HOME | DD
inkloose — Rita Mordio: Collab
by-nc-nd
Published: 2009-01-06 04:07:54 +0000 UTC; Views: 2620; Favourites: 22; Downloads: 468
Redirect to original
Description
I was bored today and wanted to color, so I took some of ~Warrior-of-Winds 's pretty lineart and went to work!I totally didn't ask first, but it's ok, right John? *nudge, nudge*
I really liked his linework for Rita here, but thought her left hand was at a weird angle, so I cropped it. That, and I didn't want to color the whole thing! That would have taken far too long. Sucks though, cuz she has some cute legs. I know that sounded weird. AHEM.
You can find the pimp-fresh and complete lineart HERE: [link]
Anyway, this is the first time I was sucessfully able to stop myself from blending and just do the entire thing by cel-shading. I think it turned out well, too! I bet it wouldn't look this good if it was my own linework, lol.
Oh! If you didn't know, this is Rita Mordio from Tales of Vesperia for the XBOX360. Fuck, why do new Tales games always come out for systems I don't own?!? D:
Rita's this awesome smart girl from that game who is a little bit of a jerk. She's got a really original personality for a video game character, and she's probably one of my favorite characters from that game, alongside Raven. XD
--
756 x 476 pxls
Photoshop CS3
7 hours just to color? WHAT?
--
linework © ~Warrior-of-Winds
coloring © ~evoblade
Rita Mordio and Tales of Vesperia © Konami
Related content
Comments: 45
Is it okay with you if I use this awesome picture for my webcam pic???
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Wow, nice coloring job! 
I love your backgrounds too, as always...
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Holy shnikes did not see this coming! Thats amazing!
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Lol, do you approve? I was going to ask you first, but you weren't online, and I was impatient...
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Monstrous approval. I've always liked your coloring, and I take it as a huge compliment to have other people want to use my lineart.
Only thing that I see I would change is she looks like she has lipstick, but that's so minor I dunno why I'm even mentioning it.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Oh, jolly good!
Thanks for the fave!
Oh yeah, I don't like that either. :[
I guess I was trying to make her lips look 3D-ish, but maybe that backfired. :\
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Meh, I tend to avoid messing with lips at all unless it's an adult, when they would have more noticeable lips anyway.
Anytime you feel like coloring anything of mine, go right ahead. It's a huge ego boost to me, and it's probably the only way half my stuff will get colored.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Yeah, it does look a bit odd... but in this pic I needed to use the color I used on her cheeks on the lips also to form a repetition triangle... it just looked too empty without it. I shouldn't have made it so 3Dish or shiny though.
And that's good to hear. I will definately color more of your work when I have the time.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
No, I was being sarcastic. I was actually wondering what a repitition triangle is.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
So was I. I didn't feel like explaining.
But I will.
It's where you use repetition (in color, texture, line quality, etc) to create a triangle in the composition in order to draw attention to that particular area. For some reason, triangles are particularly aesthetically captivating, and creating them in your artwork using color or what have you will help emphasize your focal point.
Did I explain that ok?
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
Dude, the BACKGROUND OMFG. COOL. COOOOOL. COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL.
And the coloring is just... IMO, I think of think it's some of the best you've done digitally. Do you agree? I mean, I'm probably being biased somehow. Because I'm dying from those colors you used. They're really pretty and they go fantastically together. Plus, I like the way it's shaded. Kinda over-the-top, but it works. I do, however, second the long-ass post that one kid left; that white should not be a highlight color. It's in the middle of being over-the-top [in a good way... like drag xD] and straight up... well, 'tacky' is a bit harsh, but I can't think of another word. It sort of works here.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Lol, so much hype over the background~
Remember those gear brushes I was talking about? Yeah, that's what you're seeing, along with a little bit of textured brushing. :\
Nothing that took over 10 mins, for reals.
Thanks! I seriously need to color more if this is near my best, though. I'm thinking about entering that one contest thing with the digital art, so that should help get me refreshed a little.
And... yeah, I've learned a lot from my looooong comment chain with Nakarie up there... and white is definately not happening as a highlight unless I'm making eyes. o.o;
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Brushes?
God damn.
I want a shortcut like that for watercolors!
You don't think this is very good coloring? Cuz I do. But eh. Whatever.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Oh yeah. They are my BS buddies, those brushes. :3
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
I think the line art is a bit thick in the fingers, but your side of the job is amazing. I like the gear motif you have going.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Thanks! Good to know that the gears fit.
