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Official Magazine
Issue sixteen
Expert tips
Plan your
composition
Art skills
Understand
perspective
Over
50
pages olfs
tutoria
sketches
FREE CD
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Paint like
Brush primer
001_OPM_16 colour.indd 1
Realistic rain
We reveal the tricks to adding
a splash of rain to your art
ISSUE SIXTEEN
ISSN 1753-3155
6.00
16
771753 315000
www.paintermagazine.com
2/4/08 12:14:34
Welcome
This is THE magazine for anyone wanting to further their
Corel Painter skills or learn how to become a better artist
Brush Primer:
Erasers
Pg 46
Paint like:
Renoir
Take a look at the
Impressionist-style
painting, The Umbrellas
Pg 52
Art study:
Rain
We show you how to
create realistic rain in
your paintings
ISSUE SIXTEEN
Pg 34
003_OPM_16_welcome.indd 5
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y
t
i
n
u
m
Com
Tutorial xxxx
NEWS EVENTS
RESOURCES
LETTERS WEBSITES
INFO FORUM
Unusually, Fontplay.
com photos can be
used in commercial
projects. Having no
entrepreneurial bones
in my body, I added
free commercial use to
the images, explains
founder Dennis Hill
10
010-011_OPM_16_News.indd 10
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ts
info n ews eve n ts res our ces letters web site info n ews eve n
TUTORIALS
In short
Where theres
a Will
Website offers masterly painting
tips and techniques
OnlyPencil.com
offers a range
of free tutorials
devoted to the
art of drawing
with a pencil,
as well as links
to video guides
Graphics.com
Since launching in
April 2007, Finalcrit
has attracted talent
from around the
world with the offer
of free professionallooking online
portfolios
Nice rack
With dozens of categories to choose
from, PhotoRack (www.photorack.
net) offers thousands of free images
for you to download and use in your
creative projects. A great slideshow
function lets you view a category
hands-free at your leisure, and a Hotlist
reveals the highest rated and most
downloaded images. Although the
images arent the highest res weve
seen, the choice and range is excellent.
MAY
17 of
OPM on sale!
22 Issue
William Whitakers site includes some insightful
painting demonstrations and techniques,
including a stunning oil on canvas portraits
11
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s
r
e
t
t
e
L
r
u
o
e
Welcome to the part of the magazine where you can com
and share your thoughts on anything you fancy!
Send your
letters to...
Ofcial Corel Painter
Magazine, Imagine
Publishing, Richmond
House, 33 Richmond
Hill, Bournemouth,
Dorset BH2 6EZ, UK
If youd prefer to contact
us via email, send your
message to opm@
imagine-publishing.
co.uk
Production explanation
Peter McMurphy
Henry Ralphe
Featured gallery
Full Moon
Floribunda
Gerry de Wit
http://www.paintermagazine.
co.uk/user/gw0625
Based in Auckland, New Zealand, Gerry
has uploaded 160 images to his gallery,
although that was at the time of writing
and were sure its gone up since then!
With such a large portfolio, its no
surprise to learn that Gerry irts with all
sorts of artistic styles and subjects. We
are particular fans of his still life images,
especially his Floribunda image (see
middle right).
To see what else Gerry has been
painting, head over to his gallery today!
Langs Beach
Gerry de Wit
Gerry de Wit
12
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bsi te info
we
s
ter
let
ces
our
res
ts
n
eve
s
ew
n
o
inf
te
bsi
we
s
ces letter
www.ofcialpspp.com/forum
Challenge query
Iris Hamilton
Picture Stall
Gerry de Wit
012-013_OPM_016_letters.indd 13
Gerry de Wit
3/4/08 09:54:26
14
014-018_OPM_16_interview.indd 14
3/4/08 09:59:39
WEBSITE
JOB TITLE
CLIENTS
www.fridayeve.com
Sr. Production Artist
Eat Sleep Play, SCEA Incognito Studio, Perpetual Entertainment,
Gearbox Software, Vivendi Universal Games
An interview with
Steve James
Steve Jamess day job is working in the video games industry, but at night he loves
to produce striking paintings using Corel Painter. Nick Spence meets him
teve James has been working
in the video games industry
since 1999 as a texture and
concept artist. He received a
BFA in Illustration from Brigham Young
University, where he studied traditional
painting techniques.
