EOW 142: Interstellar lighthouse

[chaosrocks]

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/chaosrocks/EOW2.jpg

EOW 142 Interstellar lighthouse

interpret as you will.


DUE May 24 2010
Go!!

NO description required, say what you need to say visually. the words are already there.


:right: FOLLOW THE TOPIC.

:right: POST YOUR FINAL HERE THREAD.


:right: SAVE YOUR FILES IN THE FOLLOWING FORMAT. EOW##_Nickname
example: "EOW#100_Chaosrocks.jpg" ;)

:right: PLACE THE IMAGE IN A FRAME WITH YOUR NAME/TOPIC

example from CHOW

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/ChowPics/frame.jpg
(you can add CA logo, etc).

Add an icon to you final post
150 pixels either direction
PLEASE OUTSIDE HOST THE ICON
k thxAn outside host means exactly that - an image host that's not Conceptart.org. Instead of adding the thumbnail with the attachment manager you have to host it on another site (your private domain, photobucket, (both recommended) or imageshack for instance).
The full image gets added with the attachment manager, however.

After you uploaded the thumbnail somewhere, you simply add the around it and you're done

[tdbsr7]

I'm excited to see where this one goes with such a free description (actual lack of description)

[Ghepip]

Could I ask what programs you use to draw with? I have tons of programs but I simply lack the skills and would like to know what you other guys use :)

[chaosrocks]

most use Photoshop and Painter, there are soe tat use sketchup for preliminaries. there are some that use, old fashioned methods like ... Paint, and ink

[khell]

Nice topic, I have live little city Hanko in Finland and there is a nice lighthouse in a small island near city. There is great ruins in that island. I will you that for inspiration:

Here is some pictures I took and draw last summer:
http://aukea.net/photos/46897.jpg

http://aukea.net/photos/46664.jpg

Some more inspiration, tallest lighthouse in Baltic sea:
(not my picture)
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_9jS0g4JpBIc/RxWgiKTjFCI/AAAAAAAADyI/izorSVXbUAk/s800/070709_Bengtskar14.jpg

and strange border we have with Sweden, in a lighthouse island:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%A4rket


---------

[Ghepip]

Thank you Khell :)
They give me great inspiration for the sketches i already drew :) Might actually be able to finish it ^^,

[Ragnj]

Thought out some sort of scenario Ill prolly use and draw after.

An old gigantic lighthouse leading in travellers to the once great mining planet M45. Filled with commercial signs but in a really bad state since the mining planet been empty and closed for about 50 years. Still works like a small, one manned gas station for the few that still live in the system.

This what Im thinking now, might go for a extremely different approach.

[chaosrocks]

cool
another scenario I imaged is some sort of interstellar marker, warning ships of a black hole. remember lighthouses have several uses. Leading you to harbour, marking dangerous waters, navigational aids. so tranlate one of those uses to space......

[android411]

going to try this one out as I have some time left right now. I thought of giant kind of light thing taking his power directly from the sky, maybe for spaceships arriving

added some more color in the second version

[android411]

worked a bit more on it, so here is an update...

[Si_Swe]

Well, I'm none too good with enviros so I thought this might be good practice. This is just a quick little thing I threw together to get myself started with the topic. I figure some kind of grimy mining colony built into an asteroid needs a big lighthouse to show ships where all the surrounding debris is.

[thescala]

Alrighty, well this sounds like a pretty swell topic. Goin for more of a futur city feel to this one. First time ive ever used 3d as a base to paint over.

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm105/thescala/intergalacticlighthouse.png

[Zapp!]

Couldn't finish last weeks EOW because I had to spent all my free time studying for an exam. But now it's over so I'm going to focus on finishing this one on time.

My idea for my lighthouse is that it is one of many built on an asteroid belt to help spaceship pilots (or are they captains?) so that they can find a safe route through. Here's what I have so far

Not sure if I should have my lighthouse be quite tall and thin, like a traditional one, or make it shorter so its less likely to be hit by another asteroid.

