Chow #010 - Asteroid Miner

[S.C. Watson]

http://www.oreganoproductions.com/chow/chowlines.jpg

ROUND #10


:right: PLEASE CONSOLIDATE YOUR WIPS AND FINALS INTO YOUR FIRST POST.

:right: CLEARLY DESIGNATE YOUR FINAL.

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DEADLINE
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31st – give or take.
9 PM PACIFIC STANDARD TIME
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Asteroid Miner

Prospecting the belt is a lonely job for Merideth, but when it pays, it pays big.
(think of a 22nd century prospector, maybe a lone wolf, maybe part of a small crew, searching among widely scattered orbiting rocks for that mother-lode nickel-iron 'roid that'll bank mega-credits and get him/her back on station for few months... anywhere but out in the Big Lonely...) -- further desciption provided by masque

Other Resources:
BELTER (http://www.jessesword.com/sf/view/337)
Asteroid Belt (http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/asteroids.html)
Asteroid Mining (http://science.howstuffworks.com/asteroid-mining.htm)

Thanks to young paddy1 for the topic

[Chuck,mate.]

asteroid miner....
hmmmm.
sounds more like indusrtial design to me.
or am i not getting it (again..)?

[masque]

think of a 22nd century prospector, maybe a lone wolf, maybe part of a small crew, searching among widely scattered orbiting rocks for that mother-lode nickel-iron 'roid that'll bank mega-credits and get him/her back on station for few months... anywhere but out in the Big Lonely...

excellent literary reference (imo): Heavy Time by CJ Cherryh

[S.C. Watson]

think of a 22nd century prospector, maybe a lone wolf, maybe part of a small crew, searching among widely scattered orbiting rocks for that mother-lode nickel-iron 'roid that'll bank mega-credits and get him/her back on station for few months... anywhere but out in the Big Lonely...

excellent literary reference (imo): Heavy Time by CJ Cherryh

Haven't read anything by CJ Cherryh, but after that description, I just may. I was actually thinking more along the lines of Larry Niven, but without any specific story in mind. I recall the Belters sort of evolved into their own species, not really being able to visit worlds because they lacked the skeleton to support themselves.

~Oreg.
PS - merry christmas! :teeth:

[masque]

Merry Christmas & best holiday wishes to you, too, Shane, and all CAers.

haven't read the Belter stuff by Niven, but the evolution aspect sounds great as a hook for a character; shows how wide-open the subject can be if you think it through some.

[darth massacre]

Gotta try not to borrow from "Titan AE" or Magnetic Rose from "Memories".

[rawwad]

Hi, this is mine asteroid miner with plasmatic mining equipment. I hope you like it:^^:

http://img439.imageshack.us/img439/7049/29miner4wi.jpg

[VirusArtist]

DAMN that dude is fast... just discovered the topic and the first kickass pic shines at me... love the topic.. hope i'll find time for it...

cheers,
Etienne

[Main Loop]

isnt merideth a female name? just wondering since we got a male character submitted already

[masque]

isnt merideth a female name? just wondering since we got a male character submitted alreadycould be a surname, also.

[SnapDragon]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v186/andrewhunt/aminer.jpg

Not gonna be able to finish....hopefully I'll be able to on the next one
gonna try my hand at this..here's my first wip

ha..he prefers Mer...or Deth...last person who called him Merideth found out what it felt like to sit on the business end of a sonic pick

[Lohan]

lol those 2 are the exact opposite people i think of when i hear "merideth" :)

[S.C. Watson]

"Merideth" is supposed to be female. But, you know those belters get a little... funny after being in space for so long... :x

[masque]

"Merideth" is supposed to be female. shouldn't that have been in the brief, then? i took it as a surname -- my miner's male, too. Al Meredith, independent owner-operator of Soujourner, ClassA-9 assay and acquisition craft.

[S.C. Watson]

shouldn't that have been in the brief, then? i took it as a surname -- my miner's male, too. Al Meredith, independent owner-operator of Soujourner, ClassA-9 assay and acquisition craft.

Probably. I did a no-no and assumed that people would figure the character was female. No worries tho - if your Meredith is a guy, that's fine. I think most people are going to envision an asteroid miner as male anyway.

So, consider the subject gender open since there seems to be some confusion on it. :^^;:

Cheers,
~Oreg.

[masque]

Title: Routine
Media: Digital paint (Photoshop GS) over scanned pencil

http://www.metrocast.net/~chipartist/ImagePost/RoutineChOW10web.jpg

Al Meredith is a twenty-five year vet of the Belt, a canny prospector and top-flight pilot. He and his current partner Vince have logged more nickel-irons than any other independent team at L2 Station, but it always seems to Al like he's chasing a phantom named Success. Two exes getting alimony, his daughter in the Academy Earthside, and the constant maintenance of his ship Sojourner (AAS class A-9) keep Al and Vince living in the the no-man's land between red and black.