He now works primarily on his
computer using Corel Painter, and he
maintains a busy blog where many of
his digital paintings can be seen. He is
currently employed at Eat Sleep Play,
and has previously worked at Sonys
Incognito studio. His projects include the
video games: Warhawk, Twisted Metal
and Advent Rising. He is represented by
Shannon Associates.
We caught up with Steve to discover
how he applies Corel Painter to create his
recognisable, sketchy style.
[LEFT]
Abraham Lincoln
A study of Abraham
Lincoln taken from Steve
Jamess FridayEve blog,
which is sometimes
updated daily with
new work, particularly
portraits and more
fantasy-based images.
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Beauty Beast
Steve Jamess Chinese spin
on Madame Gabrielle de
Villeneuves, Beauty And
The Beast, first published
in 1740. Painted for another
Illustration Friday challenge
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Phobia
Another example
of his after hours
artistic activities,
creating work for an
online blog
Although trained in
traditional painting
techniques, Steve James
now works primarily on the
computer. He lives in Lehi,
Utah, with his wife and their
crazy cat
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Steve James or
iginally made
up his own fac
es as a basis
for his portrait
studies, but
now uses phot
o reference
to avoid them
all looking
the same
Ahab
Steve James created this image
of Captain Ahab for the online
Illustration Friday competition,
a weekly creative outlet and
participatory art exhibit for
illustrators and artists of all
skill levels
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Feature
Artist insight
How to plan a
020-26_OPM16_feature.indd 20
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dy
G e ttin g r ea
to c lon e
21
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Feature
Choosing a
composition
As I approached the scene I knew right away that I wanted the little weathered shack
to be the focal point and the stark winter trees to be the backdrop, but I also knew
that the scene needed more, such as leading lines that help bring the composition
together and add more interest to the overall scene. There are actually several such
elements in this scene, and the way we frame the image in the viewinder is essential
to a successful composition. Even though cropping and such can be done in software,
its best to get the composition as pleasing as possible in the camera. In these
samples, you will see what is included and why.
Location: Ceres,
Virginia USA
Portrait
Landscape
Close-up
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Portrait
Sketch it out
The Rule of Thirds works on the theory that if you place points of interest in the
intersections of nine equal squares (or close to them), your photo becomes more
balanced. Our eyes usually go to one of the intersection points naturally, so the
Rule of Thirds works with this natural way of seeing. Here are some doodles to
show how this has worked in our photo.
Landscape
2
Notice, once again, the focal point of the
image is not in the center yet the eye is
guided by the adjoining lines all leading
back to the cabin.
Close-up
Painters
composition tools
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Feature
Prepping
the final photo
Its easy to make a photo bend to your needs. I like the photo I have chosen
(Landscape 2), but it could do with some more height. The Resize Canvas tool will
add some empty canvas to the bottom. I will also use the Straight Clone brush to add
elements from another image and get the perfect scene for my vision.
HERES HOW
the grass
01 Painting
01 Close-up
02 Cloning
Colour controls
Before we paint our landscape we need
to prepare it with simple tools. Now that
we have the composition and elements
we want to include, we can boost the
colours and darken the tyre tracks that
add human interest to this weathered
3
03
Adding
more tree
07
colour
Now lets
adjust the colours by going to
Effects>Tonal Control>Adjust Color, and add
more saturation to the landscape to liven it up.
By using the
Regular Sponge brush
and deselecting Use
Clone Color, I can add
some bright yellow to
the top of the trees to
suggest the sunlight.
24
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Things to
remember
Be prepared
for the shoot
Its always good to
have at least two
lenses to choose from.
If you can bring along
a second camera with
a wide-angle lens, and
one with a telephoto,
you will be ready for
anything and wont
have to worry about
changing lenses.
