Wow. What a great job you did. I mean they are the best AI generated portraits I have seen since a while. The problem with some others was that they were mass generated. Here we can see that you spent some time to make them differ between each other. I can't see the typical "one face" syndrome. My only doubts are:
- Imoen's hair should be more clearly pink/violet, whatever this color in the original is
- Korgan should be more grim. He looks too friendly
- Okay, Anomen and Edwin are little similar. If you could make Anomen's nose little different (for example not so long) it would be perfect.
Are you going to play with the Beamdog NPCs as well? They also stand out. Just saying :-P
Wow. What a great job you did. I mean they are the best AI generated portraits I have seen since a while. The problem with some others was that they were mass generated. Here we can see that you spent some time to make them differ between each other. I can't see the typical "one face" syndrome. My only doubts are:
- Imoen's hair should be more clearly pink/violet, whatever this color in the original is
- Korgan should be more grim. He looks too friendly
- Okay, Anomen and Edwin are little similar. If you could make Anomen's nose little different (for example not so long) it would be perfect.
Are you going to play with the Beamdog NPCs as well? They also stand out. Just saying :-P
I think Imoen's hair could be either way based on her portrait in 2. I went with a lighter color to make her look less like Nalia. The rest I'll think about it. I've been looking at these portraits too much for the past few days so I don't even know what looks right or odd anymore.
As for the Beamdog NPCs, it's a no. As a matter of fact, I won't be releasing any new portraits. I might retouch some of the existing ones but that's going to be it.
The whole AI thing has soured things for me, but maybe it's more like it opened my eyes. I would say something but at this point, I really have no interest in starting the witchhunt game and again putting myself in a position where I might have to explain myself. The same thread about this mod got nuked on the BG subreddit because a bunch of people accused me of posting AI. I guess I did brought it on myself because I was the one that posted it and made a certain claim, so the burden of proof was on me. That's pretty fair.
Although, I didn't change. I didn't reinvent the wheel. I'm doing the exact same thing that I've been doing for all these years.
One of the messages I got was that Minsc's sword was clearly AI. Well, I guess they definitely ran it on Randy Couture 20 years ago to make him hold that crappy sword.
I see how you just straight up called them AI generated. And you weren't trying to be malicious or anything like that, nor do I take it that way, I get it, it's merely descriptive. But it's one of those things that made me realize that this aspect of the world has moved passed me. I still remember back in the day, posting and looking through Deviantart, where the thought of something made by AI didn't even exist. But things really have changed. I can't operate like it's a decade ago.
Anybody can just fire up Stable Diffusion or whatever and get hundreds of images in an hour. Anybody can write prompts. There's no longer prestige in being a 3D technician and rendering, or seamlessly comping an element from one image to another, or stuff like that. Even worse, mistakes and oddities are no longer looked at as quirks, but evidence of AI. That finger is longer than the other, AI. His eye is off by a bit, AI. His armor is not symmetrical, AI.
It's just not fun anymore for an old fart like me. I knew I was heading into murky waters with this kind of content but I really didn't think I was going to get ripped up like that. It's all good though. The world has moved on, and it is what it is. It has been a nice break but I'm definitely done. I'll be back to making my other content.
@Wombat
For the first, avoid reddit. This is the most toxic and brainless society I have experienced in the internet and I am here since many years (I had my time on 4chan/b as well). Just leave those assholes alone there.
For the second, I'm really sorry for assuming that is AI generated. I can imagine that I would also get pieced off when someone would say something like this for the music I compose, but this is how the things look like today.
For the third, but most important: don't stop making portraits. For Christ's sake! They are really good! If you stop, all of you, great portrait makers are the same! You tease people with some great work which is never finished! :-P. There will be the 30th anniversary for BG1 relatively soon. How beautiful would be to make EET a consistent experience - with refreshed UI, new quality content, CONSISTENT portraits etc! I was hoping that you could do also some <charname> potraits afterwards... Doesn't this beautiful game deserve it?
Best are - Minsk, Nalia, Yoshimo.
Worst - Jan,Aerie, Korgan
I wish someone create portraits of BG companions in style from IWD - full body.