[khell]

Hi
Did some quick sketches/plans on paper, next I will do some quick 3D models to paint over. I like this topic. And I like the idea that in old time there where lighthouse keepers that lived alone or with their families really long times in isolation.
979580

I'd like accommodation module to be house like, but I have to make it somehow to be suitable to space.

some reference I might use:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/buoy_seal.jpg/200px-buoy_seal.jpg

link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corner_reflector

keep on doing good art.

[kryoth]

Hmm, mine is turning more into a space station than a lighthouse, but I think I can make this work given the "interstellar" scale. This will be essentially a giant communications relay and a hub for distant travelers. Hopefully I'm not too far off.

[Munin Raven]

Cool topic. I instantly thought of rocky shoals vs asteroid belts. I love lighthouses, so I'm trying to think of a functional reason why an interstellar one would maintain that long, slender shape. :)

[Zapp!]

Update for today, went with a Jetsons inspired lighthouse and spent ages trying to make the light bright but not distractingly bright. Hopefully it's ok

Also interested to see how everyone else's turn out since they are all so different.

[Duman]

Wow, there is a veritable crap ton of possibilities here.
I might even be able to participate this week!

[Zapp!]

Ok, I think I'm done now.

[android411]

ok, here is a new update, I tried to add some more sense of scale and atmospheric perspective, will have to work on the spaceships too...

[chaosrocks]

zapp-- there's no light house... just the implication of one, no copping out!

android you are losing the light clarity you had in the original monochromatic study, the colors are getting a little muddy

[browntear]

I started thinking of a solitary object in space giving off beams of light to show various directions to the unsure traveler (probably more beacon or "street sign" than lighthouse though).

[android411]

tnx chaos, tried to fix some of the issues you mentioned and hope it´s working better now. So I tried to lighten the image like in my first sketch and changed the colors too...

[Zapp!]

Added a lighthouse to the foreground, still working on lighting.
Is the lighthouse ok the way it is or do I need to show the whole thing?

android411 - That looks a lot better. I also like the changes you made to the spaceships, they look like sharks now.

[Si_Swe]

Android - Looks great for the most part. The lines on that building in front look out of place with the rest of the image, and you may want to dial the white down a bit, it's a tad too intense.
Zapp! - There's some great atmosphere going on, but you should try to avoid straight black like you have in the background, even representing space it just looks flat.

This is the image I'm currently playing with... If you can't tell, I'm awful with perspectives. I really need to start doing some studies in that respect...

[Zapp!]

Update for today. I might work on it a bit more tomorrow, but I don't know if there is much more I can do before I start ruining it.

Thanks for the suggestion about the background. Hopefully it looks a bit less flat now.

[JanJager]

Si_Swe
Good start. I think the perspective works wel.
Zapp
Looking good. You have a lot of interesting shapes there. As you wright you can work more on the lighting.
android411
Great Very majestic. Perhaps you can have some yellow and red reflections from the sky in the ground and the river.
browntear
Good idea to have this light beams. If you put some work in to relay render the light I think it will bee great.
kryoth
Good start looking forward to see more.
khell
Great sketches. Very epic with this lighthouse keepers. Nice ref pics.
tdbsr7
A bit early to crit.
thescala
Very good start. Looking forward to see more.

Trying to go for cosmic storm day

[Sholly]

So, I've never done anything really spacey digitally. I've also not really done anything in photoshop that didn't use the basic brushes. So this was certainly a learning experience! This is what I have so far. Basically, as soon as I read "interstellar lighthouse" my mind immediately went to the brightest thing in the known universe -- quasars -- and how those could be used as "lighthouses" for spaceships.

981716

JanJager - Looking like a good start. I might suggest putting some larger "clouds in the foreground, maybe partially covering the lighthouse. Also, it looks like there are stars in front of the planet (they might be dust particles, but they look like stars!) which would be silly.
Zapp! - I think it does need more definition. It looks neat, and it definitely has a cool atmosphere, but I think you need to take this further to make it feel like you're actually in a certain place.
Si_Swe - I like the style of this a lot -- I might bring some more of the style of the sky into the ground, though (which, it looks like you might already be doing), and I think you could give more detail to the lighthouse itself (the beams and whatnot) to make it more interesting -- obviously, this is still a WIP, but those are my feelings as it stands now.

