Barbieq25 Gallery - Gallery update 2 new p. 1

[barbieq25]

Thanks everyone for your most encouraging comments. I am working on a lot of TX 750 images at the moment. I have posted a manipulated image of my Honda 400 Four Super Sport, as it sits today, awaiting restomodding. I got it for Mother's Day from my hubby. Also he bought me a new tank for it that has no dents which unfortunately the original does. Fixable, but easier to buy another one. Hubby also made the portable platform so I can move it without busting a boiler.

Other images are mostly from previous comps which got placings & I got my first SAC win. Thanks to those who enter the comps & support the hard-working hosts & those who take the time to vote. Your support is very much appreciated!

[HELEN]

Woah. Woah. Woah. I haven't seen the latest images and it was a treat, for sure. Wow! You keep outdoing yourself, barbie. Excellent work!

[barbieq25]

Thanks for your undying support Helen. Glad you like them. The idea is to keep on improving, at least for me.

[Moninca]

barbieq, I've been looking through your gallery, and everything is so beautiful. ^_^ I'm working on following your jewel tutorial, though I haven't had much success yet. Nothing I'd show, that is. lol

But I'm curious. I love the stained-glass type pictures you did (in the Older Works part), like Art Deco Plum, Feathered Star, and Lucky 13. Do you have a tutorial for that style? I would love to experiment with that style!

[barbieq25]

Moninca, no I don't have a tute for those but the way of working the gold frame is much the same as for the jewel tute. You are not just limited to gold either.

If you let me know where you are having a problem, I'd be glad to help. Sometimes it is a case of just being able to work through it. I used to print all of the tutes & tick the steps off as I went because I'd lose track of where I was or miss part of the info. Tutes are all about learning how to use the program, so even when we stuff up, we still have learnt something. It took a lot practice for me I can assure you

Use the line tool to create the outline. To do the curves on lines, use the right mouse button instead. I think it is called Bezier curves then.

Each line you do, put on a new layer so that you can position it precisely. Sometimes using the mouse is troublesome, so I use the directional arrow keys on the keyboard after selecting & using the Move tool. Once you are happy with the framework you can merge the layer down.

The gold for the framework can be done the same as the gold technique - Bevel, Curves, layer blend modes...steps 4 to 12 in the jewel tute

I like to keep a copy of the framework before doing the gold so I can use it to select areas for the fill. You can hide this layer so that it doesn't interfere with the look of the image. Remember too that working on a much larger canvas will give you superior results. I usually go for 4 x bigger & then reduce it to 25% when I save as a .PNG I also keep a copy as a .PDN with as many of the layers intact as possible. This way I can go back & make changes more easily & also re-use elements that I really like & cannot remember how I did it (happens a lot )

See how you go with that & if you still have problems just let me know & I'll see what I can do about a tute.

Edited June 12, 2011 by barbieq25

[Moninca]

Awesome, thank you very much. I'll try that and see what I come up with. ^_^

For the jewel tut, it's fine and easy to follow. I just haven't come up with anything I'm happy with yet. I can't get the Radial and Zoom Blur Deluxes, so I'm working with the regular ones. Also (and I mentioned this in Helen's tut as well) I don't have the True Blur, so my orb/jewel highlight does look quite right to me. But I'm sure I'll get down with practice. ^_^

Thanks again!

[barbieq25]

Moninca, True Blur is part of Ed Harvey effects:

You have to down load the plugins & put them in the Effects folder. This link should help you;

In the Jewel tute you will see that some of the text is in blue, which means that it is a link to the plugins needed.

At first it seems really daunting but after a few you get used to doing it & it becomes second nature.

Always happy to help

[Moninca]

Thanks for the True Blur link, I couldn't for the life of me locate it. ><

For the Radial and Zoom Blurs, I did see the links in your tuts, but I got a "Page No Longer Exists" message for both of them. Are there perhaps other versions somewhere?

btw, I just noticed Wild Weed. That is amazing! I got caught up in your Hidden Gallery, I totally spaced the visible one. *brain blank* lol

[barbieq25]

No, I had problems too but it was an old post response from pyro that got me there. Easy to see now why good thread titles are important.

Ok, I can see that the links are dead from the other person. I'll see what I can do.

[barbieq25]

Update: 2 new ones on page 1. They are reworks of an old one. Boy, does the new pc & the HD monitor make a difference!

