12
Work in big shapes, but don’t be lazy
There’s no excuse for lazy rendering. Sure, your piece might be seen small, but
you don’t want it to look awful when it’s seen larger. So don’t rely on the small scale
to get you out of the hard work of finishing your piece. Sloppiness doesn’t have any
place in art. A painterly approach is perfectly valid, but laziness always stands out.11
Don’t neglect the environment
Forgoing backgrounds has its place in art, but that
place is rarely in card art. The environment gives
characters a sense of place and shows players of the game
a glimpse of the world they occupy. If you struggle with
environments, try starting with the setting before you
render the main character. It’s like saving dessert for last.
14
Obtain feedback and listen to it
Part of working on card art is working closely with an art director to make the
strongest image you can. When you’re developing a portfolio, it’s important to get
used to accepting feedback and applying changes. Show it to a trusted friend (and
possibly fellow artist) who can help to spot things that you would miss.13
Use Lighten layers to help achieve
glow and atmosphere
Take a soft Airbrush on a layer set to the Lighten blending
mode and gently brush in some light, saturated colours.
This is my favourite trick for introducing that bit of extra
glow and pop to an image. I also use this when I’ve
realised that I made the background too contrast-y and
need to tone it down a little.
In depth Card art