SPN Eldritch Art Masterpost - Strange Ways.

[amberdreams]

It's time to get our creep on again, spneldritchbang is back! My partner in crime was the lovely mukur0, who has spun a chilling tale of Winchesters vs a Norse version of the undead, which had some wonderful inspiration for me to play with.
Click on the banner to read the story

Sam and Dean start their investigation on a mysteriously deserted oil rig, and things only get worse when they leave...

Mildly spoilery art


The usual process for anyone interested:
Both banner and main pic are watercolour and ink on 100% cotton paper. The banner was done in my Mossery sketchbook, and is quite small (about 6" x 4"). I did the lettering digitally after scanning the art. Here's the pic without the lettering and before I fixed the scanner's usual washing out of the original colours. I do this in Affinity, by copying the layer and multiplying it, then reducing the multiplied layer's opacity until the colours on screen match the ones on paper.

And the same for the main pic

Here are a couple of the earlier stages - inking the pencil drawing (apart from the creepy hands because I didn't want those too defined) and then the first layers of watercolour.

I nearly stopped here with the painting, as I liked the washed out colours, but in the end I couldn't resist adding more. Hopefully I kept the creepy vibe.

And that's all folks. If anyone's interested in paint - in the main pic the sea is Daniel Smith Cascade Green, which separates into a phthalo green(?) and turquoisey shade when it dries. The sky is Daniel Smith sodalite genuine (the granulation is all that one colour), with touches of napthamide maroon and Mayan blue. The boat has burnt sienna mixes and washes of shadow violet over the top. Oh and I decided Dean should be wearing the red shirt of bad decisions. In the banner one I used more cobalt teal in the mix.

Comments

[beelikej.livejournal.com]

Be still my typography loving heart, that is a great storybanner!
Love the creepy underwater ghost hands too <3<3
Brilliant watercolouring, beautiful colours. (I like the washed out look, but think the firmer final look is the best choice:)

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

I'm still learning to use Affinity since PS6 no longer works with my operating system, so that was my first attempt at warping text! Glad you approve!

[beelikej.livejournal.com]

A co-worker mentioned Affinity as well, as an alternative for Photoshop. How does it compare to PS6? I may need to switch too and I prefer actual software over cloud based programs.

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

I't's pretty good as far as I can tell - it's got great reviews from people who actually know what they are doing in PS6 too. I've bought both Designer and Photo but I'm using Photo much more because that is the one that is most similar to PS. Designer is all vectors and stuff and I have no clue how to use it. They do have a bunch of free tutorial videos though, I'm just to lazy and disorganised to use them.

Major plus point on top of all that though - the price. It's about €40 per software app, and it's fully supported. All updates are free.

[beelikej.livejournal.com]

That sounds like it's exactly what I'm looking for! I work with vector based Adobe Illustrator a lot as well, so I definitely would like to get Designer too. That price is a massive plus; quite a difference with any CS program.

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

Honestly, Adobe really shot themselves in the foot over this whole subscription thing. It might suit professionals who are earning decent wages from using Photoshop products, but it makes no sense for the dabblers and hobbyists like me to pay out hundreds a year on it. Especially when you can buy a decent substitute for a one off payment.

[jj1564.livejournal.com]

Oooh so creepy and atmospheric! I love their hair blowing in the wind, the waves and the ghostly hands.

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

Thankee kindly!

[tsuki-no-bara.livejournal.com]

that is cree-pee! in the banner it looks like a school of fish following the boys' boat, but i'm guessing it's not fish. O.O i really love the rolling waves in the banner and jared's hair blowing in the second pic, and also the title font is fabulous.

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

hee nope, not fish! And if you were to zoom in on the banner you should be able to see some little creepy faces... 😂

[dizzojay.livejournal.com]

Fabulous art. I love the ghosts in the sea - I definitely need to check out this story!

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

It's a different kind of monster, so well worth a read!

[kirathehyrulian.livejournal.com]

I love the ghost hands! There my favorite part!♥♥♥ And those ghost faces, I can just hear them moaning from here. Valid ghosts though for reaching out to Sam and Dean.
The dark and stormy atmosphere so nice, dark and moody🖤 The scaling in the title card definitely reminds me how scary big the ocean is. Thalassophobia is right. brrr.

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought to add a warning for thalassophobics!

[kirathehyrulian.livejournal.com]

Oh no, your eldritch community post already had the warning. I was just agreeing with it. I didn't mean that you needed to add it. T-T

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

❤️