Desert landscape - Step by step

[bOne]

I didn't have a lot to do today at my office, so I decided to do my first tutorial ever :)

I always wanted to do a desert landscape with spaceships, and a very blue sky.

I did it with the 2 classic brushes : airbrush and pencil

So here it begins :

1 - I do a very big canvas (3508x1452) I choose the colors and place the horizon.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert02.jpg

2 - I do quicly the clouds, with the pencil at 15%. And add light to the horizon with the airbrush.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert03.jpg

3 - I place some rocks with a basic color a little darker than the sand. Then I touches of light, with a brighter one and shadows, with a darker one. The sun is in the top right.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert04.jpg

4 - I add some blue color to the shadows, and the first starships in a light grey. I add a touch of reflexion using the color of the sand for the bottom of the ships, and a white highlight, and blue shadows.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert05.jpg

5 - I think that the 2 small ships could be followed by a bigger one, because the picture is quite empty.
So I do a darker one, using an old design.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert06.jpg

6 - I place the lighting and reflexions.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert07.jpg

7 - I think the big ship is too dark and to close to the small ones. I add some orange colors, and add "smoke" to add a feeling of movement.

http://bonestudio.free.fr/images/desertut/desert08.jpg

Finally I got a peaceful landscape done very quickly. I got the feeeling and the designs that I wanted, I don't have to spend more time on it, it's just a concept.

[MindCandyMan]

that's awesome bone...really good man. You make it look so easy hehe.

[Fipse]

Merci, bOne!

For me as a digital newbie I think your picture just made a "click" for me. I see some of my problems solved ... It really has helped me.

Fipse

[Chromo48]

Awesome work. The only thing I have to say is that I like the 4th one the best, with just the 2 small pods. It looks like you tried for too much lighting detail on the ships in the later steps. The reason the lighting looks weird (imho) is because the ships seem to be in the distance and the highlights look like those indicative of an object that would be closer to the viewer. Everything elses about the picture is money, its just that big pod/ship that kind of looks odd. Hope you don't mind the crit, thats what we're here for right?:cool:

[sandgrain]

great tutorial. quite nice to see how someone builds up to a finished product.

aboot what chromo48 said about the highlights on the ships that seem further away from the viewer... please think about the sun and shiney metal objects... that is all.