02
Painting the tracks Now I zoomed in using the same brush, and
I painted over the tyre tracks following the lines of the tracks with my
brush, while adjusting to the curves so as not to smudge them away.
03 Blending shadows
sponging
05 Keep
06 Tree limbs
Cautious and
courteous
The best place to find
beautiful scenery
is usually in remote
areas of the country
that you discover by
just driving around
and stopping when
something catches
your eye. This is how
I found the Kidd
Farm featured in this
tutorial. However,
when you are on
private property its
always best to call or
knock on the door
and ask permission
to be there. Not only
is this courteous,
but also safe, as you
never know when
someone might have
a watchdog, or just
not be too friendly
towards strangers!
Dont get
too caught
up in rules
Glazing
in ground
09
shadows
Again,
using the Regular Sponge brush, I will
now add dark purple to the shadow area of the
trees to add some depth.
To add
more colours I chose the
Oil Glazing brush, and
added some soft violet
shadows to the ground.
Be sure that Use Clone
Color is deselected.
The rules of
composition are good
to learn as a guide,
but dont let it stand
in your way if your
scene doesnt fit this
rule. Be creative and
follow your own heart
you are the artist
and the ultimate rulemaker or breaker of
your own work!
25
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Feature
Finishing touches
Paint the cabin, add a fence and brighten up the overall scene
11 Add a fence
Theres a fence in
the left foreground that
adds to the composition,
so I dened it more by
painting over it with
dark brown using the
Acrylic Opaque Round
brush. The last thing I
always do is pump up the
brightness and contrast
of my painting by using
Effects>Tonal Control>
Brightness, Contrast and
Adjust to get the most
pleasing result.
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Original photo
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Tutorial
Turn photos into sketches
Jill Garl
Time needed
1.5 hours
Skill level
Beginner
On the CD
Preparation
Start by preparing your chosen photograph
01
02 Brighten up
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Now clone
the image and get ready to draw! Go
to File>Quick Clone. A duplicate of your image
will open up, with tracing paper covering it in the
colour you chose from step three. This will happen
all in one step! You can toggle the tracing paper on
and off by clicking the Tracing Paper icon.
05 Sketch outline
Zoom
in very close to the face. Trace over the
features with a lighter touch. Using the Cover
Pencil, or Number 2 Pencil, outline the eyebrow
area, pupils, irises, eyelashes, etc. Make sure your
lines are accurate, as this will be the step that
identies the subjects likeness.
Interactive
save
Save your photograph
with a new name after
you make changes,
such as desaturating
and Equalizing. Once
you have saved,
you can click off the
original photograph.
Your original will
remain untouched.
The new saved version
will be the one you
are working on with
the tracing paper. It is
also a good idea to use
the Interactive Save
feature as you go,
saving each step.
07
Zoom out and check sketch Check your sketch with the tracing
paper off. Make any adjustments you feel are necessary, and will
benet your sketch. Erase any areas that need cleaning up. Redraw any areas
you feel could be better at this time.
08 Adding shadows
of colour
09 Swatch
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12
13 Clothes detail
Tutorial
Rotate Page
on
the hair
15 Working
14 Jewellery Detail
The
hair is another step
that will really bring the
subject to life. Sketch
in the hair with a long,
sweeping motion using
the Conte brush. Varying
the opacity of colour
helps the hair to look
natural and adds depth.
Again, your original lines
will show through, giving
the hair a nice sketchy,
loose style. Leave some
areas untouched to
create the highlights.
Fade tool
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Finish it in style
Complete your masterpiece!
17 Background strokes
Using the
Square Chalk brush, brush over some
background areas near your subject, in an angled
motion. We sampled a colour from the hair in this
example, for the background strokes. If you want
to come back into the strokes from the outside
edges, just sample the background colour, which
is ivory in this example, and brush the new strokes.
Thats
it, your drawing is complete! For the nal
step you can play with the Equalizer to get more,
or less, contrast. Also, consider warming up your
drawing in Photoshop for an alternative look.
HIGHLIGHT AREAS
If you keep some areas of your
sketch without colour it will
indicate highlights. This allows
your chosen background
colour to become the
highlights. In this example the
effect is most evident in the
hair and clothes, helping to
bring your drawing to life!
