#039 The Evil Dr. Doom

It has Arrived.
Behold, the terrible Dr. Doom. Here is a brief description found in a decrepit journal:

"Dr. Doom was a colonel wounded in battle in the British Occupation of India in the 1850s. Horribly disfigured for life, he returned to London years later a shattered man. He sought out the help of an innovative surgeon who completely rebuilt him into the Terrible Dr. Doom. Roaming the dark streets of London wielding his fearsome claw he cries: "I Shall Have Vengance!!!". He never got it."

So, there my friends is the brief account of this sad Victorian individual. We can learn from this unfortunate tale that: (A) The streets of London at this time were highly unsafe, (B) bionic surgery was indeed taking place at that time, and (C) prolonged periods of Photoshop use can at times do funny things to your mind, causing you to think up wildly outlandish explanations for the ridiculous nonsense you are creating.

We will go out with this final scratchy photograph, nearly lost by hundreds of years of decay and mildew, but restored to its former glory with Photoshop, of the brave surgeon's operating table.
Behold:

The Construction of Dr. Doom, C. 1850.

#038 Something Wicked This Way Comes

It's coming.
Get ready.
This week in ILL 133 we are using Photoshop to create a steampunk-ish composite image using this fantastic lithographic clip art. Only time will tell what evil shall ensue...

Stay Tuned.

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* Side Note: This post has nothing to do with the 1983 film "Something Wicked This Way Comes" which is based on the book by Ray Bradbury. But in a way it does, because that title has been running through my head for weeks. Thank you. You're dismissed.

#037 These People Create: Cédric Delsaux

It seems that the universe is getting smaller all the time... and here's proof.
I recently stumbled onto the amazing work of Cédric Delsaux via ISO50's blog (read a previous post about them here), and needless to say this stellar project is beautiful, mysterious, humorous and terrifying all at once. The seamless way Delsaux blends the vehicles and characters of Star Wars with real world photography from photo shoots in France, Dubai, and elsewhere is no less than stunning. Although I don't know much about his process, I am %99.99 sure that Photoshop is involved, with maybe a little Maya, Lightwave, or Modo 3D modeling software thrown in. But what really sells these photos is the sense of realism, and a phenomenally original and creative idea, which seems to have served Delsaux well.

Posted above are a few of my favorites. Lord Vader looks particularly stunning and Gothic beneath those imposing European windows. The good old Millennium Falcon is more spry than ever. Jango Fett is about to make an arrest in the headlights of a Citroen.
And the last photo just really sends shivers down my spine. Let's just say if you ever see this in real life, you're in big, big, big trouble.

Visit Cédric Delsaux at his website here.

#036 Draped and Folded

This week we are studying the analysis of the four folds in fabric. It is a difficult subject to draw, but I found it surprisingly easy at the first stage, sight measuring angles and proportions. It seemed to only take 30 or 40 minutes to get that part done. Once I started to block in the basic light & dark however, it seemed like I got a little confused. But I think it's going to look great once we get the five values in and all rendered up.
Still waiting for feedback & permission to proceed from Professor Mangerson, so in the meantime I'll just work on the rest of my classes and hope that it doesn't somehow fall off the wall, or get pulled off by one of my two cats who have been expressly banned from entering my studio.