Photo/s of the day.

[moonvoice]

All five pictures are under the cut.


I've started blocking in a darker black over the blended neck, and I've added orange/red highlights to the back of the neck, the cheek of the swan, and that's about it. Oh, I've added the flames on the back of the neck.





The neck is now blended again, and I've neatened the edges with malleable eraser to give it a cleaner look. I've blended the highlights into the swan's neck and cheek, and now added red highlights on top of that. Added the beak.





Blended the flames on the back of the neck, how much better do they look? :) Added rough highlights on the back of the neck.





Added red highlights on the feathers all the way down the swan's neck, blended the flames and added more details and highlights. Really worked in the feathers on the swan's wings more completely, including details such as feather shafts. Added feather definition on the back and tail of the swan. Added additional feathers along the wing.





Added a mountain/hill thing behind the swan, and that's about it. That said, adding more dark contrast, ups the camera's ability to take an accurate picture of the brighter colours, so the flames look more accurate in colour, here.

Comments

[skitty-kitty.livejournal.com]

Your work makes me want to take up pastels. :D I love how vibrant the colors are in your works, it's very beautiful.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Do it, take up pastels! Do iiiiiiiit.

[skitty-kitty.livejournal.com]

So, on the off chance I do go crazy, what brands would you rec? >___>

<____< :D

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I don't know what they have over there, but when you're just starting out, something like Mungyo pastels can be good because they're cheap. If you get good pastel paper (Mi Tientes), they still look awesome.

[skitty-kitty.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[earthguardian.livejournal.com]

This is fantastic.

Give me your skill. >:3

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Okay! *hands you skill*

[skitty-kitty.livejournal.com]

Is your icon the dude from that Canadian nature series, or am I confusing my older Asian males again?

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Heh, it's Hayao Miyazaki of 'awesome Ghibli movies' fame.

[skitty-kitty.livejournal.com]

Omg, massive fail on my part. I'm sorry Miyazaki-san, your fan is horrible! ;D

[ariestess]

This is beautiful! The colors are so vibrant.

You're really making me want to pull out my pastels and see what I can cobble together now...

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Yes! Do it! Pastels are fun! :)

[ariestess]

I wish I still had the one piece I'd done in junior high that I was most proud of. I'd done the cover art for Stevie Nicks' Bella Donna CD for my dad. Damn, but I was proud of that piece. Even more so than the self-portrait I'd done. Tho' I do remember that I tended to lean toward caricatures when doing portraiture...

[wolftale.livejournal.com]

It will be a master piece, is so wonderful :D

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I hope so, thank you! :)

[lupabitch.livejournal.com]

The contrast of the fire and water is striking, not only visually but energetically, too. Nice work!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :)

[tigerweave.livejournal.com]

I so love the vibrancy of pastels :-) And I so envy your collection. We have a Very Modest collection which I treasure. So expensive :-( I suppose I could try selling my art to fuel my pastel fetish, but I think Leonie might have a stress-meltdown from another major hobby :-D

- Suzannah

[tigerweave.livejournal.com]

PS, the swan is looking gorgeous. What is the concept behind the swan as firebird?

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

What is the concept behind the swan as firebird?

I've actually done a few 'other bird as firebird' in the series.

There's black swan, pelican (in the icon), duck, raven and lyrebird so far. And I guess... I just felt like it one day. It started from reading about how ravens were the original phoenixes, or were considered the manifestation of the phoenix; so I drew a raven as firebird. And then from there, I thought, 'why not other birds?' I'm pretty sure duck was next. Heh.

[tigerweave.livejournal.com]

We saw the pelican when we went looking for userpics for the MoF. But I don't remember seeing any others. Are they up there?

I thought phoenixes were just ... phoenixes! But you are saying the raven was likely what that concept was based on?

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Are they up there?

I have links here:

Raven - http://ravenari.deviantart.com/art/Raven-as-Firebird-43356811
Original Black Swan - http://ravenari.deviantart.com/art/Black-Swan-as-Firebird-43842306
Duck - http://ravenari.deviantart.com/art/Duck-as-Firebird-49274992
Pelican - http://ravenari.deviantart.com/art/Pelican-as-Firebird-62015935
Lyrebird - http://ravenari.deviantart.com/art/Lyrebird-as-Firebird-128961049

*

As for the phoenix/raven connection, back when I was at uni I dug it up in a few books, but I don't remember what they were now. I do know that Hans Christian Anderson wrote about it too, back in the day.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

They are stupid expensive, unfortunately. :/

[amorvincitnos.livejournal.com]

Looking absolutely awesome so far. Great contrasts between the black/blue/reds. :)

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :)

[tsukikokoro.livejournal.com]

Wow! I thought it was looking really incredibly just after having seen the before and after blending shots, but then when you added the extra detail, it was like the piece had come into focus. I hadn't even realized it looked "out of focus" before that!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Pastels are like that, I think. And they're weirder than other mediums because in other mediums things go on rough, and then you 'finish things off' by smoothing them out. Blending paint and so forth. In pastels, things tend to go on smooth (once you've blended), and then you have to consciously add rough texture.

It's cool.

[naamah-darling.livejournal.com]

I believe the word I want is "arresting."

I love it and can't wait to see the finished piece. It really came alive for me with the addition of the fiery highlights on the neck.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I like the highlights on the neck too. I can't wait to have this one finished, though I have no idea what I'm going to start on afterwards!

[kehleyr.livejournal.com]

OMG LOVE IT! I love the water and the swan and well EVERYTHING!!! LOVE IT!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :)

[hrafn.livejournal.com]

Wow. This is awesome. Also: the before blending/after blending contrast is really neat to see.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Yeah there really is a big difference before / after blending. I likes it.

[enigmaticmagpie.livejournal.com]

This is absolutely incredible!

I always have this picture in my head of art done in pastels as being sort of wilting and demure in character, but your art always shatters that illusion. *grin* So beautiful!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Hee, I guess they are used in pretty demure ways a lot of the time. There's a lot of pictures done in pastels in pastel shades and they're all 'soft' and shit.

I've always liked bold pastels, though.

[anrui-ichido.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is coming along beautifully! :) I have never liked working with pastels, but perhaps my problem was that I was always given white/light paper to work with. Clearly darker/brighter kinds of paper provide a much better base.

What kind of pastels do you use? Do you use a fixative spray when you're finished?

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I don't use fixative spray usually, but I sometimes add some to the parts of the picture I want to look duller (since fixative dulls pigment), and I tend to add a stripe around the edges (even though there is a blank section for fingers anyway).

White/light pastel paper is only really good for - imho - pale scenes and portraits of people. I have a couple of pale colours, but I almost never use them.

[witchchild]

Ooooooooh. <3

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

*bounces*

[shadows-wolf06.livejournal.com]

Very cool. Thank you for posting these. It kinda makes it easier to see how the process of pastels work and what I was doing wrong last night....

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Aw I'm glad you're appreciating the pictures!

[sheistheweather]

SO gorgeous. Wow, Pia.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :)

[donnalotus.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :)