Bayani
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The Commission Process
When dealing with artists, its important to keep in mind that they have other commitments. For many of them, private commission work is basically overtime. Its work on top of what they do regularly for living. Unlike overtime at traditional work environments however, artists are generally getting compensated less for extra work, not more. Private clients such as you and I do not have the resources to afford the going commercial work rates. For the most part, the demand for private commissions is relatively low and unsteady. Ive mentioned before that an artist has always the right to say no to a commission, but whether they can afford to say no can be another story. And while some artists are well-organized and can push themselves to draw or paint when they do not really want to, others have a tougher time getting motivated. Add to that the fact that original characters also present a risk for the artist as well; the artist has no assurance that you will not turn around and start printing the artwork in books or on t-shirts for profit. All in all, a commission can become a nightmare work scenario for the artist, so understand that some artists will be guarded.
This does present a challenge for anyone looking to commission art of their original characters, but its surmountable through organization and professional courtesy. The easier you make the business end of the commission, the more the artist can focus on the creative side and the sooner you will have your art. All of this begins with your first commission inquiry to the artist.
Your inquiry should be polite and to the point. It should include your characters references and a short description of some ideas for the illustration itself, as discussed in the Know What You Want section. There are several other details you should ask in your initial inquiry regarding the commission as well:1. Confirm price and how/when payment is should be delivered. You want absolutely no confusion over these matters.
2. If youre receiving the physical original when the commission is finished, confirm the shipping details. If youre only receiving a digital copy, confirm that you will be receiving a high-resolution (at least 300dpi) file, preferably in a .tif format. (If you have an email account that limits attachment sizes, make sure the artist will host the file somewhere for you to download or request delivery through a free site such as YouSendIt.com)
3. Request an estimate on the turnaround time for your commission. Doing so guides the artist into double-checking his/her schedule and gives you a starting point for following up.
4. For the more involved commissions (full-figure illustrations and beyond), ask the artist to provide thumbnails or rough sketches for the layout before he/she starts the final pencils. The layout/composition of the piece is the most difficult part of the illustration to revise. A thumbnail provides a quick stopping point during the commission process where both you and the artist can make sure youre both on the same page. (I should mention I dont ask for thumbnails at conventions; theres no time for it).
Comments: Thumbnails of possible layouts for a multiple character commission. Clicking on the image will send you to the final pencils.
So thats pretty much it as far as the initial inquiry goes. For emailed inquiries, Id wait around a week for a response Any longer than that, I would just move on. If the artists response and additional terms (if any) are fair to you, send a thank you and confirm that you wish to move ahead with the commission. If any payment is expected up front, mention that you will remit payment once they acknowledge receipt of your agreement. Doing so gives the artist one last chance to back out of the deal before you send money.
Once all the agreement terms are squared away, the rest of the commission process is pretty straightforward. Its just a matter of waiting for the thumbnails and/or the commission. Respect the artists estimated turnaround time and only send follow up emails within 1-2 days of any milestone dates (dates when thumbnails are to be forwarded for review, date the commission is expected to be due, etc). Any additions or revisions should be requested before the final pencils/inks/colors are started and after you have reviewed the thumbnails. Once the artist forwards the final draft to you, only minor revisions should be requested at this point (for example, changing eye colors or correcting the pattern on the characters gloves.) If your references were clear and expectations were set properly through good communication, there should really be no need for major revisions at the final draft stage. -
Preparation
References
City of Heroes was about a year old when I first met David Nakayama. David was working for Top Cow at the time on the second volume of the City of Heroes comic and he had been making a name for himself drawing sketches of CoH players’ characters with colored markers. As skilled and talented an artist as David is, he still experienced difficulties with drawing the original characters accurately because often he had poor references and in some cases, no references at all, to work with. After finishing some of the drawings, he could tell the recipient was bummed because the character’s appearance looked wrong, and David was bummed because the recipient was bummed.
A little extra effort on your part can really make a huge difference and help you avoid disappointment. There are two types of visual references you can provide to an artist: screenshots or model sheets. I’ll get into the details about each type a little later. Regardless of whether you choose to provide screenshots or a model sheet, there are 5-6 vital angles that you should have: 3 of the character’s full body (front, side and back) and 2-3 close-ups of the character’s head and shoulders. These pictures should be taken from different angles in order to capture all the costume details. (If there are no noteworthy details on the back of the head, stick to front and side shots.) If your character has any exceptionally complicated details or patterns anywhere on the costume (many armored characters, for instance), consider including close-up shots of those areas.
