Valley of Broken Shadows

Completed on: 10/29/2004

Medium: Straight painting in Photoshop

Info: This is an environment design I had to do for my scene layout class. Right off the bat I knew I wanted to do a few places from my books, and this valley came up because I could picture in my head the actual perspective and lighting of the piece. As I look back on some of my early environments from years past I feel really thankful for the strides I was able to make. I had always been troubled by a lack of interesting perspective in my pieces, but here I think I was successful. To help me in this regard I used some reference materials. This is an important technique that any artist should reach for time and time again. It doesn't matter whether you're a professional or just starting out. I know from experience that I learn the most when looking at other artist's visions and methods. Years ago I had wanted to do it all myself, and that was a mistake which I clearly see now. A good artist is one who opens him or herself to advice, pointers, and guidance by other artists. Whether the artist is on a higher level or a lower one doesn't matter as much as you may think. Never stop aspiring to better your skills. If I had maintained my mentality of a few years ago I would not be where I am today. I'll stop preaching now. I feel the major draw of this piece is the soft lighting which gives the valley a sense of calm. It is actually a false sense of calm because the valley is much more than it appears to be at first glance, but that's a story for another time...

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