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Intermediate challenge here :)
I'm completly new to Daz studio but not 3D Software and digital art software in general.
Here is my creation, called The Jungle Queen
The "war paint" is inspired by the character of Octavia in the TV series "The 100" when she becomes The Red Queen.
I made the war paint with photoshop with the diffuse face map as reference and import the layer inside Daz with the LIE system.
I also "accidentally" edit the bump map, but it results in kind of a old scar/burn effect on the top/right corner of her face. I find cool so I let it ^^
Composed and rendered with Daz, color graded with photoshop.
I'll be happy to read your comment :)
Welcome to the New User Challenge JoJo. We are pretty open when it comes to who is a beginner. It has more to do with the subject matter than how long you have been using Daz Studio. If you are new to portraits then you are a New User.
I really like your colour palette. The contrast of colours and the use of gold for her eye lashes and eye colour really keep my attention on her face. You have some really nice rim lighting. The way it lights up her ear is quite nice but it might be a bit too strong on the shoulders? But the light on the sides of her face really bring out the contours and shape.
Most of the time having a figure centered in the middle of the image is against the "rules" but you have made it work with your colour palette and lighting.
Oops - yes, rookie mistake. Corrected that now! Thanks for that advice. I actually ran several test renders where I added a feature at a time. I have a little spare time, hence why I get to make the changes fairly quickly. Attached is the version just before this, before I tweaked diffusion as an example.
Thanks for the larger image. It is really helpful.
There is a white section of wall on the left of the image. I am not sure if that is part of the set or something else that is intruding or maybe being reflected somehow but I find it is pulling my eye away from your lovely figure.
The Distant Light is being used as filler light and the spot light is lighting your figure? If that is the case mayabe either raise the height of the spot light so it is closer to his face or rotate it a little closer to his face. It does not necessarily need to be directly on his face but a little more light a bit higher might help.
We call those "Happy Accidents" when you do something you didn't mean to but really like the results.
She looks great. I do not watch "The 100" but she is a fierce and determined woman. This is another example of a portrait breaking the "rules" but it works. She is challenging the viewer with a direct look and is unapologetic about it.
The green on her forehead really does a great job of matching her eye colour.
Well done.
Hey mods, I realised something. I've never actually taken part in the February Lighting Challenge, and lighting is probably my biggest challenge, so that's been a mistake on my part. Guess what? I'm entering a portrait.
Here's the original version with no post-work. I used an "overcast" HDRI to get the environment sufficiently moody, and then lit up the characters with a spotlight placed almost directly above them. Aaand that's as far as fancy effects go.
Then I went and slapped a filter on it. Such 90s artsy. Click here to see a really corny one that's not an entry, or click here to see a full-length version of the original.
Made a few changes last night, adding in a certain droid who's seen better days, and giving myself a weapon that I'd located at an earlier point sence my friend and I arrived here. My friend is more then likely packing something, but more along the lines of ranged, I'll have to see what I have for him. I also moved myself fowards a bit so I wasn't in the droid's way.
Again, thank you. Assuming you meant the vertical line, the white bit was part of the cityscape backdrop I had in place. After tweaking and Zooming view, all that was left was that distracting white bar! I turned the camera slightly and had a couple more plays with light and bump map settings, though it's more trial and improvement to see what each bit does. Probably going to play with the seat textures next, just to see what it does.
Hi all! this is my first entry into a DAZ contest, and I hope you like 'Bruiser'. My wife has called this piece "It hurts to smile"... Please, any constructive critisism would be fantastic. Great work from all you others in here too! I only used DAZ for this, just opened it in PS to crop it a bit.
Have an awesome day!
Kev
Thanks so much.. I will go back to the drawing screen and try some more. Thanks for the link to the guide. I did read a bunch of things you had posted here, and made sure I didn’t cut off hands or top of head, etc, but I guess the feet count too :) I think I’ll zoom in a bit, and the lighting has been tricky, but never thought about how it would draw your attention ‘away’ from his face. Great tips!!!! Wow.
Here is the revised piece. Please let me know if there are other things I could do to improve it. thanks so much
I've never done the July challenge before, so this is a beginner entry. I'm trying to get a very easy, soft atmosphere with this portrait. I'm not thrilled with this first attempt, though - feedback on what people think is working or not working would be very much appreciated!
Hi LaPartita,
If I may give some advice about your portrait. I think the figure pose and the environnement choice is good. Add a strong depth of field to create a soft atmosphere is a great idea but right now it's a shame she is out of focus. Make sure to play with the focus distance option of the camera to move back the focus on the figure's face (nose and eye is a good repair). Also her hand is a bit hinding her face, may be you will want to move it a bit or rotate the camera to right so the first thing that draw our attention would be her face.
About the lighting, I would also add a fill light on the right side of the scene because her left side is in the shadow and it's a bit too strong (for my taste).
One last thing, may be I'll move the camera back to have better idea of what she is sitting in. Because her body is kind of confined into the frame and not into the "cocoon chair" so in my opinion the message is not the same.
Voilà.
(it's my very first feedback so I hope I'm not being rude or anything and gived you some good tips ^^)
This image, Purple Passenger, is for the beginner challenge. I've messed around with Daz for a while but never seriously. Now I'm trying hard to learn the different aspects. So many! I used Reese HD for Genesis 8, HDRI map and tips from the Parmy Baddhan tutorial on catchlights. I did patch up her hair a little in Photoshop but apart from that little in the way of post processing.