Easy and cheap, screenshots require very little investment. With a click of the Print Screen button, everything on your City of Heroes client is captured in a picture and sent to your game folder. Here are a couple of tips to get the most out of your screenshots:1. Use a contrasting background. If you have a bright costume, use a dark background, such as in a cave or underground map. If you have a dark costume, use a bright background (the interiors of the hero-side arenas have nice flat bright areas). Contrast brings more clarity to details. City of Heroes tends to run fairly dark, so after you take your screenshots, consider tweaking the shadows and contrast by using Photoshop or another photo-editing program. (Irfranview and GIMP are good choices.)
2. Have someone with a high-end video card take the screenshots. The City of Heroes game engine locks the camera POV on your character, so it’s pretty much like trying to take a picture of yourself with your cell phone’s camera. However, having another player acting as your photographer will yield stronger results, particularly with full body shots because they can fill the screen with your character and create higher resolution pictures.
3. If you’re going to seek commissions at comic/anime conventions, print your final screenshots on photo paper at 300dpi. (Obviously, better results are yielded when the screenshots taken by someone else with a high-end video card). Just resize the images to 4x6 or 5x7 and save them to a disc or flash drive. Any 1 hour photo can print them out for you.
Comments: Good close-up shots of the head to show the mask and goggles better, along with a contrasting background that causes all the details on the pink coat, the black pants, and grey circuitry to stand out more clearly.
Model Sheets are the next step up from screenshots. They’re character templates and industry standards in animation and illustration. The purpose of a model sheet is to maintain the continuity of the character’s appearance across a number of artists. If you’re planning on collecting art as a regular hobby, having a model sheet done up will pay off quickly. The collectors who have well-organized model sheets have easier times getting what they want faster and with less fuss. There are two big reasons for this:1. Customization. If your original character has details that are not available in City of Heroes, i.e. custom logos, patterns, cape-styles or ethnicity, a model sheet allows you to reflect those details visually rather than describe them.
2. Presentation. A model sheet has more freedom to highlight and communicate details more effectively than screenshots. First off, a vast majority of artists do not play City of Heroes and even seasoned professionals will get confused over screenshots. (Before the Bayani model sheet, artists use to portray Bayani as a generic white guy instead of the sexy Filipino stud muffin he really is, even if I included the character’s heritage in a text blurb) In addition, the level of information conveyed in 12-15 regular screenshots can be condensed onto 1-2 page model sheet with much more clarity. Artists appreciate that kind of brevity, because the end result is less time on back and forth over appearance and more time spent on the composition.
Comments: Planet Girl’s Model Sheet. Note the original costume parts: chest logo, the cape style, and the belt buckle.
Budgeting
Good budgeting will keep you out of the red. Every collector will inevitably face the temptation/impulse to buy art “only a few more dollars” beyond his or her initial budget, or every time an artist announces “Open For Commissions” on their dA journal. (It happens to me weekly.) You have to resist it. I’ve seen many collectors over-extend their finances and suffer a lot of hardship after the economy went unexpectedly south. To make matters worse, they could not pay their outstanding commissions when payment was due. So, before you start sending out inquiries to artists, I highly advise that you settle down and decide exactly how much money you have to spend on art and put it aside before you commit to anything. Remember: whether your budget is $25 or $25,000, there’s always an artist out there ready to draw an enjoyable illustration of your character if you search patiently and diligently.
Pricing
Everyone I’ve met interested in collecting art has asked me how much commissions cost in general, and it’s a difficult question to answer. There are many different reasons why artists will price their work a particular way. In my opinion, commission prices at comic book/anime conventions are an effective way to create a baseline in determining your budget and willingness to agree to an artist’s going rates.
