My article in BlenderArt Magazine

Check it out! I wrote up an article for BlenderArt Magazine on how to make tile-tastic naturalist 2D sprite environments.  So nice to see your name in print :D

http://blenderart.org/2011/04/01/blenderart-mag-issue-32-now-available/

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Blender splash screen contest!

Here's my 6 AM renders :D I'm a bit sleepy, to say the least.

www.oscarts.org oscarbaechler@gmail.com

Utterly misleading caricature progress

I have, in fact, NOT worked on this in about a month. But tonight I thought, "say, wasn't I going to finish that Dan Savage pic?" and opened the file. I apparently forgot that I did a complete start on a color pass :P

This in no way counts as a speed paint any more. Not only because I haven't opened it in a month, but also because I have no recollection of how much time is invested in it now. Somewhere between 3 and 6 hours is my best guess.

Anyway, on another note, I'm going to try and retire B&W starting images. The Tick drawing I did was done in straight color. This was B&W, then brought into color. The unfortunate truth is that I have so little trust for coloring via a layer mode transfer or fancy doodads like that, that I end up just painting in Normal mode, e.g. repainting the entire thing on top of itself. That wasted time is probably why I haven't looked at this in a month.

AlsoSpiresHDisoutforiPadandiPhone4sgobuyitandrateit! http://bit.ly/GetSpiresHD


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Spires HD now available!

Hey guys! Spires HD just went live, with optimized graphics for iPads and retina iPhones. Also added a ton more Survival maps, Extreme difficulty, and the new Siege mode.

Check it out! http://bit.ly/GetSpiresHD

Here's a trailer I put together for it, edited/composited in Blender:




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Playing with compositing more...

Not lovin' the pink horizon right now. Mostly just cranked it up to 11 while making sure it worked. Methinks I'll be shooting for an atmosphere akin to some of my favorite painters, ala Salomon Corrodi and Jean Leon Gerome.

Also hunted down more loose keyframe doublings, which was resulting in pop-locking, and also the foot sliding is fixed. Next up, animating him walking onto the platform thingie for a turntable.


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Not-so-speedy Tick speed paint

You may remember this little exercise I dida while ago. I started purtying up my favorite head from then, and it's stretched beyond the restrictions of a speed painting. So here's my pic of The Tick.

Now I like it enough that, sigh, I'm going to burn even more time getting it really polished. Justice never sleeps!

Also, a quick interesting side note, I think it's fascinating how learning the technology behind something makes you a better artist, because then you draw the stuff you understand on a technical 3D level. I remember distinctly when I learned about Ambient Occlusion, and afterward tried like crazy to draw it in everywhere.

Similarly, nowadays I know a lot more about subsurface scattering. As a result, I tried to bring it out in this. All I did was brush in extra saturation on the transition from light into core shadow. It's easiest to spot on his cheeks. I'll have to play with that more.

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Skirt cloth sim test

Here's the skirt with a cloth sim on it. The system of individual proxy cones for collisions seems to be working--they bounce as if friends with each other, but never intersect as if enemies of one another.

Also made a stop motion beard animation. The lengths I go to, just to avoid the tedium of sketchbook scanning. Sheesh.

www.oscarts.org oscarbaechler@gmail.com

Water simulation I did over the weekend

No raytracing, some mild compositing.

If only there were some sort of venue I could show off how I made this...Oh yeah! December 4th's Seabug is fast approaching! Tickets are free but space is limited, so go and RSVP at http://seabug.eventbrite.com now!

www.oscarts.org oscarbaechler@gmail.com

Speedpaint 03

Now with Photoshop CS5! Very fun, lots of cool new features that slap you in the face within the first 2 minutes.

Probably went a little longer than I expected here... 90 minutes? Was chillin' on this dude's Thelonious Monk playlist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmhP1RgbrrY&p=4ADFDD92486076A8&index=3&feature=BF




www.oscarts.org oscarbaechler@gmail.com

Merry Christmas!

Here's my Christmas card for 2009, illustrated in Photoshop. Have a happy holiday season, y'all!



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oscarbaechler@gmail.com

Another speed painting!

This one clocks in at under 2.5 hours. I'm beginning to worry...this process goes so quickly, and with such reasonable results, that it makes me itch to do another one already!

Seabug this Saturday, by the way. I'm sort of the emcee, but it's pretty casual. If you like Blender and are in the PNW, come by and we'll drop some knowledge on you. seabug.eventbrite.com

www.oscarts.org
oscarbaechler@gmail.com

11 Second Club WIP #2

Getting to the stage of tweaking and nitpicking, eh? I'm going away for the weekend, then hopefully I'll finish polishing this off before the month ends.

www.oscarts.org
oscarbaechler@gmail.com