Al never EVAs. That's what Vince is for. Vince is Acquisition; Al does Assay, remote sensing of target rocks -- albedo measurements, spectral analysis, orbital plots, mass estimation, all the number-crunching. Al's good. It's getting so he does a lot of it in his head, right down to the 6th decimal. But he doesn't spacewalk, doesn't set the claim transponders, doesn't check the tow rigs. That's Vince's territory, and Al says he's welcome to it.

Al likes his shipboard routines. They keep him mostly sane out in the Big Lonely.

[asoir]

Masque, I love it.

[Smarty]

http://tinypic.com/j8kvv4.jpg

My first ever CHOW entry, hope you like. I havnt gone straight down with pen in some time. Also i tried to speed myself up, took about 30 mins. this is probably my final as i havnt the time to full render.

My fav so far is masque, well done.

[masque]

Asoir, smartkyle, thanks guys, glad you like it.

[S.C. Watson]

masque, that is a fun pic. Like the story line too :teeth:
_______
added some reference links up above.

~Oreg.

[masque]

muchas gracias, Shane. the story's inspired somewhat by the ambience of the Cherryh novel, which is set early in her very expansive future history, before the discovery of FTL, and very character-driven, real people with human-scale probs; doesn't use any of the book's characters, settings, or events, but i think Al & Vince would fit right in.

[Define.]

Well well, I guess this will be my first post on this site. I quite enjoy looking at all of the beautiful themed artwork. I'll be putting my own piece in before the deadline as well and hopefully become part of this fascinating online team. Can't wait to see more entries!

[Jska]

Here's my WIP so far... I hope to finish this week!
http://www.jskaconcepts.com/badaboom/meredith1.jpg
and some progress...
http://www.jskaconcepts.com/badaboom/meredith2.jpg

I am thinking of making her go blonde, it seems it may go with the blues a little better and stand out against the dark background... This is about an hour or so in :) C&C appreciated muchly!

[S.C. Watson]

way, way not done with this, but I figured it's been a little while since I entered one of these here CHOW's :dur:

http://sketchforums.com/uploads/post-11-1135783333.jpg

http://sketchforums.com/uploads/post-11-1135783374.jpg

I *DON'T* like the face in either of these, so it's fair chance that it will be seriously reworked by the final.
____
Jska - I like your wip thus far. I think going with blond would be a good call. The only other thing is that you refer to your Merideth as a "she", however "she" has rather male features at the moment.

cheers,
~Oreg.

[Uziel]

She reminds me of Ripley (Alien) with that hairstyle oregano.

[Define.]

This may seem like a strange question, but are you allowed a character that has non-human qualities? Does it have to be 100% human? ... I have work in progress, but I'm still not sure whether it's appropriate to submit to "character" of the week.

[S.C. Watson]

This may seem like a strange question, but are you allowed a character that has non-human qualities? Does it have to be 100% human? ... I have work in progress, but I'm still not sure whether it's appropriate to submit to "character" of the week.

Unless otherwise stated in the brief, it's open.

Hell, usually even if it *is* stated in the brief, it's open. The more creative the better.

~Oreg.

[Define.]

Grrreat, thanks for answering my question.

[Zephrym]

http://img433.imageshack.us/img433/7582/minersmall0tr.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Meredith specializes in the extraction of precious trace metals found in the belt, leaving the nickel-iron mining to the larger bulk freighter operations. Her advantage in the trace metal business is her proto-type E7 mineral extractor, an arm mounted mining laser system that breaks apart a mass and tractors in the fragments to be processed and separated on the molecular level, storing the valuable composites and disposing of the rest. One valuable trace metal known as durotonium, known for its use in protective subspace hull coatings, was virtually inaccessible before the E7. Having a sister in the Experimental Technologies branch of the Federation comes with its perks, and Meredith plans on taking full advantage of her lucrative position before equipment like hers becomes available to the public.

[Rascar Capac]

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b237/Hovig1977/asteroidminer.jpg

[CRØW]

Wow Rascar! I love your pic. Reminds me on John Berkey's stuff. :)

I'm working on an entry, hopefully I won't miss the deadline like last time :O

[J.Willis]

Masque: I really like the composition and perspective of you image. The backstory for the character is intriguing as well. The only crit I can suggest is to have Al's left foot not connect with the wall. It would help add to the sense of weightlessness. Otherwise, I say you have an extremely strong piece.

[Hanuka]

rascar and masque : you guys blow my mind :)

but good start from everyone so far... hope i can make it this round again. psychologically very interesting topic.

[fes]

Meredith goes down to the hold to sort through the rock taken from the asteriod belt, to see if she can find the most expensive mineral in these parts .... the dyonis crystals used throughout the local Minos solar system in their propulsion power units.
http://www.fionasansom.com/assets/dsg/asteroid_miner.jpg

[S.C. Watson]

I'm not going to consider this my entry, because to be honest, it wasn't done for CHOW, but for a personal project that I'm working on. The fact that it dovetails nicely into CHOW is merely a coincidence. It is fresh off the digital easel, so I thought I'd share:

Orignal dimensions: 15x11, 300dpi. Done in Painter, except for post production text.

http://sketchforums.com/uploads/post-11-1135909907.jpg

Cheers,
~Oreg.

