Well, technically I could have changed the title to "... bored waiting until the journal gets fixed", but while I am indeed waiting for that, I'm no longer bored, having acquired several new time-consuming RL issues and computer-based obsessions, so ... the patches will come when they will, I'm good till then.
Heh. Personally I waited ages for the 1.2 patch before finishing my main BG:EE playthrough... then when I finally got that and started progressing again I read that the next patch will import several more variables to BGII than what happens currently, so now I'm procrastinating again. Oh well. Thank goodness for multiple alternate characters/save games ^^
@SharGuidesMyHand: Here's what I envisioned when I saw the model you had posted. This was a tough one! I can't say it's a favorite, but I think I just have a hard time wrapping my own mind around this portrait as a PC. Not my type and I actually just get an uneasy feeling looking at her...
@Foggy: I'll add a two-handed sword to Deshad's portrait since that's your preference, and it's a relatively easy addition. I'll let you know when it's done.
@Meepichi: Keep posting! Just as some others have observed, your portraits are already improving quite a bit from the first few we saw. Have you been experimenting with different methods?
@Meepichi: Keep posting! Just as some others have observed, your portraits are already improving quite a bit from the first few we saw. Have you been experimenting with different methods?
Thanks! I've just been basically learning how to use Photoshop better from watching a lot of videos on enhancing photos and such. Do you have any recommendations?
Hey guys, I have a big favor to ask those of you that are great artists. I have a friend for whom I really have no idea what to buy for Christmas and as he is a BG fan I was wondering if it could be possible for one of you to make a ranger BG picture/avatar for the game from his real looks. You can change hair, add tatooes, whatever, just as long as his face is recognizable and somehow you can figure it is a ranger (adding a bow or something). I would really really appreciate and love if one of you would be willing to take the task.
(personally reminds me a bit of Khalid), you can keep him human, make him elf, tbh doesn't matter as long as it is baldurized ranger. In advance, much apreciated if anyone is willing to try.
@SharGuidesMyHand: Here's what I envisioned when I saw the model you had posted. This was a tough one! I can't say it's a favorite, but I think I just have a hard time wrapping my own mind around this portrait as a PC. Not my type and I actually just get an uneasy feeling looking at her...
Be it the facial impression, the tattoo, the dreadlocks, the spear, that armor or even just the wilderness background ... this portrait literally screams Ghostwise Halfling Barbarian to me! There's just one thing amiss: could you please do a version with reshaped halfling ears @Isandir? The lack of female halfling portraits out there is maddening, especially warrior ones at that.
@SharGuidesMyHand: Here's what I envisioned when I saw the model you had posted. This was a tough one! I can't say it's a favorite, but I think I just have a hard time wrapping my own mind around this portrait as a PC. Not my type and I actually just get an uneasy feeling looking at her...
@Foggy: I'll add a two-handed sword to Deshad's portrait since that's your preference, and it's a relatively easy addition. I'll let you know when it's done.
@Meepichi: Keep posting! Just as some others have observed, your portraits are already improving quite a bit from the first few we saw. Have you been experimenting with different methods?
@Isandir: I am not feeling the BG vibe with some of your portraits. This one is a perfect example, it feels more "handpainted" in a way (Skeezer is another). I LOVE the vibe you give to most of your portraits such as Jenna, JetLaya, Keiria, Bardo and Juoda! These ones scream of the realistic BG style (and plenty more ). Are you using different methods at times with your portraits, cause this one feels like its been worked on in such a way to create a more painted look?
I reckon that the model pose and the lighting in the original image posted have much to do with the final result. Should the images for requests have better contrast and lighting, natural shadowing and more fitting BG poses, the work on the portrait would be easier and much faster, while the quality would equal those based on images handpicked by the artists. That last portrait was pretty badass for an image very difficult to baldurize (I'm using it as alternate Shar-Teel), I know many artists who couldn't work on an image less than 1000x1000 taken on natural lighting between noon and 4:00 pm.
Be it the facial impression, the tattoo, the dreadlocks, the spear, that armor or even just the wilderness background ... this portrait literally screams Ghostwise Halfling Barbarian to me!
Exactly what I was thinking, although I would prefer to use it as a human or maybe a dwarf.
Hello comrades. I was wondering if, in their spare time, maybe someone can turn this picture of Melissa Clarke into a Baldur's Gate style portrait? I was hoping for a Thief/Assassin themed one.
Sadly my photomanip/artistic skills are not anywhere close to the level of some of the men and women on this forum.
@Kamigoroshi: Here's a slightly edited version. Though that side of the portrait is shadowed, the pointed ears should still be visible in 169x266.
