2D Artist

2DARTIST MAGAZINE | ISSUE 129``````107Adding contrasting but subtle greens alsocreates interest in the rocks. Using a hard brushprevents over-rendering which can eat up timeduring speed painting. A single brushstrokedenoting color and tone is much faster than fussyrepeated strokes with a lighter, softer brush.11Create the water: Water can betricky to paint quickly; doing studies ofdifferent water conditions can be highly useful aswell as informative as there are so many variablesto consider – lighting, water type, environmentalfactors like wind or gravity, local color of thewater, and how clear it is to name but a few. Inthis instance the water is a calm but movingcoastal body of water so simply adding whiteedges to the blue of the water instantly gives theimpression of waves lapping gently up the shore.12Check it is working: Flipping theimage horizontally is one of thequickest ways to see if the composition isworking; doing this at all stages can really helpshow any issues. At this point it is also a goodjuncture to use the software’s tools to onceagain tweak the overall mood of the image.``````I use Color Balance which is available inPhotoshop through Image > Adjustments >Color Balance (image 12a). Here the blues andpinky oranges are pronounced to really makethe most of that sunset sky (image 12b).13Finishing touches: The speed paintingis mostly complete now and time isrunning short for the two-hour goal. There couldeasily be several more hours spent on renderingthe rocks in the foreground but at this stage it isabout priorities. Therefore I decide to spend moretime on the water as it is a seascape. Adding littlewave splashes with a splatter-type brush andmore highlights on the water itself really addsa sense of that moving, ever-changing water.A little more detail and color variation on thefoliage also just adds that little something extra.``````“Flipping the imagehorizontally is one of thequickest ways to see if thecomposition is working”``````Choose what is important in your image to add some final finishing touches``````Use color to make the most of the sunset### AVAILABLE IN THE 3DTOTAL SHOP