Posted: Wed Jul 22, 2020 6:48 pm
Such talent and knowhow.
Legendary, Andrew!
Legendary, Andrew!
I haven't forgotten about the spine preview image of the entire collection, but I also realize it's terribly outdated. It's a huge file with hundreds of layers and it's quite time-consuming to update. Unfortunately, one of the downsides to weekly covers is that I never get much of a break to update that image without knowing that it will be outdated again within a week. So I'm left with the choice of using my free time to make more covers or continually update an image that will quickly need updating again. I will hopefully update it soon, probably closer to the end of the summer.cas wrote:QUOTE (cas @ Jul 22 2020, 02:46 PM) any chance you will updated your collection picture
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As promised, here are some behind-the-scenes looks at my HBO Watchmen cover...
First of all, HBO made things more difficult for me right off the bat by ONLY using this heavily-colorized image to market the entire season...
[attachment=44016:01_hbo_watchmen.jpg]
So the first thing I had to do was mask out Sister Night and try to recolor her back to something a bit more natural. This was easier said than done...
[attachment=44017:02_sister_night.png]
The character of Looking Glass was also troublesome, because his head is actually CGI. Since he's essentially a post-production visual effect, there aren't many production stills that feature the character with his reflective mask (because it would reflect the cameras and crew). Fortunately, someone created a 3D printable model of his head, so I was able to borrow a still from that for my needs.
Then it was just a simple (actually frustrating) process of finding a full-body image of someone wearing something like what Looking Glass wears from the neck down, and with a similar body type. After searching the promotional cast photos of a number of TV crime dramas (because they mostly wear sport jackets and button-down shirts), I found an image of David Caruso from CSI: Miami that closely resembled the basic attire of Looking Glass. Then it was just another *simple* process of blending everything together and recoloring it.
[attachment=44018:03_looking_glass.png]
Not too much to say about Jeremy Irons' character (who I will not name to keep this post as spoiler-free as possible). I couldn't find a decent production still of him in character (that matched the image quality and studio lighting of the other photos I was using on this cover), so I went with this promotional photo of the actor from some other project. I opted for an image that had better clarity and lighting than one that featured him in his proper wardrobe. The hairstyle and outfit are close enough to how he appears in this series, so I decided to go with it.
[attachment=44019:04_jeremy_irons.jpg]
The next bit I'll put in spoiler blocks, because this character's appearance is somewhat of a surprise in the context of the show...
Spoiler Block
Unlike Jeremy Iron's character, I was able to use a decent production still for Dr. Manhattan, with some obvious adjustments. I masked him out, then recolored him to greater resemble his glowing, white-eyed appearance in the show. The character shifts between what I'll call his energized "lights on" form and his less-VFX-expensive "lights off" version throughout the episodes in which he appears, and I felt the "lights on" look was much more dramatic for my keyart.
[attachment=44020:05_manhattan.png]
After each character was ready, it was the standard procedure of adding the sparks, smoke, rain, water droplets, lighting effects, etc. I also switched out the background image of the New York skyline from the 2009 movie to an image of the Tulsa, Oklahoma skyline for the 2019 series, as I don't believe any portion of this show is set in New York (with the exception of one flashback sequence).
And here's a look at the final keyart (of course, with the requisite spoiler warning)...
Spoiler Block[attachment=44021:06_hbo_watchmen.jpg]
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy these little glimpses into my process... if you do, let me know and perhaps I'll keep doing them. If you don't, then just let the crickets chirp in the thread!
See you on Friday with my cover for Buzz Lightyear of Star Command!