Now, for those unfamiliar with conventions, many comic book/anime conventions feature a place called Artists’ Alley, where creators set up at assigned tables to sell their books, prints, and commissions. Overall, it can be a competitive affair. In most cases, artists have to submit applications for approval by the convention organizers before they actually get a spot on the event floor. There usually is not enough space to house all the applicants and so, the bigger the show the tougher the competition can get. In general, artists who pony up the application and money for a table at a convention are professionals who have a certain level of confidence and understanding in their skills. After all, at conventions, their work is on display right next to the work of their peers. There is also added pressure between the short turnaround times for commissions (anywhere between several hours to a day) and a regular stream of convention attendees watching the artists draw on the spot. Despite a challenging scenario, the art at conventions are priced similarly (across equivalent mediums and levels of detail) and are for the most part, of a consistent quality.
A penciled headshot at a typical convention starts at the $15-$30 range while single character, full-figure pencil commissions start closer to $30-$50. If you want the piece inked, you’re looking at an additional $20-25. The seasoned pros will charge more for their commissions, roughly closer to $50-60 for a headshot and $75-$100 for full figure pencil commissions, with $30-50 extra for inks. If the artist is hot off a big project (such as like a company-wide crossover event or a popular series), expect his/her prices to push beyond the $100 mark. I should mention that the larger the convention is, the higher the prices will run because the conventions like San Diego or New York Comic Con attract the bigger names in the industry.
Comments: Two pieces of art collected from comic book conventions priced within my benchmarks. Headshot by Steve McNiven. Full Figure Sketch by Sean Chen.
So there is my rough benchmark. Obviously, your benchmark may vary given personal tastes and such, but given the plethora of conventions across the United States, I feel it’s pretty reasonable to assume that you can get a static-posed full-figure sketch of your character drawn by a professional artist at $40. At that price point, you can determine how much more you’re willing to pay for extras like backgrounds or color. You can (and should) also determine how much less you’re willing pay to accommodate matters such as long waits or a “no revisions” policies.
Know What You Want
“Do you go to Burger King to order a slice of pizza?”
Before you start searching for artists in earnest, take a moment to think about what you want exactly. What media do you like? Pencils? Markers? What styles do you want? Manga? American comic books? European comics? While there are a lot of artists out there who have the versatility to render images in a variety of styles, most of them favor and specialize in a particular style. Sometimes, choosing the right style to complement your character can make a significant impact in the overall quality of the piece. Now, some artists draw really attractive women while others may have a penchant for drawing monsters. There are artists like Skottie Young who have styles that cater well to whimsical illustrations and there are artists like Gene Colan who are known for being able to really capture dark, gritty moods. Once you have a clearer idea of what you like and want for your character(s), searching for artists becomes less time consuming. In addition, it’s less likely that you’ll end up with a piece that you’re ambivalent about.
“When you’re at a restaurant, do you tell the waitress what you want to order or do you ask her to just pick something for you instead?”
I’m going to assume you tell the waitress what you want to order, or in the very least ask her for suggestions before making a decision. This should not be any different when it comes to commissioning art. Often times however, I see collectors being very reluctant to give any sort of direction regarding commissions. One reason for this is that they have this impression that the creative process is mysterious and volatile, and should not be trifled with lest one wishes to ruin the artist’s spirit. That’s just bull. Every person I’ve known who has made a career out of creating works of art has told and demonstrated to me that art is skill-driven, just like any other craft. So do not be too intimidated to voice what you want. After all, you, as the creator, are the expert on your character. The artist does not have the time to learn and understand your character as intimately as you do. In a vacuum, artists have to make assumptions based on cursory glances over your references.
The good news is that artists who take commissions are, in general, willing to accommodate reasonable requests. They *want* to create a piece of art that you are completely satisfied with, ideally on the first try. Requesting what you want does not have to be in depth and complicated (in fact, it should not take more than 1-2 sentences). It can be as simple as an expression (please draw my character looking fierce) or a short description of the action (please draw my character shooting her pistols). Requests like these do not force an artist away from his/her style but do provide the artist a starting point to work from, which often times can be the toughest part of the commission. The results are usually have more impact too.
Comments: Examples of how expressing what you want can make a difference. Final costs for both images were equal. The first image, original drawn by Dale Eaglesham was the result when I requested "a drawing of Bayani." The second image, originally drawn by Rebekah Isaacs, was the result of requesting "a picture of Bayani looking bad-@$$."
Locating Artists
There are a variety of resources at your disposal when it comes time to searching for an artist to draw your character. Around the City of Heroes forums, the most common starting point is http://www.deviantart.com/.