With one additional demand, let this be the pose , the posture from the moment when protagonist is meeting a joinabble character for the first time.
@Wombat your work is beautiful. No doubt this is difficult time to be in the arts. And as another said, Reddit is toxic. But I think you’ll find many appreciative viewers here. A lot of gamers appreciate this skillful use of the original style, to get something different.
AI can be a great tool for those of us with no artistic talent! But it can’t compete with actual skill.
More I look at the portraits, more I like them. Previously I have pointed three problems, but actually the only REAL one is that Korgan looking too friendly. It should be written on his face, that he is eager to decapitate you if you are not willing to pay.
Comments
- Imoen's hair should be more clearly pink/violet, whatever this color in the original is
- Korgan should be more grim. He looks too friendly
- Okay, Anomen and Edwin are little similar. If you could make Anomen's nose little different (for example not so long) it would be perfect.
Are you going to play with the Beamdog NPCs as well? They also stand out. Just saying :-P
Tanks for the mod.
I think Imoen's hair could be either way based on her portrait in 2. I went with a lighter color to make her look less like Nalia. The rest I'll think about it. I've been looking at these portraits too much for the past few days so I don't even know what looks right or odd anymore.
As for the Beamdog NPCs, it's a no. As a matter of fact, I won't be releasing any new portraits. I might retouch some of the existing ones but that's going to be it.
The whole AI thing has soured things for me, but maybe it's more like it opened my eyes. I would say something but at this point, I really have no interest in starting the witchhunt game and again putting myself in a position where I might have to explain myself. The same thread about this mod got nuked on the BG subreddit because a bunch of people accused me of posting AI. I guess I did brought it on myself because I was the one that posted it and made a certain claim, so the burden of proof was on me. That's pretty fair.
Although, I didn't change. I didn't reinvent the wheel. I'm doing the exact same thing that I've been doing for all these years.
One of the messages I got was that Minsc's sword was clearly AI. Well, I guess they definitely ran it on Randy Couture 20 years ago to make him hold that crappy sword.
I see how you just straight up called them AI generated. And you weren't trying to be malicious or anything like that, nor do I take it that way, I get it, it's merely descriptive. But it's one of those things that made me realize that this aspect of the world has moved passed me. I still remember back in the day, posting and looking through Deviantart, where the thought of something made by AI didn't even exist. But things really have changed. I can't operate like it's a decade ago.
Anybody can just fire up Stable Diffusion or whatever and get hundreds of images in an hour. Anybody can write prompts. There's no longer prestige in being a 3D technician and rendering, or seamlessly comping an element from one image to another, or stuff like that. Even worse, mistakes and oddities are no longer looked at as quirks, but evidence of AI. That finger is longer than the other, AI. His eye is off by a bit, AI. His armor is not symmetrical, AI.
It's just not fun anymore for an old fart like me. I knew I was heading into murky waters with this kind of content but I really didn't think I was going to get ripped up like that. It's all good though. The world has moved on, and it is what it is. It has been a nice break but I'm definitely done. I'll be back to making my other content.
For the first, avoid reddit. This is the most toxic and brainless society I have experienced in the internet and I am here since many years (I had my time on 4chan/b as well). Just leave those assholes alone there.
For the second, I'm really sorry for assuming that is AI generated. I can imagine that I would also get pieced off when someone would say something like this for the music I compose, but this is how the things look like today.
For the third, but most important: don't stop making portraits. For Christ's sake! They are really good! If you stop, all of you, great portrait makers are the same! You tease people with some great work which is never finished! :-P. There will be the 30th anniversary for BG1 relatively soon. How beautiful would be to make EET a consistent experience - with refreshed UI, new quality content, CONSISTENT portraits etc! I was hoping that you could do also some <charname> potraits afterwards... Doesn't this beautiful game deserve it?
Worst - Jan,Aerie, Korgan
I wish someone create portraits of BG companions in style from IWD - full body.
With one additional demand, let this be the pose , the posture from the moment when protagonist is meeting a joinabble character for the first time.
AI can be a great tool for those of us with no artistic talent! But it can’t compete with actual skill.
Thank you for posting!