Poll: Teen Challenge #48: journey's end

[TLL]

First: Congratulation to sketcheth for winning the "teen challenge #47

Winners of the teen challenge (since challenge 42):
zelda_geek:1
kojot:1
Lotet:1
Goog:1
Justin Oaksford:1
sketcheth:1

here are the entries for the " Teen Challenge #48: journey's end" :

pokepetter :
http://i267.photobucket.com/albums/ii288/pokepetter/TeenChallenge48JourneysEnd110060-1.jpg

Me,Myself & Me again :
http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk174/chav-reaper/Journeysend_edited-1.jpg

Justin. :
http://img73.imageshack.us/img73/7785/journeyendstcvy9.jpg

graywolff :
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y62/GrayWolff/endJOURNEY-3.gif

cecill :
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/9555/forteensq9.jpg

Shmaba :
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a77/PhantomBlaze/work/TC48JorneysEnd.jpg

zelda_geek :
http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/5603/environment021v2rz2.jpg

Auncer :
http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/9956/exploderopydn6.jpg

TLL :
http://img95.imageshack.us/img95/4545/sendho4.jpg

racing2khaos :
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b268/racing2khaos/Khaos.jpg

vibhas_virwani :
http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc132/vibhas_virwani/TC48a.jpg

mc2mc2 :
http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/3717/journeysendentrywx6.jpg

Thanasimos :
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/9113/selfportraitfinalbossfijn5.gif

Zirngibism :
http://img108.imageshack.us/img108/3011/citymodel1fullcompositixt0.jpg

sketcheth :
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i303/pancakeofwrath/sketcheth_teen_challenge_48-3.jpg

The Amaranth :
http://img501.imageshack.us/img501/3290/journeysend3gz8.jpg

OmertA :
http://img393.imageshack.us/img393/6461/teenchallege48pz4.jpg

paperX :
http://img372.imageshack.us/img372/2756/journeysendfinalfinalxo4.jpg



and the one I forgot
Goog :

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/Googprod/Journey3copy.jpg

[Goog]

ummm... Mine isn't in there.

[Justin.]

also, careful copy-pasting the same thing from round to round... Because sketcheth one Teen Challenge 47 :P

[TLL]

I'm so sorry goog. I just didn't see your entry.
Do you know how to change the poll? I don't know how to do that

[Zirngibism]

Wow, big turnout-- and so diverse!

On how much these communicate the theme:

pokepetter Yes, pretty much.
Me,Myself & Me again Debatable. Unless it's a cosmic or theological message it could be one way or another.
Justin. Yes, really comes across to me- good job.
graywolff Sort of, but maybe it should be able to function without the word bubble.
cecill Yep.
Shmaba Yep.
zelda_geek Pretty much.
Auncer Could be interpreted as the end of a journey, but to me it looks more like a transformation that we don't know the end of. If we're expecting him to be completely transforming we could see it as the middle of a journey. Neat piece by the way.
TLL Yeah, I'd say.
racing2khaos Yep.
vibhas_virwani Sort of a journey's end but could just as easily seen as a beginning or even the middle or a journey. Sort of like he's embarking but doesn't want to leave.
mc2mc2 Cool piece, but I admit I wouldn't have thought of a journey having anything to do with it if it wasn't for this contest.
Thanasimos Interesting but I really don't get the impression of a journey's end.
Zirngibism I fully admit that mine doesn't do a good job of communicating the theme. I tried putting arrow signs pointing to the port on the transportation tubes but, especially without people, it just looks like a city in celebration, which could also be the beginning of a journey or something different.
sketcheth Yes, this communicates it.
The Amaranth While it works with the theme it could also just as easily say something else.
OmertA I guess this works with the theme- perhaps I'm being too narrow about things having to look like an "end" and nothing else.
paperX I suppose this works, depending on how you think of death.
Goog This is one of the better ones at portraying the theme.

[Goog]

I'm so sorry goog. I just didn't see your entry.
Do you know how to change the poll? I don't know how to do that


I HATE you so much.