DeviantArt (dA) is free to join, though a subscription will free you from ads for a spell. If I had to describe dA in one word, it would be “vast.” Artists of all skill levels can be found there, from the first year art student to the comic book legends like Jim Lee. There is also the City of Heroes Group, which serves as a portal to the galleries of artists who are familiar with the game and offer commissions. The group also serves as a portal to galleries of seasoned original character art collectors. The group’s galleries reflect a variety of tastes, styles, and budgets so chances are you will find what you want efficiently by checking out who the members go to for commissions.
Artists’ Alleys at comic book/anime conventions are a great place to locate artists as well. As I mentioned in a previous section, a lot of artists at conventions tend towards the more professional end of the spectrum and have made themselves available to create art of a consistent quality for private collectors at affordable prices. On top of that the turnaround times are generally short. While it takes more effort than browsing dA, hitting Artists’ Alley offers the additional advantages of being able to interact more quickly with artists face to face and gain additional insight into their own processes through chatting or examining their work portfolios up-close. There’s a lot more to see in the artists’ original and printed work at hand than there is on a computer screen. One other thing I’ll mention about Artists’ Alley is that it’s a great way to build lasting connections with artists, which could mean discounted rates on future commissions through them and other artists they know.
That leads us next to my preferred method of meeting new artists and obtaining commissioning: networking. It’s simple and easy. A good starting point is to ask collectors from the City of Heroes group who they would recommend for a commission you have in mind and ask if they could introduce you to the artist. After completing a smooth, easy transaction with the artist, you have a great opportunity to be introduced to other artists. It’s no secret that good artists know other good artists and routinely draw inspiration and collaborate amongst themselves. There’s no harm in asking and the connections you find will surprise you if you work at networking. Networking offers several advantages beyond cold calling/emailing artists through dA. One, networking can turn a no into at least a maybe, and creates opportunities to commission artists that are not openly offering commissions. The artist always reserves the right to decline a commission but if the request is coming from someone the artist has a positive history with, the artist is more likely to at least consider the request thoughtfully. The second advantage is that opportunities created through networking set the stage for smoother and less expensive transactions. In general, people will not recommend something they don’t really trust. That means the referred artist is more likely to live up to expectations and not only deliver a strong illustration, but may be able to do so faster than the usual turnaround times and at rates less than the ones reserved for new clients. -
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. PreparationA. References
III. Commission Process
B. Budgeting
C. Pricing
D: Know What You Want
E. Locating Artists
IV. Odds and Ends
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Introduction
For over five years, I’ve been collecting art of my original character, Bayani. While it has definitely not been an easy hobby to manage, it has been a very rewarding one. I’ve had the good fortune to develop strong relationships with a lot of creative people. It’s also given me opportunities to sharpen a few business skills and learn more about art and the creative process. If you decide to pursue art collecting as a hobby, I hope it will be rewarding for you, too.
Ultimately, collecting original character art is an intuitive process but can become overwhelming without some planning. This guide is based on personal experience accumulated through approximately 170 successful commissions with over 100 artists. (The scary thing is, my gallery isn’t even the largest one around these parts.) The information provided in this write-up is a general overview on how to get started, along with some tips on how to set the stage for a smooth and easy transaction for both you and the artists you hire. -
Hm...well a crack-*** is technically woman who sells her services to get her next fix. The analogy stands.
Quote:Speaking as a Finance guru for a moment, the proper ratio would probably be # of Free Works : # of Paid Works, to measure roughly how many free pieces of art you "earn" for every paid commission. So, Neko's at a 45:1, which is pretty impressive.Originally Posted by Soul Train
That's... pretty good.
What's the paid/free ratio? Mine's > 1, so... I guess I'm not that alluring to have artists draw stuff for nothing.
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Quote:I would think so; getting free art is an expert skill honed by the some of the most talented artwhores. The more free art you accumulate, the higher you are on the artwhore hierarchy.Originally Posted by Bubbawheat
Does it count if you never actually *buy* any art?
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Quote:Shouldn't you be dressing up as a hawt nurse and taking care of him? Seems a bit sketchy to just outsource like that. As if you were some sort of Madame or something...Originally Posted by VexXxa
I hope you feel well enough to join us tonite, JKat! Let me know if you still aren't well enough so I can find someone to step in on the TF, and send you a hawt nurse to take care of you!