[/ev]

With the new sanctions granted to the United Earth Mining Corporation, Leon Merideth would often find himself operating in the farthest reaches of known space. It's a cold, lonely meticulous job with operatives working separately to cover the vast amount of orbiting rock on offer. The rare metals fetch high prices on earth usually in the production of terrestrial military hardware. The job keeps Leon far enough away from civilized space, and his mercenary background.

With UEMC's track record and most recent haul, the military has made a considerable investment as well as a some senior govt. officials. The advantage of the armed-forces investment has allowed cross utilization of hardware and the latest technology in advanced life support systems has been integrated into the Class 3 powered Zero-Grav Mining Suit.

http://www.ecsdesignvfx.com/personal/images/miner_v01.jpg

[rawwad]

Hey Oregano awesome work, Love colors a lot, idea is also great.

Fantastic work ecsdesign, I like miner design and backround very much.

Good work everyone:^^:

[Rascar Capac]

Hey EC - great to see you post
As always, incredible mood..not to mention the design and composition

[Define.]

Oi. All of these are really really great. Great job.
I'll be posting mine as soon as I finish, which could be today.


Out of curiosity, approximately how long do you guys tend to work on one piece?

[dusty imp]

comeback to the station from a 7-hour shift, radioing the next guy to get to the bay.
advances in compact power made un-augmented spacesuits obsolete almost a hundred years ago, hailing era of mining exosuits. this effectively allowed almost anyone who can afford the equipment to join in on the action.
http://graphitehead.com/forum/miner.jpg

[Rascar Capac]

Out of curiosity, approximately how long do you guys tend to work on one piece?

For me - no work this week so I had time to join the chow...approx 5 hours back and forth between a dozen sittings- I have the attention span of a hummingbird...

[CRØW]

EC- love your piece. All of these have been excellent. Great theme!

[/ev]

Cheers guys, its my first chow. With some free time over the break i thought id have a dig. More comfortable with environments than characters.

Id usually spend between 3 and 5 hours on a piece. Painter keeps me quite loose and If i cant get it out in the first couple of hours i will stagger it over a few days. Most of the time i will jump back and forward in painter and pshop.

[CRØW]

Ok guys, here is my piece. It's about as good as I can do right now. I'm just getting into computer coloring and have practically no experience with paint or working with color in general so it just looks flat to me.

The one thing I am happy with is my general concept. as soon as I read the brief this image popped into my head. Someday I'll have to redo this piece.
Oh well, at least I made the deadline which was my main goal thisa time around. Oh and I hadn't seen Oregano's peice before I had started mine, but I see we had a similiar idea.


Background:
Anne Meredith had dreamed of space since she was a little girl. After working hard through school she obtained her degree in geology and astrophysics. Unfortunately Life had different plans for her. Upon graduation she obtained a position with the United Nations Geological Survey. Assigned to a Mining team in the belt she has worked diligently in hopes that one day she would be assigned to one of the few extra-solar scouting teams.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v650/Cpt_Tiberius/CHOW-10-CRW-finalcopy.jpg

[Kurdt]

well, i had some time, how about that!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/kurdticus/Merideth.jpg

[darth massacre]

Here's a WIP...started this about 2 hours ago.....cutting it a little close.

Hopefully able to finish this before the deadline.

http://www.massivebias.com/spaceminer.gif

[rasdasa]

Happy New Year all you freaks!
http://img469.imageshack.us/img469/964/miner4yi.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

ras

[Define.]

No one really knows what happened to Meredith. At the age of 6, her body started to develop incredibly fast. Only a few months into her "transformation", her hands and feet grew to an abnormal size. They were extremely dense -- it was later discovered that within her blood stream tiny little rock pebbles formed, making the skin on her entire body solid as, well, rock.

At the age of only 15, she was sent on her first mission to mine the minerals from Asteroid Zilfth, a most dangerous mission which no other astronaut would attempt. Her hands and feet were perfect to dig and destroy, easily carrying tons of material on ship. From that day on, Meredith almost lives on an Asteroid, claiming she does not fit in with society down on earth.

Oh, but she does bring fortune to her parents ...

http://www.woodfellow.ca/AsteroidMiner/AsteroidMinerresized.bmp
ps: It isn't showing up on my computer if I just put it as an image. I also put the link underneath in case. My first Chow!

http://www.woodfellow.ca/AsteroidMiner/AsteroidMiner.html

[S.C. Watson]

ps: It isn't showing up on my computer if I just put it as an image.

Define - great piece. The reason it wasn't showing was because you put the [img] tags around the .html page instead of the image.

Cheers,
~Oreg.

[S.C. Watson]

New Round is ON: ROUND #011 (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?p=694072#post694072)