If you have anything else to say about the lineart, please comment on John's original pic.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
But I don't know this "John"....
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
Ahahaha, I still recognized it as your own, even WITH the cell shading someone else's lineart! Oh man, that's awesome. I blame the mudsplatter background, though. It scream Ian somehow. XD And I agree with the long as critique someone else made because anything I could add would be trivial.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Hehe, it's like you're turning this in into a game. ^-^
Ohh, I'll throw you off one day...
And yeah, gotta love Zah up there for leaving me an AMAZING critique. I'm going to respond to that behemoth in a little bit~
Thanks! ^_^
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Muahahaha, yes.
... Just yes. XD
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
That's downright spiffy (<- first comment in a looong while)! The color scheme is perfect to become a new desktop wallpaper for my Ubuntu system! *maniacal / nerdy laugh*
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Thanks for the fave, but don't you feel any remorse for this degree of shameless promotion of Ubuntu? Every comment you have left me recently has something to do with Linux! XD;
Anyway, thanks, glad it works for you customization needs.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
First of all, I'm working on purging myself of any reservations in expressing my beliefs about Linux and Free Software (and anything else, for that matter). Shame is a restrictive emotion that limits the creative and intellectual expression of otherwise very insightful people (not that I'm insightful, but that's besides the point 
Secondly, it was unintentional promotion. I've been looking for some new desktop artwork recently, and yours just screamed RIGHT CLICK ME when I saw it. I liked the picture, but had nothing related to the image to comment about. I've felt bad in not leaving you very many comments at all, that I had to say something.
By the way, if you'd like a fun name you can call me in response to my promotion, I've come across something rather interesting in the Free Software blogosphere (or more appropriately, in the responses): "Linux Fanboy." It suits me, don't you think?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Wow, ok. I think you defended yourself sufficiently, Linux Fanboy.
That nickname is quite befitting, yes.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
Atch, one of the games/series that I'd like to play but never having
the motivation/time/monies to go get and play it. 8D;;;
Anyhow, that aside, the critique,
I think cell shading is something that looks easy, but can actually be very tricky,
though I guess this can also vary depending on how complex the lineart is...
especially when there's clothing folds involved, although that's hard in general. 8D;
But more so with cell shading, because of how sharp or defined it is,
so you can't really hide stuff like you can with blended colors.
I'm kind of confused by the lighting on her outstretched hand, if the light source is coming from the top left I don't see how there could be highlights here --> [link]
I also suggest using one or two slightly darker shades for the skin because of the high contrast suggested by the shading of everything else.
Avoid using pure white as THE highlight color, beside the fact that it's tooooo bright,
it's also too much of a transition from the midtone.
Look around at the different objects around you right now and you may notice that pure white only comes in tiny dots or dashes on things.
Cloth is a very dense object and absorbs a lot of light, so it won't light up like it does in the image. :00
I'm looking at some official art of her and I'd say that her clothes are far from simple,
there's a lot of details and just...stuff on her torso. It isn't hard to see what's going on there on the official art because the shading is pretty simple,
but here some details get lost, or just looks like a muddle of some sort. OwO;
I think the reason is because you're coloring everything separately rather then a whole.
This kind of happens when you're coloring lineart because how lines tend to separate everything into pieces.
Heh, I'm looking though my linearted works and I'm noticing the same pattern,
everything that is in the same color family will be shaded with the same shades,
I think this is because I would fill in the lineart with the 'base' color then shade from there,
Dunno if you have a similar step in coloring,
but I'm assuming so because how everything that's the same general color, say red, has that midtone red.
Like that notebook thing, I think it would be mainly darker colored at that spot, as well as the pages,
It would definantly not appear that light from there. :0
Urk, I'm reading this paragraph over and it's kind of confusing,
but I'd already rewritten it about 3 times, so I hope you get what I'm trying to say. @____@;;
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Damn, I love you. *-*
Seriously, I haven't read a critique this good in a long time. Thanks so much!
Ok, let's get started-
It's hard to reply to critiques this good without sounding like I'm defending myself, but I want to start by saying that I enable advanced critique for all the work in which I'm trying new things and don't hold back on. I realize that fabrics and clothes are denser for the most part (except surfaces that shine like leather and polyester) and I know about their reflective properties. The reason I made her clothes (and everything!) shine is because I wanted the picture to generate that cute, shiny feel. I guess it's the reason I cel-shaded in the first place.