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Nah, you guys go ahead with the TF. If you want to run something lower afterwards, we can catch on then. My defender and PG's tank are at level 42 at the moment; it's taking a little longer to level up post level 40 and work has us too busy to game this past week and a half.
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Darn...46-50? hm...
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Quote:Well I have someone else in mind for this LJ. While your offer of free art is generous, I'm still not comfortable with the idea of gift art. I've made that clear several times before...Originally Posted by LadyJudgement
I'd like a go at this one... brb!
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I like that cover mock-up. Might have to do Bayani/Airhead team-up some time.
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Quote:Should look interesting. I wonder if she's charging her publisher rate.Originally Posted by Caemgen
She mentioned to me that her next two weeks were very open (this a couple days ago) so I think I may have just hit her up at the right time
Though if anyone is looking to get her to work on something, now is probably a good time to approach her! -
Quote:Little late to the party there, Comrade.Originally Posted by Comrade Hero
Hi Texas,
Been reading this thread with some interest.
From personal experience the image references I gave to artists when I first started commissioning pieces based on my character Comrade Hero was solely based on in-game images and any details that could be useful
For example the materials different parts of the costume were made from - leather, cloth, steel etc. and comparisons power and personality wise between my character and existing DC/Marvel characters.
Comrade Hero for example is inspired by Captain Marvel (Fawcett/DC), Captain America (Marvel), Green Lantern Hal Jordan (DC) and Judge Dredd (2000AD)
After I started receiving commissions that I thought best captured the 'feel' of the character I started including examples of other people's commissions and a real world ideal in the form of a person with the face and/or physique I believed would have made a good Comrade Hero.
In my case it was originally Sean Bean and Arnold Schwarzenegger's Bodybuilding era physique, and now Viggo Mortensen (brilliant in Eastern Promises) and Arnold Schwarzenegger's Bodybuilding physique. The artist/sculptor started having access to information about physical measurements and dimensions to work with as well.
One of the mistakes I made for the longest time was to have all that information spread over a multitude of links. I only recently started condensing the whole lot into one page.
This didn't take any real artistic skill on my part - just access to Word and printing the document to file as a JPEG file that was easily uploaded to deviantART.
Having everything in one easy to access file made it simple to send the information to a potential artist and get a quick response as to whether or not this was a character they would like to work with.
I constantly tweak and revise the information/images but here's two examples of my signature heroes - Comrade Hero and Graviton Girl.
Comrade Hero (2010)
Graviton Girl (2010)
All the best to you on your artistic adventure. You need to send your message further back in time.
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Quote:Well, no offense, but now you’re just straying off-topic. Echo was creating a model sheet, a reference template for artists to use when illustrating the character. You’re attempting to repurpose it into a presentation that’s typically used to visually illustrate the direction of style. The thing is, that’s what you *don’t* want to do when collecting original character art. You want to maintain continuity of the character’s appearance, not the continuity of the style of the character. Collectors generally hire artists because they like the artists’ styles and want to see different artists’ takes on the character. The expectation is that the commissioned artist will be depicting the character(s) in his/her style. As Suichiro mentioned, it’s the artist’s job take the character, draw it accurately, and bring him or her to life.
Better - movement, the personality of seeing the character in action, specifically if powers are being displayed (not so the case of my example…. a "model" sheet is that. But I was talking about a "mood" board, something used in the fashion industry to inspire the designer. Not the same thing, it's definition is based on abstracts: color, texture, other examples of previous designs used again for inspiration.
Ok, you think a crotch shot conveys sexiness, but how’s the artist going to interpret it? You can’t really assume that the viewer is going to have reaction/interpretation as you do. See, the more elements like this you have in a reference sheet the more chances there are for confusion and that’s counterproductive to maintaining clear communication between the client and the artist.Quote:Of course no one needs a crotch shot, that was put in there for fun, to convey a sexiness about her. I believe there are plenty of more anatomically correct examples, if I really wanted to focus on that.