@doshidania: The mouth was positioned there...well...because that's where the model's mouth was:
@Greenpakto & @Foggy: Foggy hit the nail on the head here. I use the same method virtually every time I make a portrait, but the results differ based on the base image used. A spoiler follows, since this is a rather long explanation.
If you look at the picture I worked from just above, it lacks virtually any natural contrast and has a single lighting source. Combined with the relatively low resolution (506x637), that entailed having to paint in shadows and details in order to Baldurize it. Compare that to the base images of two of the others I had made: Vihane (originally 768x1024, the lower end of what I prefer to work with) and Bardo (originally 2395x3593):
In both cases, and in Vihane's in particular, strong shadows are being cast on one part of the face. This makes it immensely easier to retain a more realistic look, and I can then focus more on retaining proper coloring and blending the model with the other elements. To see what I'm talking about, here's what happens if we simply adjust the contrast (+ 200%) on Bardo's base image. The result should show why it's not as simple as that, particularly when viewed next to my final portrait:
As an (amateur) artist, however, the good news for me in that image is that the shadows on the left side of his face are being clearly defined, which makes it a matter of balancing out the other side and retaining the detail in the areas of the face that are too dark. Without any kind of natural shadowing, however, one has to imagine where the shadows would fall, and even if dead-on, it will still lack a more realistic look, as you're attempting to add details rather than take some away. That's what happened with this last portrait.
Generally, this is why many people's requests don't turn out as they envision. The reality is that I or any other portrait-maker needs a good base image to work with, which is why I'm highly selective about the portraits I personally choose. If others have requests, but can only provide a low-resolution image with poor lighting and shadowing, the result will only be as good as the source.
And Skeezer's portrait...well, look at the model to see why he turned out the way he did.
@Meepichi: Keep posting! Just as some others have observed, your portraits are already improving quite a bit from the first few we saw. Have you been experimenting with different methods?
Thanks! I've just been basically learning how to use Photoshop better from watching a lot of videos on enhancing photos and such. Do you have any recommendations?
@Meepichi: At this point, I think you're doing fine on your own! I don't believe that any artist should be trying to copy someone else entirely. I only started making portraits the way I do now when I just began experimenting more with different techniques instead of trying to copy @Syntia13. I generally only refer to tutorials when I'm trying to create a specific effect.
@Isandir: I thought you gave a fantasy look to Skeezer beard, but after seeing the image of Skeezer's model, well the guy have an epic beard that must live on its own, balduziring that is a feat. I tip my hat to you good Sir.
Was just fiddling with portraits again and when I started resizing the Merlinish one from ID I thought "Huh. He'd actually make a decent Santa Claus." Any of you artists feeling christmassy and up for "santifying" this for a laugh? Red/white robe with slightly modified hood and it's the most festive mage ever!
@doshidania nice! You gave her darker shading than I did, so I guess now it goes for all tastes As for her slightly bigger head for BG standards - meh, I gave it a try and started this piece anew, but after an hour of work I've lost my temper and closed Photoshop. Maybe sometime later...
@Isandir I understand completely what you mean by needing a good quality photo to make the best pic. I've not been nearly as picky as I should have when it comes to picking photos that have good shading, plus they tend to be lower quality photos too. I often have had to guess myself on where shadows should fall and it is definitely NOT one of my strengths but I'd definitely like to get better in the shading/highlight department.
Anyway, I once promised to post the celebrity portraits that "Karse Soze" made in the past (taken from his then exisiting website). He actually already had a larger size of his portraits so most do fit EE editions. Unfortunately I do not have every single portrait he made, and in fact, theres a few missing, espacially the large sized versions. I will post the largest ones he made if possible, the ones I have. He made different sizes portraits for BG, IWD and NWN. Starting with the Male portraits:
Arnold Schwarzenegger Ben Stiller Christian Bale Danny Devito Edward Norton Jack Nicholson Jim Carrey Jude Law Keanu Reaves Michael Jordan Orlando Bloom Sean Connery Seth Green Unknown person
PS: I do not myself particularily like these portraits. I dont like when people recycle the same clothes from the games portraits, for example. And the second issue I have is that they feel very low quality in terms of "resolution".
@Greenpakto, I daresay that Karse Soze was the guy that started the whole "make-your-own-portrait-in-BG-style" in the first place. It feels like ages ago... At that time, there were not many wallpapers and ingame armor from other games to choose from, and Photoshop lacked a lot of the features I use today.
Some nice art, but I dare say that I would have a hard time bringing along guys like Ben Stiller on my BG adventures. Funny actor. But not sure what he'd be doing in the Forgotten Realms. Maybe it's just me.
