With Mudbox there are options to pose the character using essential tools of painting selection for moving and then using move tool. Quite simple and quick results. When the model is in the correct pose, sculpting the asymmetrical details can take place. 

'Laumikas' Model

Time's come for production. This is the model of 'Laumikas' a bag of straw out of which a dwarf-child grows.

Original Concept was :

Pixie's Silhouette Test and Colour Pallete Indication

This is the  tidying up of the concept stage: indication of 'The Baltic Pixie' colour palette and the shape reading sheets. It is simply a more formal presentation images I haven't included before.

The palette of 'The Baltic Pixie' is essentially based on complimentary colour system: the character is predominantly green and the background is a complimetary to it,  violet/purple. All other colours of the wheel are also used, but in lesser proportions to make make the workings of complimentary colours more sophisticated ( otherwise the relationship would not have the  'gusto' to it).

I've said that expression sheets are next to come, but after some though I've decided to film the reference material beforhand creating the sheets. In this way I'll avoid generic results.

Storyboard Script, Adjusted Animatic and 'Laumikas' Concept

Tidying all the loose knots: storyboard script for my own convenience when further going to animating. Also it shows the planning of screen time, concerning the variety of shot structure.

I have revisited the animatic and added more panels for better flow and clarity. Shouldn't have changed that much in its essence

Lastly, in the animatic we see three other objects: the moon, the rainbow and the

'Laumikas, a sack of straws out of which a dwarf child grows!'

Blueprints for Vaiva's Character

The turnarounds of Vaiva show  her construction on couple of levels: her body and dressing. Particularly challenging was the side view of the body, side of head and skirt for it is the profile view which uncovers the ambiguity of shapes in her design: the welcoming round shapes triangulating eventually to suggest her more feisty nature.( front view looks much more piecefull , but the side one sharp and wildly dynamic for example)

Her head drawings is a particularly subtle part, which’s characteristics can be hardly captured on blueprints and work instead as brute guidelines.

Another little upload I wanted to draw attention to was the title design for The Baltic Pixie, which I’ve created from scratch. It is supposed to mimic the feeling of a relatively primitive style of Baltic art.

Next in line , I'd say , are her expression and pose  sheets

Analysis of Aesthetics for Product Promotion

This post is a homework task for CAP (Commercial Application of Photography)
We are learning a lighting set-ups for glamour advertising ,

the image above is my attempt to present newly-resleased parfume

 

two soft lights were used to set up the lighting: one from the side and one from the back. Exposure settings were matched to the light measurements taken off the object surface

A , which work is discussed here is Pixpecker agency

A company working on advertising, photo manipulation, retouching worked on Beer “Svyturys” promotion.

The end result is a painted still-life. The scrupulously built set included a sophisticated lighting set up .  Stripes of coloured paper were assembled on one reflecting sheet so to give a highly controlled colour reflections onto the product.

 

  

Key features:

Soft shadows,

Rim/contour light,

Emphasized light from side  

The decision to present the product as a traditional media painting adds a feeling for the brand to be coming from a traditional point of view and therefore familiar.

Developing Project Branding

For the purposes of documenting the project  professionally there’s a need to have a clear branding. 

Logo,

Latest thought led to creating a logo of  original typography and using some reference for direction of Baltic ornament feel

 This was the initial idea, which eventually worn off, for its lack of original or relevant feel.

Lastly, the layout of documenting projects progress, which will be assembled for The Making of book.This particular exampleis also a character description sheet

With this layout, I'm aiming for clean simplicity and honest presentation of information.

Hard Surface Modeling in Mudbox

Mudbox primary application is high-res sculpting, texture painting, and displacement and normal map creation, it is a great addition to the pipeline of character/environment based pipeline and works in a close conjunction to Maya. When comparing it to a similar-purpose program Z-Brush, Mudbox owns appreciation between Maya users, for its simplified interface, interrelatedness, brush assortment cut down to the essential 12-14.

This week’s tutorial was on hard surface modeling. The class was practicing on creating soldier armor.

Sketch of Soldier Armor, 1h

Vaiva's Design Detailing : Face, Hands, Legs,

The decision was to move forward with the developed design without working out 'more excitting' ones, because, actually I the already created one is actually one which was needed. Not to go into too much detail, here is Vaivas close up of the Head:

Essentially, her portrait follows a composition of a spiral , starting from the head it goes all the way to the highlight of the pupils. Her facial features are combining both, typical baltic female's features ( bright blue eyes, very defined cheek-bones, pale skin, blond hair) with those of a chicken ( pointy nose/beak, very large pupils and so on). In general I was aiming for a 30 year old women, both inviting and chilling at the same time.

Her hands are more like tools,  for the purpose of coming the flax, therefore, they are bare to the stone-like bones.

Finally, after receiving some spot-on feedback from Phil and Charlotte, I went back to fix the rooster-like feet. Now they're  following the design language of hands.

Over all, I think these improvements and further developments seem precise to the vision and fulfil the needs of Baltic Pixie (Laume) character. Still in development are the turnarounds.

Vaiva's Concept Design

Baltic Pixies general portrayal is for the creatures to be quite sexy and inviting, yet brutal and dangerously animal-like. Their long hair is tangled,  rock-nails sharp, they have massive lips and breasts,  and chicken skin underneath straw-clothing. Some of them are  beautiful, with golden or white dresses, big eyes but nonetheless have the chicken skin and legs. But the queen of their kind, Vaiva, caries  some sophistication to her, mainly in the attire,  worthy of a queen. 

Other motifs include dragonflies and amber. 

Together with the background, which is a complimentary to the dominant character design colour, green, I tried to use full spectrum of color wheel. 

In my personal opinion, the design here is not the mind-cracking one, because this project seems to ask one not: quite familiar female character, with modest moderations to suggest chicken-woman and some fancy decorative costume design. 

I’m  in the between the idea that this is PRECISELY what I needed and can move to some detailed designs of hands, head and so on, or that maybe  should loosen up and give another attempt to get some potentially more interesting designs. 

Vaiva's Costume Design Ideas

 The underlaying references for Vaiva's costum design are chicken and Dragonflies as the animals associated with Baltic Pixies. The aim is to emphasize her curvy shapes, however, she is a dangerous and in a sense villanous creature, so her roundish shapes are complimented with plenty of triangular shapes too.

 The Design should help create a feeling that this chgaracter is sophisticated, as she is a queen. Also, inviting feminity, lush sexiness and swiftness should be evident too.

Idea 1

Idea 2

Idea 3

Idea 4

Draft animatic for The Baltic Pixie

I kept the soundtrack and the visual expressiveness to the minimum to capture bare effect of storytelling. This is animatic I consider a draft one , mapping out the basics of The Baltic Pixie character animation. I've chosen Jenny Dunbar's voiceover:

choice for shots is driven by the thought , that it is a character presentation type of animated short. Therefore there is only limited amounts of other objects (such as the moon, rowan leaf, "Laumikas" ) 

There is also a shot, toward the end, where Laume speaks of her kind bringing both, the kind will and villainy, where we don't see the character at all. I though this to be a chance for the soundtrack be manipulated to its max: anchoring from left side to the right side of the speakers. However, I'm looking for a visual idea to represent the line....

I'm sure to revisit and add extra panels to break down the the action even more so soon enough it will serve as a guide for reference-shooting, that is I'd try myself to "act out"  reference material for animating.