Yet The Sun Still Rises

Posted Jun 15, 2020, 11:37:55 PM UTC

I've been meaning to do more pixel art for a while now, so I figured there was no time like he present! It also makes for a great chance to figure out how to do irridescent in pixel form, I'm... actually pretty happy with how that turned out. I started with a much smaller file, but I realized that I could show the scene that small with the details I wanted, especially with the view being between branches, so it grew to be 357x298 pixels, which is certainly a lot more work that the typical pixels I've made in the past.

It also makes for a great opportunity to show off Kamon's underside, which was away from the viewer in the previous piece. If you want to know more about him, feel free to read the written piece he's in, The Wyverns, it's in the literature section here on Pd~

Art and Kamon belong to me. Don't redistribute or use, thanks~

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  • Jun 20, 2020, 12:57:54 AM UTC
    This looks great! I love how at peace he looks, and the background is wonderfully detailed. The plants in the foreground are particularly nice, giving a more detailed idea of the more distant flowers around Kamon.

    One thought is that it's a bit hard for me to tell whether the Kamon is on top of, or partially covered by the plants closer to the rock. Judging by his tail and wing, I assume he's on top of them, but his far head seems partially obscured. If he's on top, maybe add a few shadows beneath him. same thought if the plants are over him, adding some shadow to Kamon where the plants go over, though I realize detailing like that is probably hard to do with pixels (I'm not much of a pixel artist since my art program doesn't support it)

    Still, this is a very nice piece. The soft greens give everything a calm and quiet feeling, and Kamon stands out pretty well against them despite being mostly green himself. Also, the branches frame everything very nicely
    • Jun 22, 2020, 6:11:59 PM UTC
      I figured that having the rise at the front of the piece felt odd being bare, adding the flowers there is what made me decide to add them to the rest of the field actually. The peacefulness was a surface detail I was hoping would show, so I'm glad to hear it does! Though those who've read the story might have a very different take away from it- I know one of my irl friends who've read it got mad at me when I showed him this haha.

      Details, especially shading, are definitely harder in pixel art. The space is very limited, so sometimes figuring the best way to show a shadow involves moving a single pixel of the shade color around to find where it feels best, and if that spot is in partially on 2 different pixels, you just have to pick one or the other. The feeling of him not entirely on top of the plants is intentional, the plants by his far head have been pushed up in a particular way where they cover the shade on his neck, so weirdness that is there is an optical illusion of sorts, I can't do too much about it because of the limited space and color palette. It's one of those details that is meant to stand out.

      I was pretty worried about the undergrowth swallowing him up at first too, but his green is pretty minty, so its bluer than a lot of the greens you find in plants thankfully! The branches were initially added as a means to have a neat spot to stop the picture, I don't like my pixels to have a square shape for some reason. I usually handle it by having the character just floating or standing on a patch of plants, but trying that here felt very awkward. Thank you for such a wonderful comment!
      • Jun 28, 2020, 9:42:19 PM UTC
        Ahh, I haven't gotten around to reading his story yet, so I'm very curious as to how the added context might change the interpretation of this scene. I think that pieces that have very different meanings depending on how much the viewer knows about the subject are very interesting.

        Yeah, I really don't have much experience with pixel art, but I can imagine it's incredibly difficult to do small detailing. Your explanation makes sense too, now that I look at it, and the change does draw the eye to more closely inspect the area.

        And you're very welcome!
        • Jun 28, 2020, 11:43:45 PM UTC
          I'd love to hear your thoughts once you do, I'm a glutton for feedback Grin Same! It's fascinating looking for small details that ground it in what you know, it was part of why I enjoy this one so much (plus, it's a great way to avoid handing out spoilers).

          It wasn't as hard to get into as I anticipated when I started out, but the rules of the game are certainly different to learn! I'm hoping to learn more from more established pixel artists to help my growth with the art.