Graymatter: Painting light and value from imagination

Light and Values are two separate things

An intro to the darks and lights of an image

Light rays and 2 key ideas

These 2 simple ideas are foundational to my understanding of light

3 main light types

Point light, sun light and area lights

Everything is a reflection

There's two types of reflections that are the most useful when painting

Planes and the matte surface

The single biggest aha moment for me when understanding how to invent light.

Different lights show different shadows

Guesstimating Cast shadows

✍️ Practical Blending Techniques

The sphere

Gray matte clay, everywhere!

Matte Cube Demo

Matte Cylinder Demo

Profile Shapes Demo

Organic Shapes Demo

Guesstimating direct light cast shadows

Matte surface complex shapes

Plane head demo

Planar head different light directions

Tennis Anatomy

'Carving' objects

Blocky Anatomy Plane Game

Character/your own shapes direct light

Direct Light Pitfalls

Ambient light Sphere

Ambient Light Cube

Ambient Light Organic Forms

Ambient light Chest

Squid Ambient Light Assignment

Ambient Light Pitfalls

Light doesn't get dim, it dilutes

We need to understand this to accurately paint 'point' lights

1. Point light simple shapes

2. Point Light Sphere Demo

3. Point light cube demo

4. Point light arcs

stylized head male point light

5. Point light complex shapes

Point light on character

1. Tackling multiple light sources

Making things shiny (Specular Reflections)

Controlling the shininess of surfaces with specular reflections.

Specular Reflection Sphere

2. Specular reflection complex shapes

Local Values

Understanding what 'local' values are

Texture and 'micro planes'

1. Local Values Simple Shapes

Local value, same object scary fella

Head profiles assignment

Edges, the tool to describe form

They don't only describe what light is doing...

✍️ 1. Using edges

✍️ 2. Edges as style

2. Robo dude material challenge

Robo dude walkthrough

4. Material translation practise

Stylized Wood

Tentacle

Leather Jacket

Stylized Shrubbery

Brick

Glass

Skin

Metal

Hair

Mystical Rock Stylized

Stone

3. Character local value challenge

Stylized Graphic Female

Movie Stills Study Introduction

Reverse engineer materials from movie

✍️ 3. Reference simplified value study

Place objects in the movie scene

Studying From Reference vs Imagination

Value studies, invention and how we can utilize both

Mystro Stylized Study

Hands Stylized Study

Graphic Stylized Characters

A note on Realism and Stylisation

Drapery Woman

✍️ Assignment 20: Bringing it all together

Mirror dude illustration breakdown

Taking it further and final thoughts

Mushy or muddy or dirty surfaces

Something doesn't 'Feel' right

Fixing Flat Paintings / not looking 3D

Lack of consistency

Highlights don't "shine"