Wolf Creature Continued

I spent a bit more time on this guy, tightening up the secondary forms. The next step is to figure out how to finish the base.

Creature busts works in progress

More sculpting practice with these two.

Hammerhead Alien

I picked up a great little technique from the Neville Page Gnomon master class and thought I’d give it a try.

The process involves poly painting on a 3D plane in Z-Brush with symmetry turned on. When you first start to paint keep the Sub div level low on the poly plane. When you paint the brushstrokes look blurry and pixelated, don’t worry if it looks bad at this stage since it’s this lack of detail which provides the Rorschach effect and allows you to see possibilities you might not have thought of initially.

What I particularly like about this technique is how fast it is, as your brush stroke is mirrored while you work the design comes together much faster and since you’re working in a front view, you can focus purely on design.

Queen of Spades sculpture WIP

The Dammed city - London : Year 2109

Future London. A city under siege from the ocean. A vast dam surrounds major parts of the city. The city runs on hydroelectricity. All the vehicles and buildings have generators that convert the kinetic energy of the rivers aqueducts and waterfalls. The sea water is harnessed and converted to fresh water for drinking and agriculture.

Since dry land is restricted it was deemed necessary to use all available free space to cultivate plant life.

As a result, all rooftops and the surrounding dam are blanketed in flora and fauna. The natural element adds a rich contrast to the urban jungle.

The surrounding suburbs are enclosed within gigantic domes made from steel and glass. Within the domes, the suburbs reach deep down into the earth.

These sinkholes are overcrowded, noisy and ill equipped for the sheer number of citizens they support. Crime is rife and gangs control entire districts of the sinkholes. Life in the lower quarters is a stark contrast to the lives of the elite who are fortunate to live in the main basin.

Body design - Support work

Agents head design - Support work

Agents Weapons

These weapons are supplied by Midheaven. Each agent is equipped with an internal nuclear reactor. The reactor is the source of the agents seemingly super human abilities. It powers every gadget in the agents arsenal. It creates the ammunition for the side arm pistol that's concealed on the underside of his left forearm. The melee weapon,(a set of high frequency energy claws on Leonis' right hand) capable of cutting through almost any material is also the result of the reactor.

What sets agent Leonis apart from the other Hollowmen is a device that he created himself, that no other agent within Midheaven possesses - a briefcase that can alter its form and function seemingly by the sheer will of its creator!

Different modes include a sub-machine gun, shield laptop and most unique of all, a K9 unit which appears to be a fully autonomous robot....

Special Agent - code name : Leonis

Agent Leonis is one of the twelve knights of the Zodiac. A cybernetic super agent, he was built by Midheaven under the Hollowman program.

Along with his eleven fellow agents, (each of whom represents one of the twelve signs of the Zodiac) they are part of a secret and dangerous order which date back to 7th century BC. Their actions have profoundly changed the course of mankind throughout the ages. They operate in secret - guardians to some, executioners to others, traffickers of information, masters of espionage, spies, counter terrorists...the list goes on.

There must always be twelve agents. When an agent is killed in the line of duty, another is chosen to take his place. This way they are timeless. There have been many before and there will be many more.

Each agent has a unique design which complements the sign they represent. Despite the customised appearance of the agents they all carry standard issue gadgets and power sources.

Leonis, (or Leo) is the fifth agent of Midheaven. He is powered by a internal reactor which is the source of the agents seemingly super human abilities. Power from the core can be harnessed and directed to different weapons and gadgets. His uniform is fashioned from special materials to withstand the extreme temperatures generated by the core when the agent utilises his abilities.

Ability's include: heightened strength and stamina, a small yet highly powerful side arm attached to his left arm. The munitions are created inside the core as bolts of energy and stored in his arm. This way there is a constant supply available and the gun is useless in civilian hands.

Each agent has Mirage technology that allows the agent to appear different and mimic the appearance of others. His vision has also been enhanced to include the ability to see in different ranges such as infra red, heat vision, ultraviolet light, high magnification and x-ray vision.

Power from the core unit can be redirected to ports on the agents lower legs allowing for limited boosts during jumps and kick combinations.

Marcus Pride - Alter Ego

Meet Leo's alter ego, Marcus pride. Marcus Pride is a Traceur, a free runner working as a courier for the cities most reputable and elite delivery service, Meridian.

The clients of Meridian pay a lot of money to ensure that their assets are delivered exactly on time and with the utmost security. They deal with highly sensitive and valuable cargo.
Each Traceur is required to be proficient in hand to hand combat. Many are ex-military and former government agents. Due to the hazardous nature of the work the pay is very high, but then so are the risks.

The environment itself holds many dangers. The city is overcrowded and organized gangs control entire districts.

Somehow against the odds Marcus manages to flourish in this role. He triumphs where others fail and takes assignments in parts of the city where others simply will not go.

It has come to the attention of the cities criminal fraternity that Meridians couriers carry highly sensitive and therefore valuable cargo. The Meridian Traceur’s reputation precedes them. They are fierce when engaged in combat and have the legal backing of local authorities and law enforcement.

Marcus has been employed by Meridian for some time, giving him unrivalled knowledge of the city and the crime cartels that operate within it. Marcus has gained many allies and contacts on the streets, the streets he knows like the back of his hand - but unfortunately he has also made many enemies along the way.