:hugsmile:

[Jamie Romoser]

awsome entrys guys cant wait for the next challenge.

[Menasha-ashd]

Really digging what PaperX did with the lighting, Awesome! Lots of good things happening, will be waiting for next turn out. I better get cracking at it.

[Thanasimos]

I want to vote for myself, but I think today I'll vote with my eyes, not my ego. But now I have to think about my decision. Damned ethics, they always make things so hard on me.

I think I'm going with the vibhas virwani, because it's both fun to look at, and an interesting take on the title -- getting T-boned by a big rig will be the end your journey, like it or not.

[paperX]

awesome turnout guys...great to see so many people participating :)

hmm..some c+c i guess:


pokepetter : I like the overall feel and mood of your composition, however, I think the way you've chosen to use the silhouettes might have let you down a bit. Imo, it clashes a bit with the watercolour-ish nature of the sky due to the really clean edges (which makes it look slightly vector/illustrator). also I get the feeling that it seems like a sunset? i think more dynamic lighting on the trees and people would work better with more saturation in the colours :) I quite like the idea though, good job!

Me,Myself & Me again : hmm very interesting composition, I find the dark hole in the bottom right corner very intriguing. However, I think the colours some how doesn't work with the whole "grunge" effect all that well, and I'm so sure about that black area on the top right hand corner. Also, I think the contrast would have worked better if you used a more painter-ish softer-edged rendering method for the top left corner with the tree and have it slowly "corrode" to the grungy textured look. The thick dark edges you have atm makes it look slightly "pasted on" and loses the effect somewhat.
Anyhow, I think its a very interesting abstract concept for the theme, great work man.

Justin. : nice stuff! I'm digging the perspective in your piece, however, maybe if you pulled the building slightly more into the foreground it would look even more dynamic :)
Also, it looks slightly "unfinished" to me, almost like a halfway done wip shot out of a pro's tutorial...try adding more contrast between the colours, more saturation and range between the temperatures. Some more textures and more distinct brushstrokes wouldn't hurt either (try 'sharpening' the image in photoshop)
It has quite a professional look to it man, good job! a bit more polish can make it really shine :)

graywolff : hehe, he reminds me of a cross between solid snake and sasuke from naruto :D some crits, try spending a bit more time on the background :) even making those shapes you have now in to darker silhouettes of trees or something would make the image look much more effective. Also, watch out for the lineart, I dunno the method that you used...but on my monitor it looks pretty aliased and some areas (like on the katana blade) it has the whole "marching ants" thing going on. Another thing is speech bubbles, try looking at some comics or manga speech bubbles next time to get an idea of how to approach them, if not done properly, they could end up distracting rather than helping with the piece (the font is also very important. Lastly, watch out for some slight anatomy problems such as the chest area (his pectorals look a bit small/ high up, which makes it look like he has 8 or 10 abs :P)
keep up the hard work!

cecill : I like how you rotated the composition from your previous wip, it was a very bold decision and I think it did make the piece more effective.
I also like how you used the textures, although you could have polished it up a bit further and gave the figures more visual hierarchy. really cool idea though, reminds me a bit of Edvard Munch's The Scream, good stuff :) (another suggestion might be to maybe place one more of the figures more towards in the foreground for spatial depth)

Shmaba : heh, really neat idea man, i like the road crumbling in the distance. Try having more dynamic hues next time with colour in your rendering, using more contrasts and complementaries, it'll make the piece look much more interesting :)

zelda_geek : I really like the composition, I'm not sure what the stance on using photos is in teen challenge so i wont go into that. one crit would be try polishing up the sky a bit further...and maybe add a trail of foot prints behind two people?