You can turn it around and say the same thing about your mood board. “Is LJ always going to look like that when she flies?” “She has the same facial expression in every picture…is this the expression I’m suppose to use?” “Is this all there is to the character?” You’ve got screenshots from extreme camera angles which while artistic, don’t really show the costume details as efficiently as a standard turnaround. In my past experiences and judging from recent experiences of other collectors around these parts as well as those from other circles I've been traveling, most of the problems have been getting the costume details illustrated correctly.Quote:The problem with your artists study, which I think is fine as an addition, it's misleading in that as an artist, how much do I follow it? If the client wanted this exact look, why not hire the same artist? Sure there are varying expressions, but isn't that a given that anyone could interpret? Unless your character is specifically dour all the time, and you insist on only stoic faces. Technical shots are primarily for the costume details, descriptions follow the specifics - hair color, eye color, height, race, and or "character", but seeing the body in motion is about capturing something other than simplicity. This is why students draw dancers, people on the street, 30 second studies to 30 minute studies.
“If you really want to see/explore the personality of a character you could have a character study done as an addendum to your model sheet. Here's a sample character study. Note how the artist worked on different facial expressions to flesh out his personality a bit more.”
That was my exact quote regarding the character study…it’s an addendum if you want to explore the personality of the character. It’s not a core part of the model sheet. All of the professional artists I’ve worked with, from conceptual artists to comic book artists, to animators, to illustrators can attest that a model sheet is an industry standard. *shrugs*
If you want a particular expression or mood for an illustration of your character...it's just a matter of requesting it in your initial inquiry and confirming it again before sending payment. If artists are making certain assumptions of your character based off the references you're providing, then it's probably a hint that you should carefully re-evaluate the information you're providing as well as whether or not you're directing your commission enough. Language barriers/long turnaround times...those are risk factors to be considered before you decide to commit to the deal. Adding elements like character studies or mood boards won't be nearly as effective as you think if the artist A) doesn't pay attention to them or B) doesn't understand why they're included. -
Quote:Can you quantify or describe how that's better? From a design point, I'd agree that it's more interesting. But a model sheet is about conveying specific information, and doing so as clearly and concisely as possible. A humanoid figure is a humanoid figure. There are only so many ways you can position a humanoid figure and view it at. Your mood shot in the end is still a set of 2D pictures of your character, and doesn't really say anything to me about your character's mood or personality....not nearly as much as the artist's character study above. Realistically, LJ, why would anyone need an upskirt/crotch shot of your character in order to create an illustration of her?Originally Posted by LadyJudgement
I also know what you're saying. But the movement is the spunk/life/personality, it's the difference between 2D and 3D, spatial awareness of the character in "action" is far better to me personally than say a flat head on shot that says nothing other than here are the least amount of details I can give you.
You don't even have to go that far. You could go ahead and poll artists asking them whether or not your mood sheet is any more helpful to them than a format similar to the Atto-Girl references I linked earlier.Quote:Accuracy needs all the help it can get. We could do a case study, give 2 artists a flat tech reference, and give 2 other artists a more movement orientated reference. And if all 4 artists are of equal caliber, I would bet that the movement pieces come out more "accurate".
A core design concept is "keep it simple." Your mood sheet, in my opinion has unnecessary complexity that does not return a strong level of value. In my view, LJ, you'd be far better served relying less on screenshots and drawing a standard model sheet, then leaving up a 1-2 pages of character study (even straight pencils would suffice) as a supplementary. -
Quote:I know what you're saying. I don't agree that you need anything beyond the technical aspects. That link doesn't add anything significant to the ends of "these are the details the artist needs in order to draw my character accurately." As an aside, there's no spunk/life/personality in those screenshots. It's just the figure in movement.Originally Posted by LadyJudgement
*shakes head back* I agree about the character study as an additional commission and future reference chart addendum. What I meant by spunk/life/personality was something other than the technical side, front, back screens... something in addition to them, like so: LJ Mood Board
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Quote:*shakes head* I think the reference sheets LJ made is better and yes, you ideally want someone to take the pictures but I disagree about needing spunk/life/personality in the reference sheets. The model sheet should be left as open to interpretation as possible. "Stick to the facts, ma'am," so to speak...the details that must remain constant across all illustrations of the character. Personality/emotions are concept details you can/should discuss with the artist during the commission process. A good artist shouldn't need a reference to depict the character's emotion/personality and besides, those things change from illustration to illustration anyways.Originally Posted by LadyJudgement
I tried making my own of your toon... but I find the angles weren't enough to bring out any kind of personality, which is one of the things I think your sheet is missing. Technically it's fine, better than the first one, but there's no spunk there, no life... I think you need to go in game, and have someone take them, preferably with an eye for action, also those shots will show off her power effects, which is also very nice to give the artist.
