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[ShoesandHats]

Can someone give me some advice for drawing different biomes, rivers and mountains on a map? I'm drawing one for a project, and I have an outline for the landmasses themselves that I'm happy with, but I don't really know where to go in terms of detailing their interiors using a mouse and Photoshop.

The project I mentioned may or may not be a forum game, so I won't post it here. If you want to see it before you suggest anything, PM me.

[Bauglir]

Friend. You've come to the right place. For a basic starting place, download the PDF in this post. Everything in the quoted post below is a result of experimentation from there - once you've got the basics worked out, if you want any tips on particular biomes, I'd be happy to offer any advice I can. Bear in mind, the scale on that sucker is pretty wonky, and you may want other resources for figuring out how biomes actually form and suchlike in reality.

Spoiler: Click to Embiggen (click to show/hide)

[Mesa]

Man, I didn't know my phone camera was good enough for that thing. Who needs a scanner?
Go forth, sketches from my sketchbook!

Spoiler: They're really huge. Though not so much irl. (click to show/hide)

Heads.
This character seems a bit confused about something. Or maybe she's scared?
This one seems a bit angry.

[Shook]

PHONE CAM BROFIST

Them's some pretty neat sketches yo, although one thing that strikes me is that they all have quite similar facial expressions. You'll probably not be surprised to hear this from me, but me thinks it may be related to the eyebrows, since they're pretty much all at the exact same height above the eyes. Don't be afraid to let them wander a bit, even if it means having them up on the forehead or halfway down through the eyes. :v (although obviously it's absolutely no requirement to go balls out with huge floating anti-gravity battlecruiser eyebrows like i tend to do)

Also, last night i finally decided to get off my arse and do the last request i had hanging, and well...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

AY ESQUELETO

[Parsely]

Greetings Skelamigo.

[Nirur Torir]

I've decided I needed to spend time making quick sketch animations, because I need to grind up speed and consistency.

Spoiler: First up: Bird (click to show/hide)

[coolio678]

I've decided I needed to spend time making quick sketch animations, because I need to grind up speed and consistency.

Spoiler: First up: Bird (click to show/hide)

The only noticeable oddity in that animation is how the bird's wing tips bend downward while it's flapping down. I'm gonna assume that's because you made the up motion first, then copied and reversed it for the down stroke?

[Nirur Torir]

The only noticeable oddity in that animation is how the bird's wing tips bend downward while it's flapping down. I'm gonna assume that's because you made the up motion first, then copied and reversed it for the down stroke?

Ahh ... no, I did the down motion first. I don't really know how bird wings work, but assumed they made sort of a curved scooping motion.

[alexandertnt]

IIRC bats make the curved scooping motion when the wings are lifted up, presumably to lower the wing-area that is moving against the air (and thus reduce the downwards force when prepairing to flap down again). I would imagine birds would work similarly. At the very least, I would bet that the down stroke and up stroke are considerably different somehow

There is probably slow-motion-camera footage on youtube of bird flight.

I do like how consistant your animation looks. Nothing oddly stretches or changes shape in any of the frames.

[Bauglir]

Well, here's a reference. Looks like they do sort of cup their wings as much as they're able, but air forces the feathers up at the tips.

I like the animation, for reasons that have already been mentioned.

[Gentlefish]

A better way to think about bird flight is that the tips of the wings stay stationary and the bird's body moves in relation to the wing's movements.

[Shook]

Only partways. The birds body does bob up and down while flying, but the wings definitely move at the same time. Intensive studies reveal to me that a flight animation can be boiled down to three frames:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Or so i think, anyways. I'm NOT a pro animator or birdologist (this guy seems to know more about birding). :v

[acetech09]

Spoiler: Scrap foam + pocketknife + time to kill (click to show/hide)

[Mesa]

It was surprisingly fun to digitally re-create one of my yesterday's sketches (well, the sketch itself was a few weeks old but that's besides the point). I should do that more often.
Way more often.

Haven't shaded or properly colored anything in a while either.
Big image is big.

[HawaiianJon]

Yeah... what started off as a base idea that my art teacher had us do, turned into something that I started to sell for a bit of change.

I am sure most of my school has lost faith in humanity by the people who are buying my picture.
Also, that is me.
No drugs.
No alcohol.
Just why I don't sit near cameras... I WILL make faces.

WARNING, Giant image is stealth-ing within that little spoiler!

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Needs an OBEY caption, imo.

Big Brother is watching...

You have no clue how many people at my school have said that...
Also I have it hanging in various areas...
Some people are scared of me;
Some wonder how the hell I sell the pictures off.