall.

Really, both of these are manifestations of the same problem: you're overpowering the neon lights with a neutral-coloured light source, so they don't get the chance to look bright or interesting. Try colouring the scene as if the neon lights are the only (or at least main) light sources.

I recommend looking up photos of neon-heavy cities such as Tokyo, Seoul, and Hong Kong for inspiration, you'll see that the neon colours affect everything in the scene. This post has some great examples to get you started.

You probably don't even need the glow effects, because the lights colouring the environment will naturally make the lights read as glowing.

Boraka:
Thanks a lot for the references! It's very illustrative. I will revisit the whole lighting, I agree that those neons needs more protagonism  :)

pyxelbit:
For inspiration:
https://imgur.com/gallery/LFE0i
https://timsoret.itch.io/the-last-night

Boraka:
Hey, thanks for the feedback and references.

I came up with a quick mockup for the lighting, I hope this is better now. I'm worried that maybe is too much now?



Thanks again, I really appreciate your time  :)

Note: I'm not really paying attention to misplaced pixels or color counting right now, only wanted to have an overall feeling on the lights

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