MirageTech - Support sheet

Each agent is provided with a MIRAGE device, standard Midheaven issue for Hollowmen

This unique piece of technology affords the agents complete anonymity if they so wish. A hard light VR equivalent of themselves is outwardly projected. MIRAGE is also able to scan the form of any individual the agent has encountered providing they are of a similar stature to that agent, and mimic them for short periods of time.

All cybernetic components are hidden by MIRAGE allowing the agent to blend in and assume a regular 'day job' thus creating the perfect cover.

The Adaptive scanning function is limited and its effects fail after prolonged usage, returning the agent to his or her true appearence. The stored alter ego form however will last indefinitely.

Head turn

Old Man Z-brush practice

Some Z-brush practice this time, thought I'd try something a bit more realistic. He was built from a sphere in Z-Brush about 3 hours work, with no reference. I recorded my progress and have a movie but I don’t know how to turn It into a QuickTime file. when I figure it out, I'll post the results.

Alien Creature Design

This is an old concept which I went back to recently I liked some of the shapes and ideas I came up with for this guy. It's a warrior class alien. The actual creature is the red glowing parts and the armor is an organic bone material only much tougher.

The Unseen B-movie monster

I had this idea for a creature design which is composed entirely from human body parts, the tricky part was to get a design which would look interesting and not just a mess of limbs and parts.

I opted for this serpent like quality, the arms would help to pull it along and add to the creepiness. It was a bit of fun and practice what can I say you wouldn't hang it on your wall I know.

Defiance

This was done for the Wacom comp on Deviant Art. The theme was Good vs Evil.

The story in this piece is of a mother who is protecting her son from marauders. Her husband lies dead on the ground murdered by the tyrant who stands before her. As is often the case it looks as though there is no hope left but the love for her child, her defiance and the magic unleashed by the spirit of her dead husband might just be enough to save them.

I didn't even manage to get into the top 50, but I did get a piece that I'm pretty happy with and which I think tells a good story.

Octo-simian Mermaid

My take on a mermaid. Trying to do something a bit different with a mermaid design. I was quite pleased with the results and as usual I wanted to see the design in 3D. The plan was to build a maquette in Sculpey but instead I went for Z-brush.

The Creature from the Black Lagoon

The sculpt was built using Super Sculpey over a metal armature. I decided to make the maquette based loosely on the concept, but I wanted a slightly more dynamic pose.

One great aspect of working a concept in 3D like this is the ability to design on the fly, making decisions and trying out possibilities which you might have missed on paper. .

Game Artisans Mini Challenge

I just got done on this. I'm not sure why I ended up choosing Vega out of all the street fighter characters, guess I must be a glutton for punishment. In hind sight I should have gone for Segat, would have saved a shit load of hassle. It was fun though and it was also my first shot at a forum comp.

Head Closeup

A close up of the head as you can't see it very clearly in the other video.

Z-brush WIP

More Z-brush shenanigans. This time it's my Octosimian Mermaid. I've got a long way to go before she's completed but all the major forms are roughed in and it's more of a test bed for me then anything else.

WIP Progression

I saved this sculpt off at certain stages, as I find that sometimes Z-brush can be a bit fecky and crash and corrupt the tool. Better safe then sorry so I've got these stages to look back over. the current stage it's at is by no means final, but it's getting there. Once I begin placing in the teeth the shape of the mouth will alter and I'll no doubt move features around when I look at this with a fresh eye.

WIP Z-Brush Forest Ogre

So this is me trying to wrap my head around Z-brush. If you haven't tried it yet get on it, it's an incredible bit of software. This is a work in progress for a Forest Ogre character I did a while back. I thought it might be a good challenge to try to create it in Z-brush. I started out with a sphere 3D and went from there. Next step is to get some teeth in it's mouth. I have the body roughed out and the plan is to kit bash it, pose it up and I might poly paint it to get some colors into it.

Character Maquette WIP

I built this Maquette for a pitch for a race I was asked to design. I took photos as I went along as I was planning on putting a tutorial together at some point...always at some point.

The Old King

This concept sketch was for the king of a race of Griffin Men. It was shown at the Nordic games conference as one of the examples of the differences between Eastern and western approaches to character design. I was very lucky to have been asked to be part of a panel called East West all stars along with Alex Taini from Ninja Theory of Heavenly Sword fame and the art director of Sega responsible for Jet Set radio and the Art Director from Furi Furi.

Shnickt..Grrrr...SMASH!!!

I haven't drawn comic book characters since my GCSE days. I realized one day that it was all I ever did, I never made up my own stuff. I have to say it was really good fun, and I might do some more, Maybe.

More Sketches

Another set of sketches, a little character exploration for the book I'm putting together.

Sketch Book work

These are from my current sketch book which I've started to keep after years and years of not bothering and not seeing much point in having one I finally came around to the idea and it goes everywhere with me now.

So far its been to Sweden, Amsterdam, and London and it's great to get some of this shit out of my head and down on paper, inevitably making room for more shit to take it's place.

The Queen of Spades

I was lucky enough to have this image featured in issue 35 of ImaginFX

The Crystal Lure

Those Imps sure do like shinny things, such a shame.

Crusader Marine

The Templar class marine. hu rah!

One Girl and Her Pig.....

Strange girl, pet pig, who knows...

SpellBound

I created this for a book I'm trying to put together if I could just get my finger out of my ass for a sec... I wish I was better at finishing what i start.