Pixelation

Critique => Pixel Art => Topic started by: DatMuffinMan on April 06, 2015, 03:31:13 pm

Title: rendering rocks
Post by: DatMuffinMan on April 06, 2015, 03:31:13 pm
I'm working on a parallax background, and have the last (static) image almost complete. However, to me it seems that the mountain is sort of leaning to the side, about to fall, and I don't know how to fix this without making the whole thing symmetrical. The idea and design are inspired by Johan Aronsson.

(http://i.imgur.com/7t2wTI2.png)
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: cels on April 06, 2015, 03:50:55 pm
First of all, from my minimal knowledge of geology, mountains that seem to be sagging or leaning to one side isn't really a problem at all. With tectonic plates moving around and colliding, causing the landscape to fold, or with heavy sheets of ice pressing down the terrain for thousands of years (and then melting, resulting in the terrain rising up again), you get a lot of terrain that seems to be falling over, which looks imbalanced.

That being said, how much are you using references for this piece? This seems like a sort of question I myself would ask and then try to figure out rationally or by experimentation, instead of just... looking at real mountains. (I've just made this realization working on another piece, where I was struggling for the longest of times trying to get the mountains to look right, before realizing I hadn't really used any references at all. Which is kind of dumb, at least for someone at my level)

I don't think this looks problematic at all, it looks great. In fact, it looks relatively symmetrical for a mountain. You can always do more of what you've already done, which is to break up the shorter, steeper side with a few big chunks to put more "weight" on the short side, as it were.

(http://i.imgur.com/vidE97w.png)
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: DatMuffinMan on April 06, 2015, 04:05:57 pm
I am using the first google image result when searching for "snowy mountain," but am shifting and simplifying the shadows and textures so that the mountains are arranged slightly differently. The first example you have doesn't look problematic to me, but the 3rd one definitely does (and that's what I feel my mountain(s) are leaning towards, pun not intended).

Do you think the problem is that the whole set I have doesn't look believable yet?
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: cels on April 06, 2015, 04:20:27 pm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thrust_fault


(http://peakbook.org/gfx/pbes/68/ce/68ce199ec2c5517597ce0a4d89620f55/1.jpg)

(http://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/~oesis/nws/field/medium/shl-214m.jpg)


Realistically, I don't think it's a problem. However, if it's not quite the aesthetical look you need, then I guess you could always go for more symmetry. Or maybe look at some other refs. Just googling snowy mountain does shot both 'sagging' mountains and more symmetrical, balanced ones.

Do you think the problem is that the whole set I have doesn't look believable yet?
The whole set of layers in your background? I suppose I'd have to see it :)
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: DatMuffinMan on April 06, 2015, 08:08:47 pm
Quote
The whole set of layers in your background? I suppose I'd have to see it :)

I was referring to the mountains alone, but here's the general look of all the layers together. I might add some clouds and an extra layer of trees/shrubs.

(http://i.imgur.com/cDLwVIu.png)

Not sure if it works to have less contrast on the trees than in the mountain..
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: Decroded on April 07, 2015, 04:52:58 am
Where's the light source? is it midday?
Title: Re: making a balanced mountain
Post by: DatMuffinMan on April 07, 2015, 03:44:47 pm
Where's the light source? is it midday?

The light is intended to be coming from the top left. It's really unclear on the tree layer now that I look at it again, but the same 'issue' is in this piece (https://twitter.com/ThunderhorseHQ/status/580812465518329856) by Aronson and it doesn't seem to look any worse because of it. 

these colors work better, I think, since they get warmer as the objects get closer now - still not satisfied with how the rocks look texture-wise.
(http://i.imgur.com/oSSmrvS.png)