As for the lighting on the hand (thanks for including a pic!), that was a total slip-up. I guess it comes from me using multiple light sources all the time, so that when I reduce the lights to one, I still feel like there should be more to make the piece more dynamic.
The skin thing... is a personal preference. I like there to be either ridiculous contrast, or hardly any. I guess more on this particular piece would help though. Originally there was more, but I went over it with dodge and sponge tools a couple times because I thought it looked too saturated at the time I was coloring it. Thanks, though! I'll probably change this later on, along with the hand lighting.
As for the quantity of white- again, it's the mood I wanted to set. I suppose I could have used tinged light reds, oranges, greys, or even blues, but alas, I am lazy. -.-;
White also ties in to the negative space in the background I wanted to use, but maybe I could have pulled that off with a little bit of white.
The stuff on her chest... is a bit chaotic, I agree. *_*
I actually didn't notice this until you pointed it out, so thanks very much! I'm also impressed that you were able to deduce how I color. I'm slightly OCD, so besides eating all of one type of food at a time before moving on to the next thing, I also color and draw that way. It would really help my artistic ability if I could find a way to overcome that and make my work more cohesive. Like you said, it would help with the lighting not getting lost and all that. The things that are behind this are tradition and laziness. I think if I could devote more time to finding the right tones, it could translate a little better. Then again, this is my first time using cel-shading, so I didn't use the usual copouts that I use while blending. I usually shade midtones and deviant tones first, and then come back over that with a "wash" of shade or a seperate hue for backlighting. It helps tie the piece together color-wise. I still have a way to go before I'm considered a professional, if that ever happens, lol.
Anyway, everything you said came across clear and understandable. I can't thank you enough! I'll be sure to return the favor sometime.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Your welcome, it was my pleasure. :d
Anyhow, reply:
"The reason I made her clothes (and everything!) shine is because I wanted the picture to generate that cute, shiny feel."
It's true that the coloring can really make or break a piece, but for the most part, coloring conveys mood.
"cute" is more like a subject, which is determined mostly by what you are drawing, or in this case the lineart. :0
Although you did say, "cute, shiny feel" and well, I think everyone has different standards for what that really is,
but I think the cute, shiny feel can be accomplished without so much white,
I think it can be done by a few well-placed highlights,
although this kind of overlaps into the field of "style"
so it really depends on what the viewer/artist's preferences.
Here are some examples of cute and shiny that I found in my CG collection that are more like cel-shading:
[link] [link] [link] [link] [link] [link] [link]
About the lighting on the hand though, if you just changed it so everything else has multiple lighting then it'd be ok.
Speaking of which, might I suggest a colored light?
Like, there's always the main light source which is usually white,
but then why not make the secondary light colored?
I think yellow would work for this, or even a cold color, like blue or purple.
As for the intensity, maybe weaker, but that's really up to you.
Oh, here's a wonderful tutorial on color environment,
it's really wordy, but really insightful: [link]
Something that I learned from my art teacher is to regularly step back from your work,
and this REALLY applies to digital art because we have the power of the zoom tool,
and what usually seems to happen is people zoom in too close. :0
And they get carried away with one thing instead of seeing the picture as a whole.
"White also ties in to the negative space in the background I wanted to use,
but maybe I could have pulled that off with a little bit of white."
Do you mind explaining that a tad more? I can't seem to understand this bit.
"I'm slightly OCD, so besides eating all of one type of food at a time before moving on to the next thing, I also color and draw that way."
Hahaha, interesting way of eating, although I guess I kinda do the same when I eat, (rice doesn't count).
But actually, coloring the base for everything seems to be a common step among digital artists,
least many tutorials are making it seem that way. :000
Anyhow, from what you've said I can tell that you've recognized the problem and is on your way to fix it.
"this is my first time using cel-shading" WHAT? WHHHHAAATTT?
Did you mention this in the description? Because I don't remember it.
WELL DANG, IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME CELL-SHADING, ok, no more shouting,
well, this is really good for first time! o____o
Anyhow, I think I've said all I have to said, so that's that. And again, no problem.