[HELEN]

The colors really pop, especially the very first one. The yellow-orange color is so rich and it stands out very well from the background. And you know that red always works well with darker colors, which you did so nicely!

[barbieq25]

Helen & Welshy, thanks you both for your most encouraging comments.

Just wondering if maybe it is confusing for people to know where to find the new works. I know I do with some people's threads, so I will post the new images here too.

Baleen

Don't Say That You Love Me, thinking of

when I was doing this one.

[HELEN]

Yowww! That's smoking hot! You keep outdoing yourself each time with the latest works. I'm impressed!

[mountnman]

stunning.. i realy like baleen, not that Dont say you love me isnt gorgeous, but baleen knocks my socks off

yall keep making me feel small and feeble

threw me for a sec- post says "2 new ones July 8" and its still the 7th here

[Moninca]

I can almost see the whale grinning at the thought of the next meal. Nice. ^_^

[Mayor_McSteeze]

I really love "Baleen". It's so simple and sleek, but most of all just beautiful to look at

[Xhin]

. I usually go for 4 x bigger & then reduce it to 25% when I save as a .PNG

It's worth noting that that's only useful for areas that are large; areas that are only a few pixels wide will be blurred and sharp areas can actually look *more* jagged.

Unless there's some method I've missed? I tried resizing a 20"x30" piece and ended up with blurry stars and jagged lines.

Anyway, that aside, your new stuff looks greaet. I love the amount of polish and depth of The Minder. My only complaint with it is that the halo of the red jewel doesn't match the rest of the piece, so it makes it seem as though the jewel doesn't belong on the piece. I'd suggest sharpening it or reducing it, or adding some kind of mild halo effect to the bottom-right and bottom-left corners to make the piece feel more consistent.

Baleen doesn't have this problem because there are transparent gradients on the right and left sides of the piece.

Just a small gripe. I like what you do

[barbieq25]

Helen, thank you!

MTN - yep, different time zones...glad you like my works.

Welshy - I missed your comment & those that follow...new content not telling me the truth then?

Anyways, glad you all like the Baleen one. The flower one was not my usual style but I wanted something a bit different, as well as making a statement.

Xhin, yep, sometimes reducing can have that effect. Do you mean a halo effect right at the bottom of the left & right? In a colour? Red? I really appreciate your thoughts on this.

Ok, here is more of the Wips that I completed. I was going to post just 2 at a time but July is fast running out & I did these back in June.

I will put them here & on the first page too.

No Chains

Pink Lily

Rainy Days

Synaptic WP 1920x1080

[HELEN]

Oh, wow. They're all so gorgeous. You could've probably guessed that "Pink Lily's" my favorite. I also like how you made the rest of the abstracts resemble a puzzle board. Great works!

[barbieq25]

Thanks so much Helen for your continued support. Yep, I guessed that you'd like the lily the best.

[Xhin]

Do you mean a halo effect right at the bottom of the left & right? In a colour? Red? I really appreciate your thoughts on this.

No, no, the red is perfect as a highlight of the center; if you add more it'll ruin the piece.

The next part is kinda complicated.

Basically, it has to do with balancing the similar elements of a piece so as to draw the eye to its highlights. This works better in symmetrical pieces (like yours), but there are underlying symmetries at work in asymmetrical pieces like baleen too.

What The Minder suffers from is a lack of highlighting the "center" of the piece, which would be the area where the ball is highlighted and the dark red "eye" in the top part of the piece. Instead, it's drawn to the relatively ugly blurred/golden section in the bottom. Here's a chart demonstrating why:

1. The rectangles show the "underlying symmetries" of the piece.

2. The white rectangles are based on blur, speficially blur that pops off the page. if the red circle didn't have blur, the symmetry would be balanced at the top and its center would be in the space between them (near the dark red eye). As it is, the center of the symmetry is close to where the ??? is, but the center of the piece doesn't get there.

3. The cyan rectangles are also based on blur, specifically glowing blur. These are also balanced in the same way that the white rectangles are balanced, so they pull the balance of the center down slightly.

4. Lastly, the yellow rectangles represent the sharpest parts of the piece. These are balanced linearly instead of triangularly (which is important!). It's worth noting that other parts of the piece, specifically the glowing/highlighted areas are balanced towards them, which is probably the main reason they're important to the piece as a whole. The center of this symmetry is in the area halfway between them.

