Skip to content

Custom PC & NPC Portraits

SystemSystem Administrator Posts: 200
edited June 2015 in General Discussion (Spoiler Warning!)
This discussion was created from comments split from: LadyRhian's too many pictures for any thread.....

Note: Edited to fix name of thread because of a mistake when merging threads. Apologies.
Post edited by LadyRhian on
«134567…71

Comments

  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    edited August 17
    Building on the original thread, started by @Syntia13, this is intended to be a hub to share alternate, fan-made portraits for the enhanced editions of the series. In order to keep the thread running and make it a comprehensive source for portraits, please abide by the site rules and a few guidelines:

    Thread Rules

    1. Respect artists' creations and their right to them. If portrait-makers ask that you not edit their work or use it for your own public projects, don't. If a mistake is made, simply edit your post to remove the image, apologize, forgive and forget.
    2. Do not share images for which you have not received permission from the artists, when possible.* This is particularly true of art from DeviantArt, which hosts many artists who do not want their work shared elsewhere.
    3. If you request that a portrait be made, recognize that the artists in this forum do this simply because they enjoy contributing to the community. Be patient, be respectful, and say thank you.
    4. Be supportive! Many of the artists here are just beginning to learn how to make portraits. Be positive and constructive in your comments, and avoid pointless negativity.
    5. If you are making and posting portraits using sourced photos, understand that this still does not make the likeness your property, and be prepared to remove the image if so requested by the copyright holder(s).
    * Understandably, the source of some older portraits is unknown. If in doubt, go to Google Images and drag the portrait to the search bar. You may find the artist or source through that method. Again refer to Rule 1.

    Guide to Using Custom Portraits

    Portraits in the enhanced editions use two images in 24-bit bitmap (.bmp) format: 210x330 and 169x266. (The original releases of the games had a third smaller size; this is no longer necessary with the extended editions.)

    To use custom portraits for your PC:
    1: Navigate to your Baldur's Gate directory in (My) Documents.
    2: Drop the custom portraits into the Portraits folder.
    3: In the game, select Custom when choosing a PC portrait. Alternately, if you have already begun your game, select Customize/Appearance from the character sheet.

    To use custom portraits for NPCs:
    1: Rename the portrait files to match the NPC whose portraits you want to replace. For example, Jaheira's portraits are named JaheiraL and JaheiraM. There are some portraits in BG1 that do not conform to this, and those in BG2 have their own naming format. Consult this site.
    2: Place the portraits in your override folder, located in the directory where you installed the game.

    * Note that the games allow custom portraits larger than 210x330 as long as they have the same aspect ratio. I do NOT recommend using very large sizes if you're trying to match the original portraits as best as possible. The reason for that is because larger portraits will appear more detailed than the others, even if they match the style of the originals. Resizing a single portrait between 210x330 to 275x432 creates a "soft" look that keeps it consistent. I've personally found the best result from portraits saved at 245x385.

    Artist Links

    If you like the portraits you see here or at any of the sites below, leave a comment here or on the artist's website. We love making portraits, and we love hearing how our work enriches your experience.

    @artastrophe: https://www.deviantart.com/artastrophe/gallery/4028357/characters-portraits
    @Coutelier: https://www.deviantart.com/coutelier/gallery/25484071/baldur-s-gate-fan-art
    @Enkida: https://www.deviantart.com/enkida/gallery/33798575/baldur-s-gate-portraits
    @Isandir: https://www.deviantart.com/isandirbg (Note that only my most recent portraits are available there.)
    @jakaminski: https://www.deviantart.com/jakaminski/gallery/42408974/baldur-s-gate-portraits
    Neunerx: http://neunerx.deviantart.com/gallery
    @Nixxi: http://nixxical.deviantart.com
    @Peachplums: http://peachplums.deviantart.com
    @Syntia13: https://www.deviantart.com/syntia13/gallery/39769184/baldur-s-gate

    Suggest others whose portrait sites you are familiar with!
    Post edited by Isandir on
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    Thanks, @Silverstar! It's a modified version of Tywin Lannister's armor in Game of Thrones, minus much of the detail in order to blend it better with the default BG2 portraits.
  • AstafasAstafas Member Posts: 449
    @Isandir, I often find it even more BG2-like to put the armor slightly out of focus, or to unsharpen it. Fantastic work! :-)
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    @Astafas: I actually did blur out a bit more of the detail in the smaller pictures, but I like to leave all of it in the over-sized versions. It makes them prettier to look at... :) The trickiest part of blending these in with the default portraits was actually the shadows. In the 54x84 versions, any dark shadows stick out like a sore thumb. I had to dramatically lighten them and blend each of the black areas by hand.

    I'll post the .bmp versions on my website eventually. I'm a bit behind on that...
  • AstafasAstafas Member Posts: 449
    I can imagine. BG2 portraits are really quite flat in contrast (and color schemes).
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    @Isandir you should link the Site Rules, besides @Peachplums has an user, thanks for making another thread, and I love your work, well, everyone does.
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    CrevsDaak said:

    @Isandir you should link the Site Rules, besides @Peachplums has an user, thanks for making another thread, and I love your work, well, everyone does.