Critiquing this has really made me think about a few things too. XD
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Oh wow, these are getting longer, aren't they? D:
Concerning the quantity of white:
I agree, there is too much in there. But it seems like it's a very nitpicky detail to manage. Everybody has a certain color preference, and I've been trying to get away from my use of black recently (too much india ink!) But it just seems like I used too much white instead. I don't think the lighting is compromised too much by my use of white, except in a few areas like below the hand and Rita's left side (as seen by her).
Thanks for the examples! I see what you mean, although several of those used pure white as a backlight and also involved gradients, which I tried not to use for this peice.
I think it would be far easier for me to reshade the sleeve area than make another light source. It's also rare for me to use pure white in backlighting scenarios. I tend to like using purple and orange for that, although I do use a neutural tone once in a while.
Thanks for the tutorial, although most of the information it contained I already knew. I spent two years learning color theory because I went into my first AP art class not knowing how to color efficiently or balance composition at all, and I'd like to think that I learned a little from it. Right now, I'm trying to get back into coloring digitally again since I've spent the last year working in watercolor with maybe a couple of unrefined pieces of digital art thrown in to the mix. I wasn't looking to create a coloring masterpeice, more like the artist's equivalent of a coloring book, hoping that someone would come along and critique it and get me refreshed on the subject, which is exactly what happened! I think I've ranted a bit much on this subject, moving on...
The quote:
"White also ties in to the negative space in the background I wanted to use,
but maybe I could have pulled that off with a little bit of white."
All I'm saying here is that I wanted the highlighting on the character to reflect the background hue so that it would translate better. That's why I used so much white- because the background is white also. Sure, I could have added some orange in too, but I didn't feel like it. >:3
About focusing on the pic as a whole:
OH GOD YES. I know. But it's so hard to step back and look at things as a whole! My art teachers have told me this all my life, but it's a lot easier said than done. I dont lay down base color all at one time, like most digital artists. I DO when I'm painting though, which is a little odd. Maybe I should pretend like I'm painting. P:
Concerning first cel-shading attempt:
Well, yeah. I usually can't stop myself from blending things. The only thing I've done that comes close to cel-shading is done with cut paper. This stupid thing here: [link]
Anyway, thanks.
You've really helped me realize my mistakes and get a fresh start on the digital (and traditional) work I'm going to be working diligently on in the near future.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Hahahah, they are. xD But I don't think this reply will be that long:
Can't say too much about the first part besides I agree with what you're saying there. xD;
But yeah, purpose of the piece is quite important,
like you said, "I wasn't looking to create a coloring masterpiece"
in that sense, this is kind of like one of those practice pieces,
nothing TOO serious, but good nonetheless.
Heh, in cases like these I think it's best not to over-evaluate/think the piece.
Oh and the examples, I realize a lot of them had gradients in them,
but if I didn't include those my example count would probably be 1 or 2. @3@;;
Anyhow, alright I see what you mean in the quote.
This does remind me of someone saying that you shouldn't
use white as a background color so often.
I think it was from yet another tutorial, don't actually remember the
reasons tooo well but I think it was something
to do with how the background will affect the subject because it's too
light and whatnot.....MOVING ON. <___<;
I'd have to agree with you about focusing on the whole,
Well, it's a tad eaiser with traditional art for me
because it's more tangible and eaiser to actually
physically step back from,
this seems harder with digital art because it's much eaiser
to start obsessing over little detials in digital.
that, and because I haven't drawn anything of note with digital in a loonnggg time
That's an interesting way of painting,
I usually go from one element of the image to the next. :0
However I am adapting a more '
kinda like, coloring everything togather. 8D;
Heeeyyy, we had to do a paper collage for self portrait too. xDDD
But you'll problably get a look at mine around end of the school year.
Well, no problem, and I can't say that I didn't learn from this too.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Ack, it's been fun, but I think this has gone on for a pretty long time- and I think we're pretty much just repeating what the other has said, honestly. O.o;
So um, CONCLUSIONS!
-I shall not use as much white in the future!
-Backlighting is fun!
-Try to limit white in the background, for some reason or other!
-I need to learn to focus on the image as a whole as well as detailed sections!
-I want to see your paper collage! Mine looks like crap.
-Art is a learning experience! Huzzah!
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Sounds good!
Although I disagree about the paper collage. YOURS LOOKS GREAT!!!
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
That could work also. :]
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Is better. Less people understand.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