5. The center of the piece as a whole takes all of these symmetries into account, which makes the bottom part of the ball be the center. Unfortunately, this keeps the eye from being drawn to the green ??? region, which is what I think is the true center of the piece, since it has elements (especially the eye) that nothing else in the piece does.

If you add a form of blur to the bottom-left and bottom-right corners, you get this chart:

1. The added blur in those areas rebalances the blur in the top-left and top-right. The new center is directly in the middle of the piece (where the red ball is).

2. This would normally be shifted down by the balance of the areas where the cyan rectanlges are, however the new center is reinforced by the balance of the two "sharp" areas (represented by the yellow rectangles).

This is a good solution, however the dark red eye is still missing from the balance of the piece. Here's a better solution:

1. Add blur in the bottom-right and bottom-left corners, *and* Remove the blur in the upper-right and upper-left corners.

2. Now the "sharp" areas are rebalanced in an upwards-leaning triangle, and the true center gets shifted to the top of the ball and the center of the eye, which is the ?? from before.

3. The blurred underside of the red ball *is* unbalanced and uncentered, but that can be corrected by doing something with the top of the red eye that creates a new symmetry between it and the underside of the red ball. Possibly a slight increase in brightness, although this may also ruin the piece

4. The balance of this new symmetry will help to reinforce the balance of the entire piece.

[barbieq25]

WOW! Thanks so much for taking the time to explain this in such great detail. I have merged the two background layers down otherwise it would have been an easy thing to flip it.

I'll see what I can do with this piece. It certainly helps to have such a detailed explanation, not only for myself but anyone else who reads this thread. Thanks ever so much! I'll keep you posted.

[Xhin]

Well, for me balancing art is an intuitive process, so don't take my explanations as necessarily concrete. Also, the process works a lot differently for asymmetrical pieces, since the "center" can be anywhere on the piece, not necessarily along the axis of symmetry.

For example, with Baleen the "center" is offset to the right and below the center of the canvas. I'd put it right where the bulge of the gold is the biggest, in a frowny-face shape. There's an underlying symmetry between the red ball in the top left and the largest dark area where the cutoff of the red strings is the most noticeable. The center is right along the line connecting those elements, so the piece works very well. My one gripe with baleen is that the red strings need to go further to the left, so the red ball partially overlaps them and the cutoff of their fade-out is where the cut-off of the left gold starts. That would serve to both rebalance the symmetry in that area of the piece and to make the bottom-right darkness stand out more, which would itself serve to keep the center focused.

Here's a piece I did:

When I first had this piece, the top area on the sides was exactly the same as the bottom area on the sides. The piece was unbalanced, because the four "columns" in the center of each wall of the piece pointed to the pink center, but the triangle shape's center was shifted downwards. So, I added a zoom blur to the bottom-left and bottom-right sections of the piece to create another underlying symmetry with the pink blurry center to keep the "center" in between the center of the triangle and the center of the canvas. the cyan color of the color zoom blur and the cyan highlights at the top form another symmetry that helps to support that center.

This keeps the piece balanced, despite the fact that the triangle is not on the center of the canvas and the pink area is not in the center of the triangle. The multiple upwards-facing triangles of symmetry counterbalance the one downwards-facing triangle of symmetry (the triangle itself), so the entire piece is consistent.

[barbieq25]

I think I see what you are saying. With some pieces this works well but with other pieces, the eye needs to go for a wander around like in the Baleen piece. In The Minder, the eye does not wander as much but it does perhaps have too many elements that compete with focus.

Interesting ideas to ponder.

[barbieq25]

Welshy, your wife is a sweetie. I don't always do bright & cheery as you know. But for her to think that it was as good as one of yours is a bonus. I nearly left the stamens out. Hubby bought me some lillies & he asked me if these were the flowers where you cut the stamens off to stop them from dropping dust & marking everything. I didn't know but a Google search found me the answer - yes. Very messy & of course I had to test it...

I also agree with you on the eye of the beholder. There are many things that influence how we perceive a work.

Here are some more from grumpy old me...

Marie Claire

Lost

Jagged Little Pill - woman outline is stock

Edited July 28, 2011 by barbieq25