[Ionpainter]

Three days left........i must hurry^^
Did a quick sketch for our interstellar lighthouse. A system of beacons/lighthouses guide the travellers through a huge field of asteroids.
Hope it fits the topic.

[Smoox]

dunno where to go from ere, needa neaten/level out but got the base, it's gettin there

[korpehn]

Hey, this is my color sketch so far, I tried to go for a more retro feel in the colors. Not really much detail in the lighthouse itself altough so I might do another one in a more exiting perspective!

982275

[Ionpainter]

Update. The shapes and lights are set, working on the details. I probably redo the spaceshipdesign.

[Truepinkas]

I'm not sure I'll actually have time to work on this but i figured I'd do a rough sketch just in case.

[Truepinkas]

Just an update.

[Truepinkas]

another update. It's coming along okay...

[Si_Swe]

Here's a little update on where I'm at right now.

[Truepinkas]

Unless I have some other creative burst, one of these will likely be my final (or very close to it). I'm not sure if the colors add to it, or make it distracting...

[Si_Swe]

Here's where I'm at, I think I'm pretty close to calling it done.

[Sholly]

Si_Swe - Still loving the style -- even more, in fact. Since the lighthouse is so bright, I feel like some of the "flotsam" around it should have some bright highlights as well. The detail you added to the lighthouse itself looks great! Also, you might want a little bit of detail on the ground -- at least around the vehicles, because since they're somewhat more detailed than the surrounding ground, it makes them look like they're on different planes.

Truepinkas - I like it with the colors -- if you think it's a little too distracting, my take is that the planet is too vibrant/bright for part of the background, and it distracts from the lighthouse. Add more stars in the background! It will make it look much more realistic and less empty.

Ionpainter - I say redo the spaceship. The general atmosphere is looking great so far, though! I think the lighthouse needs more definition -- not quite sure what you're still working on in this yet.

Lots of firsts on this, and unfortunately I think it shows -- still, I learned tons, and hopefully that will reflect in future sci-fi-y/soace pictures. I've never really used textures either, so could anyone give me any pointers? I basically just use the textures like stamps with the brush -- click, and there's a blog of texture. I don't know if there's a better way.
982895

[android411]

my first try to make some extended crits here, so hopefully I´m constructive enough, thanks for your help guys

Si_Swe - nice work and nice colors, I like how your colors cover most of the red scala, however the bright dessaturated colors on the foreground ground seem a bit distracting to me

Truepinkas I think too that the colored version reads better, maybe I would go with the colors in post #34 as the green and yellow fit very good

korpehn wonderful atmosphere, I´m curious where you take this

Smoox good start, maybe a bigger spaceship at the foreground would help to read the image easier

browntear good start, I like the design of your spaceship, I´ve never tried a spaceship in space but I´ve read it´s quite tricky, isn´t it?

thescala great render, I´m excited about your final piece

Zapp! good start, maybe you could put the figure in a space suit in order to make the scene more readable

ionpainter nice colors, hope you keep at this image

JanJager I´m sure you will push this image to it´s limits, as always :)

tdbsr7 good start, a bit early to crit though

khell great sketches and idea, excited about your next steps

kryoth Good start looking forward to see more.

Sholly very nice idea, I like the symmetrical balance of your lighthouse design, the light beam is cool too, overall it´s nicely rendered, maybe you could add a spaceship for better reading
here´s another update, tried to fix the issues you mentioned

[Truepinkas]

Thanks for the feedback guys! I took a look at some Hubble pics, and granted they are enhanced with the xray pics and all, but space it a lot more colorful than I originally thought...

I knocked down the saturation on my plant and made the background star field more colorful.

[chaosrocks]

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?p=2751204#post2751204

Final Burning
posted
move em over
don't forget the icon

crx

[chaosrocks]

24 hours folks

and If you've been noticing Bartdeco the fantastic has been updating the winners thread. you should wander by and check it out...seriously
thanks a million Bart

[Truepinkas]

You know, just the other day I did go through that whole winners thread, and there is some awesome work there. Certainly lends itself to inspiring me to push further.

Odd side note: I always read chaosrocks as chopsticks at first glance...