For instance, I negotiated a commission for Planet Girl recently with Dean Zachary. Linked to the model sheets, then we did a quick email exchange to settle on the concept which can be summarized as "Planet Girl stands atop the smoking ruins of several battle robots she has just vanquished. Smoke and ashes rise around her; she's abit weathered but still beautiful and victorious."
If you really want to see/explore the personality of a character you could have a character study done as an addendum to your model sheet. Here's a sample character study. Note how the artist worked on different facial expressions to flesh out his personality a bit more.
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Quote:I'd have used the heroside arena to take the pictures if you have a costume that dark. The Tiki Lounge isn't very photogenic.Originally Posted by EchoSoKar
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Quote:Well look at it this way, you're doing something boring in order to get something spectacular in the end. There's alot you can do with your character in game but commissioning art of your character is an opportunity to showcase your character doing things you can't do in some fashion on the servers. 'Sides, there's nothing stopping you from taking cool screenshots. I just don't believe you need it for commissioning art.Originally Posted by Thornster
Well I don't aim to make idiotic costumes either (and I hope mine come across that way either), I just meant that those I prefer having drawn, while interesting , were not designed to be easy to draw.
But yeah, I do agree with what you said about references. Eventhough I may find the 3 full body/2 close up layout "boring" in time, if that is what fits the bill, then I will try to stick to that from now on. -
Quote:Well, I have alot of characters in-game that will not be drawn, but I still aim to make iconic costumes. *shrugs* I like my characters to look good. And I enjoy checking out the great costumes/designs fellow players come up with.Originally Posted by Thornster
Unfortunately, we don't all design are in game characters to eventually be drawn. And with the number of times I held back on asking for art of Thornster because I thought the artist may not have fun drawing him ... trust me ... he wasn't designed to be drawn. On the other hand ... he stands out ... so ... I like that. He may not be memorable ... but he is mine
Now when I want one that is more straight forward to draw ... I usually go with my Capt Quebec. That is his "Homage to the Flag" costume, which is a little more intricate, but it is still pretty basic.
The other problem I have is that I try to be interesting when I put together my screenshot composite refences. That is fun for me but may not be the best approach for something to be used by artists. So yeah I should keep the artists in mind a bit more when putting references together.
References should stick to the real core/essence of the character. You want the viewer to focus on the details that make the character who he/she is and not be distracted by details that are irrelevant to drawing the character according to your vision. Everything the artist needs to know about drawing your character should be seen clearly in a three point turnaround of the character (front, side, back) and the bust. (front and side). If you have assymetrical designs (or designs that are only on one side of the body), the yeah, you'll need a picture of the other side. Things like auras, guns, energy blasts etc I would leave up to the discretion of the artist; it's a good opportunity for them to add their own interpretaions. -
Quote:Yep. We also have themed costume nights. Like the "dress up like another 606 Forumite's character" Positron TF we did last Saturday.Originally Posted by LadyJudgement
Wacky colors? You mean if you participate, you have to recolor yourself for the night?
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Quote:Check this thread for all the details/signing up etc.Originally Posted by StormVyxen
What time is this happening?
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showt...206594&page=18
Usually we start around 8:30pm - 9pm est. -
Ironik and 3ofSwords are in. PG and I are in too.
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Looks like it's Moonfire tonight, with the possibility of shenanigans on the fly after the fact. Moonfire's 20-25. And pretty much anyone who shows up is in. Feel free to pop along too, Ironik.
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Quote:I haven't seen all your characters. And some of your characters, I've seen more than I care to. =P (Never ever want to see Lounge Crooner in Ms. Frost's costume *EVER* again.)Originally Posted by Jophiel
S... so... SOME?!?!?!
Good sir, every one of my characters is an example of finely crafted excellence!
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Quote:I think that's pretty cool. Research is a good thing.Originally Posted by Comrade Hero
I hear ya. For the statue I wanted to try and have Comrade Hero's uniform based (loosely mind you) on real world technologies.