BiffTheTimid's art Reviews on Newgrounds

[At the End of the Desert]

Looks pretty cool. I dig the lighting and the composition. A few critiques: The chromatic aberration seems out of place and doesn't really serve any artistic purpose, at least in my opinion. The atmospheric distortion is cool on the wheel, but it would also affect the small hill in front of it, since it's pretty much the same distance. Right now it's too dark, and would have the same level of haze as the wheel. As for the wheel itself, if it's as gigantic as you depict it, it wouldn't have that detailed a texture on it. It would be so large and far away that you wouldn't really see the detail you have. The way it is now is at odds with it's scale. The weathering of the wheel also is pretty uniform and doesn't have much art direction. Worn objects have wear and tear, but in predictable spots, not over it's entire surface. The clouds are cool, but look a lot more painterly than everything else. I suspect the ground and wheel are a mix of CG and paint, and the clouds are painted. The clouds on the right seem a lot different than the ones on the left, and look repeated. They're different enough but the shapes look like a pattern. I taught CG and Illustration in College, so sorry if it seems like I'm being overly critical. These are just things I notice since it's the type of stuff I deal with on a day-to-day basis. Cool stuff over-all, keep it up.

ErrorCell responds:

You nailed some of the deep seated issues I've personally had with this image that a lot of my friends have also nailed me on after releasing it. I think this image deserves quite an overhaul given the feedback. My hope is to get back to these images one by one and resolve the issues over a couple years time as I work on new images. Then recompile the whole series as a book.

You're not being overly critical! I think if you notice something I'd rather be told than not, especially if you've kindly taken your time to write a whole 250+ word paragraph of just ideas and input. If anything art is a life-long craft that becomes better with discussions like this. It's a practice that makes people better, and it can't get better if nobody has things to say.

Not that it adds anything here, but I'll just add that the scene is 100% 3D, including the clouds. SideTrip really began as an experiment to use partially computer-driven design techniques to tell a story I wrote when I was a kid. And I'm thrilled to see it grow. I've been proudly working on it for 2 years.

So really thanks for your input.

[Study time]

Your color, lighting, and linework are all done well. I'm not much of an anime-style type guy anymore, but I appreciate what you've done, and the resolution you did it in. I have a few suggestions that you can take or leave. First, when you upload an image to NG, I wouldn't upload it at its full resolution. At it's current size it doesn't fit anyones monitor, even if they had double the resolution of current displays - and it takes forever to load. Secondly, work on your perspective. The viewing angle is straight on, but the table and bookshelves look as if we're viewing at a downward angle. We shouldn't be able to see the top of the bookshelves, at least according to how the characters are positioned. Same with the table, though I like what you have arranged on it. The background is also askew slightly, which is interesting, but slightly disorienting. The way you do folds in clothing is a bit haptic and doesn't make much sense, especially in the dude on the left's left arm. I'd suggest googling dudes in dress shirts in various poses and you'll see they don't have those strange bulges and sharp folds that run down the upper arm like that. Also, grey-bro has a very effeminate hair-style, but that's neither here nor there. That's all I've got to say about that. Keep up the good work.

TheDamnThinGuy responds:

I appreciate your critique so much. I can definitely use some words of advice, and I'll try to work on the things you've pointed out. Thank you!

[Lisa Miller]

Pretty sweet

Throw down some subsurface scattering yo. Also, you've got some funky stuff going on with the neck/shoulder weights. Wouldn't mind seeing the topo.

[ClokWerkMech]

Looks pretty pimp

I dig the intricate design. I wouldn't mind seeing the poly flow on that shit, as well as what software/renderer you guys used. I'm going to guess Max/Mental Ray :O

[Bugatti Veyron]

Nice model

I think the problem you have with this is the specular settings, and maybe the refractive index of the paint. Also, to make it look less "toy-car"-esque, try using hdr imaging. Also, the glass is obviously detracting from it. I dig the model though.

IStumpyI responds:

could you explain the toy car thing a little more please, and do you know how to use hdr backgrounds with blendigo? thanks for the critique