2 of my watercolors layered on Photoshop.
watercolor, modified photos, painting on Photoshop
Tradigital Illustration
I found this term, coined by a children's book illustrator, in one of my SCBWI publications. It fits this new sort of mixed media: traditional illustration techniques combined with digital media like Photoshop and digital photography. I work mainly in watercolor, Photoshop (layering traditional pieces or painting directly on Photoshop with my Wacom Graphyre tablet), and using my own photographs, digital or otherwise.
In the two book cover designs above, I began with traditional watercolors (horse, boy in winter wood, dogteam). "Winter Forest Guardian" is simply two watercolors layered, plus a border. The Iditarod cover is more complex: I drew and watercolored the team from a photo. The mountains are part of the Iditarod Trail, a photo shot by Hank Debruin from the sled, modified and painted over on Photoshop. The wolf is a drawing (Prismacolor) I had done earlier. The raven was painted with the airbrush tools on Photoshop from various raven reference. I also had to track down lots of pictures of northern lights; those I painted (after looking at the reference) on Photoshop. As I layered parts together, I often had to paint, mask layers, use the clone stamp, and tweak in other ways.
In the two book cover designs above, I began with traditional watercolors (horse, boy in winter wood, dogteam). "Winter Forest Guardian" is simply two watercolors layered, plus a border. The Iditarod cover is more complex: I drew and watercolored the team from a photo. The mountains are part of the Iditarod Trail, a photo shot by Hank Debruin from the sled, modified and painted over on Photoshop. The wolf is a drawing (Prismacolor) I had done earlier. The raven was painted with the airbrush tools on Photoshop from various raven reference. I also had to track down lots of pictures of northern lights; those I painted (after looking at the reference) on Photoshop. As I layered parts together, I often had to paint, mask layers, use the clone stamp, and tweak in other ways.
Viking longship Sae Hrafn hangs out at Solomon's Island, MD, the main vessel of The Longship Company; a group of serious (and fun-loving) amateur historians of the Viking Age. I had been chasing Sae Hrafn around the creeks off the Patuxent, shooting photos from my sea kayak, Makenuk's Fin, when I saw my friend's kid lean over and stare at the water in a kind of "zen of being there" moment.
The ship photo was simply adjusted on Photoshop (with a new, less cluttered sky replacing the one which has marina elements in it). Everyone was already in period costume. Part II was painted on Photoshop. I used a patch of water from the original photo, turned upside down, for the water surface in Part II. I asjusted the colors in Part 1 to match the painting. A dolphin sketch I did from dolphins at the National Aquarium in Baltimore became the dolphin to the left. The "biggest dolphin" (orca) was sketched and painted directly on Photoshop from models and photo reference. Morgan the Merrow started with a photo of a martial artist, and Peterson's Field Guide to North Atlantic Fishes (swordfish). The red cap is a bit of ancient faerie lore (I found a reference in Brian Froud and Alan Lee's "Faeries"); merrows' red caps connect them to the sea and allow them to live there.
Watercolor, Prismacolor pencil, and painting on Photoshop
The neighbors across the road decorated a small evergreen with lights one Christmas. The tree sat between their yard and a farmer's field, dwarfed by the giant evergreens around it, nearly hidden. Snow had fallen, like a yule card. I set up a tripod and shot a bunch of pics. I tweaked and layered them on Photoshop, as well as painting into the tree lights for the best effect. This is pretty much what it really looked like, though!
the wolf was painted on Photoshop, the shagbark hickory stood in snow, under a full moon in fog, in my backyard
Sky, ship and water are three different photos. The wave horses are pulled straight up out of the water with Photoshop's smudge tool. The wild black mare was painted on Photoshop separately. The ship is 1812 era privateer 'Pride of Baltimore II' firing her cannon (I shot the photo at Chestertown Maryland's Downrigging Weekend, from another ship).. For more about Pride, click on the helmsman below (I shot that one while guest crewing aboard Pride).
Watercolor (jaguar and white cat) plus painting on Photoshop.
My photo of a young friend and 'Patience', plus my flower pics and painting on Photoshop
my photos, plus painting on Photoshop
2 page sketch from my sketchbook, scanned and painted on Photoshop, with my photos (sky, my first sled team) added. Raven carrying the bag of stars is an early watercolor I did.
several existing images: watercolors, ink drawings, Prismacolor sketches layered on Photoshop
If that face has started to look familiar, it's because the guy with the pinto markings has starred in several illustrations. He began as Beleg. I made him younger here, as if he were on a YA bookcover. The white horse has also escaped from another illustration or two (he was in Twilight Run, a traditional watercolor first). There's Chesapeake Bay (a pun: the color of the horse is bay, and that is a map of the Chesapeake Bay). The chick in the corner was me, posing for a friend with a good camera eye.