Alyssa Milano Angelina Jolie Cameron Diaz Human Cindy (commision, unknown person) Drow Cindy (commision, unknown person) Famke Jansen Halle Berry Jennifer Connelly Katherine Heigl Kati (commision, unknown person) Keira Knightley LeeLoo Dallas ;D Michelle (commision, unknown person) Milla Jovovich Natasha Henstridge Patricia Arquette Rose McGowan Salma Hayek Sarah Michelle Gellar Shannon Elisabeth Victoria Silvsted Callisto (Hudson Leick)
PS: It would be appreciated if anyone could add to this collection. Posting the large sizes of those I did not post. or if you just have different portraits from Karze, feel free to post them as well. Cause sadly some of these only have the small portrait size, and is useless for BG:EE and BG2:EE...
Some nice art, but I dare say that I would have a hard time bringing along guys like Ben Stiller on my BG adventures. Funny actor. But not sure what he'd be doing in the Forgotten Realms. Maybe it's just me.
@marceror: I agree completely. But some of these are more "okay" than others. Since not all actors are THAT famous, some are less awkward, for me at least. Famke Jansen for example, doesnt even look like her on that portrait. And Silvstedt, yea id tag her along any time
@Astafas: I do believe you are correct, he was one of the first. And not all his portraits have that "low res" feel... "Keanu Reeves" and "Famke Jansen" for example does not.
Comments
@Foggy: I'll add a two-handed sword to Deshad's portrait since that's your preference, and it's a relatively easy addition. I'll let you know when it's done.
@Meepichi: Keep posting! Just as some others have observed, your portraits are already improving quite a bit from the first few we saw. Have you been experimenting with different methods?
Here is the link for his picture http://postimg.org/image/kotm30v6b/
(personally reminds me a bit of Khalid), you can keep him human, make him elf, tbh doesn't matter as long as it is baldurized ranger. In advance, much apreciated if anyone is willing to try.
There's just one thing amiss: could you please do a version with reshaped halfling ears @Isandir? The lack of female halfling portraits out there is maddening, especially warrior ones at that.
Are you using different methods at times with your portraits, cause this one feels like its been worked on in such a way to create a more painted look?
PS: I am mostly talking about the face here
That last portrait was pretty badass for an image very difficult to baldurize (I'm using it as alternate Shar-Teel), I know many artists who couldn't work on an image less than 1000x1000 taken on natural lighting between noon and 4:00 pm.
Hows this?
@Isandir Great job either way!
I liked the idea of the portrait but her mouth was kinda off so I did some edits
@doshidania: The mouth was positioned there...well...because that's where the model's mouth was:
@Greenpakto & @Foggy: Foggy hit the nail on the head here. I use the same method virtually every time I make a portrait, but the results differ based on the base image used. A spoiler follows, since this is a rather long explanation.
In both cases, and in Vihane's in particular, strong shadows are being cast on one part of the face. This makes it immensely easier to retain a more realistic look, and I can then focus more on retaining proper coloring and blending the model with the other elements. To see what I'm talking about, here's what happens if we simply adjust the contrast (+ 200%) on Bardo's base image. The result should show why it's not as simple as that, particularly when viewed next to my final portrait:
As an (amateur) artist, however, the good news for me in that image is that the shadows on the left side of his face are being clearly defined, which makes it a matter of balancing out the other side and retaining the detail in the areas of the face that are too dark. Without any kind of natural shadowing, however, one has to imagine where the shadows would fall, and even if dead-on, it will still lack a more realistic look, as you're attempting to add details rather than take some away. That's what happened with this last portrait.
Generally, this is why many people's requests don't turn out as they envision. The reality is that I or any other portrait-maker needs a good base image to work with, which is why I'm highly selective about the portraits I personally choose. If others have requests, but can only provide a low-resolution image with poor lighting and shadowing, the result will only be as good as the source.
And Skeezer's portrait...well, look at the model to see why he turned out the way he did.
nice! You gave her darker shading than I did, so I guess now it goes for all tastes
As for her slightly bigger head for BG standards - meh, I gave it a try and started this piece anew, but after an hour of work I've lost my temper and closed Photoshop. Maybe sometime later...
I will post the largest ones he made if possible, the ones I have. He made different sizes portraits for BG, IWD and NWN.
Starting with the Male portraits:
PS: I do not myself particularily like these portraits. I dont like when people recycle the same clothes from the games portraits, for example. And the second issue I have is that they feel very low quality in terms of "resolution".
PS: It would be appreciated if anyone could add to this collection. Posting the large sizes of those I did not post. or if you just have different portraits from Karze, feel free to post them as well. Cause sadly some of these only have the small portrait size, and is useless for BG:EE and BG2:EE...
@Astafas: I do believe you are correct, he was one of the first. And not all his portraits have that "low res" feel... "Keanu Reeves" and "Famke Jansen" for example does not.