Hey all! Just started using Daz in the last few months, so I'm going to give a shot at participating in the Beginner Portrait challenge for July as my first contest!
Here he is <3
I used Daz 4.12 Pro and Photoshop CC to clean up stray pixels and adjust the contrast. Hope you like him!
@PixelReaper - your feedback is amazing - thank you so much for all of the constructive critiques! The DoF focusing on her hand/arm was an accident, but there were so many different elements I was uncertain about that I couldn't even decide if I wanted to fix it. You've given me a lot of great feedback, and it's really helped me figure out where to even start fixing this. Back to Daz I go!
@pjscribble - I think you're off to a great start! Her face looks fantastic - I love the catchlights, she's got great depth and your lighting really shows off her skin. I find the background confusing, though - I'm not really sure what I'm looking at, and all of those bright colors pull the focus away from her face. Maybe something simpler, like a dark gray backdrop or some really blurry dark green foliage? You've chosen such dramatic colors for your figure - I love the juxtaposition between her pale skin, dark hair, and brilliant eyes - and I'd love to see your render emphasize those elements.
@merelpierce - I also love your posing of the figure, and his skin looks really amazing. I think the bronze backdrop takes away from the image, though - it's so close in hue and tone to his skin. Maybe something with a bit more contrast might work better?
Portrait Rendering (Expressions and Lighting)
Version f here. Gave my friend a firearm so he could give me some cover if we get into a fight, did some tweeks to his position and the chair he's in so said firearm isn't sticking into the chair, gave myself some belt pouches and a belt to hold them. I also gave the two of us a way to keep in contact if we have to split up. Everything added was also grunged up.
I hear you on the challenges of lighting. So many options.
I like your twins and the mirror image you created. The filter really brings the focus to their faces by toning down the colour and creating a more monochromatic image.
All the little additions you add to your images always help to bring out the story. Your friend's weapon has seen better days. I hope he found it that way.
Yes. I was referring to that white strip.
I am looking forward to seeing what you do next.
Now that his feet are visible I think they need some slight adjustments. His right foot looks like it needs to be rotate slightly so the side of the boot is in better contact with the wood floor. This one can be trickly. I think you need to either use twist or side/side.
He has more room now but my eye is still drawn to his face.
That soft lighting look can be tricky.
I think she is placed well in both the chair and the frame. I like her posing except for her hand. It is blocking her face.
The hint of DOF really helps to draw the eye to her face.
This is a good start pjscribble.
I love the eyebrow lift and her eyes are very luminous.
I am a huge fan of subtle expressions. If you closed her eyes very slightly, maybe 10%? and gave her a hint of a smile you might get that knowing kind of expression. Like she might be up to something or just knows a secret she isn't going to tell.
You might also want to tone down the lighting a little bit. She has a pale complexion and the lighting is blowing out her skin slightly. Maybe turning down the intensity or lumens will help.
This is a good start merelpierce. His pose looks relaxed except for his left arm. Pulling his collar back so the middle of his forearm, maybe even a bit closer to the wrist, sits on the knee might look a little more natural. Start with small adjustments.
I am so sorry @BlueFox. I don't know how I missed this image.
I love bokeh backgrounds and I like your choice of colour palette. I find the DOF a little too strong or perhaps the area it is being applied to is too narrow/small.
It may be the DOF effect but her white shirt appears to be getting blown out a bit by the light.
If you want to, I would try adjusting the DOF first to see if that is affecting the look of the shirt.
I love the simplicity of this image and the way she is looking off to the side. This isn't an easy thing to do. With a simple image there is nowhere to hide.
Nicely done.
Thanks for the comments and suggestions. @LaPartita - I take your point about the background. I've put in an abstracty leaf background but kept the overall purple tone to make sense of the purple reflections on her face. I also added in some light behind her to make sense of the rim light effect at the top of her hair. @Kismet2012 - Thank you. I changed her expression slightly but now I seem to have lost my original file. I'll certainly bear it in mind when I try the next one though.
I have lowered the spotlight for this version
Here is my try Sci Fi Corridor, use gen 8 female three pointlights two spotlight, Don't ask me how, I've no clue
Al input is welcome good or bad.
Got slightly distracted working on something else - oops! Tried a different shader on the bench. I am not totally convinced with it but like that it is a better contrast now between bench and figure. Not sure what to do from here!
@pjscribble I love that new background and that glow around your figure - how did you get that? I also loved the arched eyebrow but I was wondering if you might soften the lighting on her forehead slightly? - It's slightly drawing me away from her eyes, which have a lovely sparkle to them.
@sueya I really love your bold use of colours. I am not sure if it was deliberate but my eye is drawn to the shoulder and slightly away from the face by the play of light. I'm really trying to get my head round all this lighting stuff myself, so I am really interested in different takes on things.
@myar Love the expression on the figure and the angle on it. What sort of lumens do you have on your points and spots? Also, would you consider a light source as part of the corridor - to give combined backlighting and maybe give a sci-fi feel to the corridor?
Any more advice very welcome and I hope people don't mind that I made a few comments myself. I'm really enjoying this right now and want as many different ideas as possible to try out next.
I hope the file isn't lost forever. The changes to her facial expression is subtle but makes a difference.
I also really like the change in the background.
You are getting a more even light effect on his whole body. A rim light shining down on or behind his head might help give his hair some definition.