Auncer : really really frikin sweet man, loved the initial sketch before, but the end piece is really great. I really like the colour choices, rendering and the transition of your idea. can't really think of much to critique sorry...I would love to see this in a graphic novel or something :)

TLL : good idea man :) the composition looks very good as well...I would suggest against using pure white or black for highlights and shadow...also try using softer/harder edges or bigger range in saturation/value to differentiate between the foreground and background, i know you have the perspective and scale there....but it still looks a bit flat due to the rendering. keep it up!

racing2khaos : quite like the idea of the sun behind the mountains just with the rays peeking through, however I suggest spending more time next time polishing the lighting and and your colours. I also advice against using stick figures for silhouettes...it doesn't really help with practicing gesture, also maybe make the forground sharper (try not to use black for shadows though...) to give more spatial depth. I would probably try making the canvas bigger also, it looks slightly too "busy" and tight atm (more sky maybe?)
keep practicing!

vibhas_virwani : haha sweet idea! would love to see you work on the guy's expression more though, somehow it doesn't really match with the situation he's in :P I can see this as a still from a film or something though, really interesting idea and execution...maybe add a more reflective quality to the window? im sure there would be more relections/glare somewhere if two massive headlights where beaming at glass :)

mc2mc2 : hey dude, i gotta say i quite like the idea :) i originally thought she was floating in a river with roses around her in your wip's, but i think her expression works a lot better like this :) im not really feeling the fact that her hand's are resting on her body though, her right hand feels like it needs a darker edge and shadow below where it touches her body and her left hand looks like its been raised ...digging the colour choices though...even though she still has her milk mustache haha :P

Thanasimos : hehe, quite the funny piece dude. although judging by the technical aspects, i would suggest however looking at the art direction and colour choices for cell shaded titles such as maybe zelda wind waker, and study how they treated the rendering in that style. better yet, take a look at bluefooted's work, I'm sure you'll learn a lot. The essentials of artistic foundations are very important in the development of a personal style :)

Zirngibism : hmmm, your rendering has this 3d look to it...i have to apologise though as i don't really understand the "journey's end" aspect of your composition and idea. try polishing up the edges and your brushwork when rendering? looks slightly "muddy" to me in areas...I can see you put a lot of thought into it though, keep working hard!

sketcheth : haha you already know how i feel about this...hmmmm......those are some sexy flames :P

The Amaranth : nice idea! i suggest working on the following areas: the colour - broader range of hues, introduce more saturation and complementaries in areas of focus.
the rendering - watch out for your brushwork, some areas on the monster could use some cleaner edges
I really like how the lone guy is done however, few strokes used brilliantly for effectiveness. not so sure about his pose though, feels like to me he would be slightly more...ready to do something rather than looking like he's standing guard :P

OmertA :hmm nice, has a bit of a vyle look to it :), a bit more polish would make it even better though, slightly lacking areas of focus/ an visual hierarchy atm....i like how you did the smoke/ clouds in the background though, good job!

Goog : dude i'm really digging this, love the subtle hues in the grass and rocks (reminds me slightly of idiotApathy's rendering method, in a good way ofcourse :), looks really nice ) love how the guy is painted as well, you can really feel the wind blowing at him...i guess his head might be slightly big though :P I'm tempted to suggest working on the sky and ocean further, however my guts tell me that might kill the awesome muted, calm, slightly dreary mood the piece has going on at the moment, so....its great as it is :)


Phew...that took a while...great job everyone! this was an awesome teen challenge! :D

My vote is tied between Goog, sketcheth, mc2mc2 , and Auncer atm...so I'm waiting for a bit longer to see if maybe TLL can change the poll to add Goog in before deciding...so hard to decide :(

[TLL]

goog: I'm so sorry but I didn't find anything about changing polls. The FAQ section etc. says nothing about this.
I't really sorry because I think your piece was one of the best entries this time.

Now I go to Italy with my family. I wont have an internet connection there and so I can't change the poll anymore.
Sorry again.:nohope:

[graywolff]

Thanks paperx ! ive been working on my anatomy since then. bought some books etc.

Zirngibism probably not a good idea to vote for yourself :)

[Thanasimos]

Thanasimos : hehe, quite the funny piece dude. although judging by the technical aspects, i would suggest however looking at the art direction and colour choices for cell shaded titles such as maybe zelda wind waker, and study how they treated the rendering in that style. better yet, take a look at bluefooted's work, I'm sure you'll learn a lot. The essentials of artistic foundations are very important in the development of a personal style :)

Thanks much. I guess it's good to get some CnC, because I don't feel quite ready to say goodbye to this one yet -- and, being digital and carefully constructed of multiple layers, it isn't hard to change. Bluefooted, you say? I'll look him up. I suppose that means I'll have to post of my picture what I have when I'm really and truly done, then. Damned deadlines. I only started three days ago, and when I did, I had no idea I'd put it in this contest! (Long stories are best untold).