    Updated
  • paul_leonepaul_leone Member Posts: 15
    I hope it's okay I repost this from the old thread... And Happy New Year, everyone!

    Hi all! I was wondering if somebody wanted to try their hand at Baldurizing any (or all, if you have the time and interest) of these ladies? Much obliged in advance. (http://file.walagata.com/w/varyar/Leighton_Meester_V.jpg, http://file.walagata.com/w/varyar/Laetitia_Casta_L.jpg, http://file.walagata.com/w/varyar/Jewel_2.jpg, http://www.walagata.com/w/varyar/Morena_Baccarin_B.jpg)
  • vierraevierrae Member Posts: 103
    @Isandir your new male portrait reminds me of Anomen - in a good way. Gorgeous, as always.
  • SilverstarSilverstar Member Posts: 2,207
    vierrae said:

    reminds me of Anomen - in a good way.

    Anomen and good in the same sentence? Wuh... ack. Does not compute.

    *gets headache*
  • vierraevierrae Member Posts: 103
    @Silverstar yeah, he's a little bipolar and used to give me a headache too, but after Rasaad he seems just fine. Everything is a matter of perspective :)
  • AstafasAstafas Member Posts: 449
    @Isandir, your Hexxat portrait is perfect! Wow!!

    (I resized myself though, as i found the smallest version a bit blurry?)
  • AldericAlderic Member Posts: 37
    edited January 2014
    @Isandir thank you for this Hexxat portrait! Your work is marvelous, as always!

    EDIT: btw, for those that do not know, Hexxat's portrait name for the override files is OHHEXX (filename should be e.g. OHHEXXM.bmp for the medium size portrait)
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    Astafas said:

    @Isandir, your Hexxat portrait is perfect! Wow!!

    (I resized myself though, as i found the smallest version a bit blurry?)

    I had a feeling some people would. As I reported in this thread, the automatic down-sizing doesn't work well. As I've been adjusting the BG2-style portraits I make, I lower the contrast, adjust the shadows and use a Gaussian blur. I think I'll probably start having to go a point lower on the blur in order to stop making them appear slightly fuzzier than the default portraits at the 54x84 size.
  • AstafasAstafas Member Posts: 449
    I find that simply downscaling the L to M and S works fine. No need to add any blur IMHO. However, the automatic downscaling really looks awful (too sharp compared to the others), but I though that option was only available for the NPC anyway.
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    @Astafas: I've gotten in the bad habit of adjusting all of them, even those intended to replace existing characters. I should probably stop using the blur and instead focus on matching the tone and saturation of the small size to the existing portraits.

    @BlueSorceress: That's actually quite good for "meager" Photoshop skills! If you're looking to improve, it depends on what you're aiming to do. A BG1 style would require raising the contrast heavily and adding shadows across the model's face. You would also raise the contrast a bit for a BG2 style, but also soften many of the details. The best advice I could give would simply be to experiment with Photoshop's tools and try different techniques to see if you like the result.

    If you'd like someone else to take a crack at it (I recall another person mentioning liking the photo), simply upload the scan and I'm sure someone will try.
  • Zymran86Zymran86 Member Posts: 137
    edited January 2014
    nvm
    Post edited by Zymran86 on
  • Zymran86Zymran86 Member Posts: 137
    edited January 2014
    nvm
    Post edited by Zymran86 on
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    @Zymran86: You're correct. It's a painting by James Ryman (http://jamesryman.blogspot.com and http://namesjames.deviantart.com). If you can contact him through one of those websites and get his permission to have that portion of the picture altered for a portrait, someone here would be happy to do it.
  • QuartzQuartz Member Posts: 3,853
    I dun remember where I found this sorry D:
  • IsandirIsandir Member Posts: 476
    edited January 2014
    @Quartz: It's a piece by David Ropaza (http://davidrapozaart.deviantart.com/art/Beautiful-Orc-Manboy-136850500).

    I just looked over some of his other work. He's incredibly talented!
  • nanonano Member Posts: 1,632
    Isandir said:

    If you'd like someone else to take a crack at it (I recall another person mentioning liking the photo), simply upload the scan and I'm sure someone will try.

    Yep, I wanted an elven version for Aerie. @BlueSorceress's human one looks great though! (and your Hexxat is awesome, btw)
  • meaglothmeagloth Member Posts: 3,806
    Oh, good, I found the new portrait thread. Looks great, especially the two you have at the top there, @isandir.
Sign In or Register to comment.

2025 Overhaul Games, a division of Beamdog. © 2025 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Baldur's Gate, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, Baldur's Gate, Wizards of the Coast and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the U.S.A. and other countries, and are used with permission. Hasbro and its logo are trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. and are used with permission. © 1998 BioWare Corp. All Rights Reserved. BioWare, the BioWare Infinity Engine and the BioWare logo are trademarks of Bioware Corp. Black Isle Studios and the Black Isle Studios logo are trademarks of Interplay Entertainment Corp. Atari and the Atari logo are trademarks owned by Atari Interactive, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.