help with fantasy art

[Bo Degn]

hi @ all

im in trouble .. im doing this tower in 3d.. and i have this idea that it could be nice if there were stained glass windows... i have tried to draw something and then worked with it in photoshop... but i dont seem to get it right... can someone see what needs to be done?


heres the window

http://www.bodegn.com/images/wip_towerofbeaty_texture.jpg

heres the tower

http://www.bodegn.com/images/wip_towerofbeaty_high3.jpg

plz help me out a little

[egerie]

Get some references from real stained glass windows not only from cathedrals, churches and whatsnot but also from modern glass artisans. It'll give you a better idea of what they look like, the style and the effects you're looking after.
And stay away from that damn filter !!!

[Bo Degn]

i have done soom research on renaisance art work... found out that stained glass windows often consist of strong saturated colours... and uses icons combined with some sort of deco.. and thats what im trying to replicate.

hmm a shame u dont like my photoshop work, as a 3d artist i must admit that i see filters and effects as a vital part of texture making... so im probably not going to "stay away from those damn filters"... ;-)

[nikia]

I used to do stained glass. You have to seperate each of your colors with a black line to simulate lead. Your yellow, even with the variations in colors would be one piece of glass, the red would be another etc. The black and red shading in the middle of the piece would also be a different piece of glass, it needs to be seperate from the red. So you need to paint a black line between each of those colors (either straight or curved) joining up with the black lines radiating outward all the way around. Any highlights on the knight or the symbol in the middle would also be a seperate piece of glass. Although most glass artist will use glass paint and paint more detail onto a piece after the initial glass work is finished. Even then they will outline any painted colors with black to simulate lead.
Also, if you used one huge piece of glass in an area, the whole piece would break. (the glass being too heavy for the lead) so in your picture, starting in the middle, by the symbol, you would have two pieces of glass between the outward radiating lines, (or one, as you want to have them about the same size all the way around), then working outward toward the edge, three pieces, then four, etc. until you get to the edge of your work. That way all the small pieces held by lead makes the whole strong.
I hope this makes sense, it's hard to describe. I can take a photo of a stained glass piece I have here if you need it and post it to your thread. good luck.