[Goog]

goog: I'm so sorry but I didn't find anything about changing polls. The FAQ section etc. says nothing about this.
I't really sorry because I think your piece was one of the best entries this time.

Now I go to Italy with my family. I wont have an internet connection there and so I can't change the poll anymore.
Sorry again.:nohope:

eh, don't worry bout it, Ill live. I'll just have to come back to the next contest and do better :).

[Zirngibism]

Thanks paperx ! ive been working on my anatomy since then. bought some books etc.

Zirngibism probably not a good idea to vote for yourself :)


1. I saw nothing in the preliminary rules about not being allowed to do so. This is the first contest like this I've entered so if it's some kind of unspoken forbidden act or something well now I know and I'm sorry. I've seen it specified in other places so I thought it was a specified and non-universal rule.

2. I promise if I saw something I truely liked better than mine I would've voted for it. To be honest I probably spent the most time on mine and think in this case I, as a personal opinion, like it best. It fits my taste, likely because it's mine. This isn't to say I don't like anybody elses. I did-- there are some cool ideas here I've seen lots of work on the web (though I'm a little tired of Vyle clones and anime-ish goth-ish stuff but again that's just me).

3. How does one see who voted for what, anyway? The italic? So it IS a universal rule at CA?

4. Was the smileyface sarcasm? Or are you saying that in the form of a friendly tip? I can't help thinking that if you really wanted to give me a pointer for the future that you would've PM'd me instead of broadcasting your "advice"...

[lord_regenschirm]

Ouh tastes like bad blood in here ... @ Zirngibism: You don't have to justify your decision if you didn't know the (in-)official rules of the polls on CA so just chill ... you know better for the next time now :)

My vote went to sketcheth's piece ... Close decision between this one and Goog's which unfortunately wasn't listed. Both brilliant in terms of tecnique but the deep atmosphere of sketcheth's got me at last ;)

[Alex Chow]

I just can't say no to sketcheth's execution. It's exactly what I've envisioned of a journey's end for a video game character; lots-o'-treasure but a ridiculous boss guarding it. Aside from portraying the theme nicely, the colours are cohesive and appealing, the lighting accentuates the dangers of the situation, composition is great, and beautiful brushstrokes. One thing to improve on it is to maybe have the golem with his hands looking prepared to crush anyone who comes near his treasure rather than being down, but it's a very minor thing.

The Amaranth While it works with the theme it could also just as easily say something else.

I agree. The monster vs. small guy thing going on in my work does not portray the theme as well as sketcheth's now that I look back at it.

The Amaranth : nice idea! i suggest working on the following areas: the colour - broader range of hues, introduce more saturation and complementaries in areas of focus.

Yeah, colour is my biggest weakpoint that I'm slowly alleviated (along with stiffness). I'll keep this in mind; I knew coming into this challenge can bring great tips.


the rendering - watch out for your brushwork, some areas on the monster could use some cleaner edges
I really like how the lone guy is done however, few strokes used brilliantly for effectiveness. not so sure about his pose though, feels like to me he would be slightly more...ready to do something rather than looking like he's standing guard

Well, at least I did something right :) The monster, definitely agreed, needs to be rendered better. I think I got lazy with the person's pose as well.

Thanks everyone.

[Zirngibism]

@ Lord Regenschirm-- Thanks, today's been a pretty bad day for me and I guess I overreacted a little.


And my unnofficial vote goes to Cecill. The composition is really great, draws me in, and I especially like the color palette. The impressioney style is kind of refreshing too. At first I thought it was too loose but I think it works conveying a mood more than a literal portrayal. I'm glad you avoided too many blacks and blues as most people seem to do when showing death.