BACKGROUND
Keep the background
simple to bring the
focus to your subject.
Just a few strokes in
the background will
help to bring your
subject forward and
create depth
BLENDING
Do not over blend in the
clothes or hair area. Let
the beauty of the line and
brushwork show through.
Most of your blending will be
in the shadows on the face,
arms and hands
ERASER TOOL
Use the Eraser tool to create
the catch lights in the eyes
and lips. This tool is also used
to create highlights in the
rings and the necklace
CONTOUR LINES
Keep your lines free, loose and
deliberate when drawing out your
initial sketch, as these lines will become
an intricate part of your drawing. Have
your lines vary from thick and thin for
more interest and realism
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Primer Erasers
BRUSH CATEGORY
Erasers
PRIMER
BLEACH ERASERS
Here, one of the Bleach eraser
variants was used at very low
opacity. These Bleach variants
slowly bleach the existing colour
beneath, and can be useful to
introduce not only lighter tones,
but colour, which appears as the
existing colour is slowly bleached
revealing new colour notes
from within the colour itself.
HARD EDGES
The Hard erasers are especially useful
for creating hard edges to your
erased areas, which can help to give
your subject form and outline. Also,
Hard erasers are great for adding
gestural, calligraphic lines to your
work creating texture and interest.
Erase on layers
Use a floating layer for your initial painting
Its always best to do
your initial painting on a
floating layer, with a filled
Canvas layer below it. This
means that when you start
to erase you are erasing
to transparency. You can
then easily change the
colour or tint of the erased
areas simply by filling the
Canvas layer with another
colour or tone.
34
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Primer
Eraser brushes
Get to know your tools
Erasers
1 Pixel Eraser
Flat Eraser
Block Eraser 10
Gentle Bleach 7, 10
Block Eraser 20
Pointed Bleach 7, 15
Darkener
Pointed Eraser 7, 15
Eraser
Flat Darkener
SOFT ERASERS
For gently lifting darker tones out of an
area, try using one of the Soft erasers
at very low opacity. Remember, erasers
can be very powerful, so you are much
better using them at a low opacity
value so you can gently and gradually
pull up lighter tones in your painting.
35
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36
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Jeff Johnson
Time needed
2 hours
Skill level
Intermediate
On the CD
Resource files
Artist
Tutorial
Tutorial info
37
3/4/08 10:16:05
Different values
Build up your painting with values and blends
step
forward
02 One
Put your
details and
colours
where they
are needed
Nothing flattens a
picture faster than
a uniform treatment
of details. Its pretty
difficult to direct
the eye around the
picture if everything
is in competition with
everything else. The
same goes for colour,
but the effect is
greater. Put a patch of
bright colour next to
a nice but drab detail,
and the colour more
than holds its share
of the eyes attention.
For these reasons you
need to plan where
such elements are
to go, because the
eye will naturally go
there as well. The
background, for
instance, would not
drop off in space as
effectively if too many
details were included,
or if the colours were
too intense.
We
are already done with the background,
and are moving closer quite fast. Now block in
mid-tones for the middle ground on a separate
layer. Very basic drawing is used to suggest a
couple of rolling hills covered with bluebells and
crowned with a row of scrub trees on either side.
Notice how the trees create nice lines of linear
perspective to enhance the sense of depth.
06
Build volume
in the trees with some lighter values. Its
still too early to focus on details, and simple strokes
with a low opacity Airbrush, combined with the
Soft Blender Stump are all that are required. The
trees on the left are emerging into the light as they
recede into the background, while only the tops
of the trees on the right are catching any light,
throwing the entire middle ground into shadow.
patches of grass and green cover are added among the bluebells.
Since we are getting closer, well use warmer shades of green.
05 Rounder still
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Eye-catching
A pair of
small saplings alongside the trail are
a nice way to draw attention to it. Keep things
simple, as there will be time later to sharpen
details as needed. A little lighter value at the base
of the saplings is all thats needed to catch the eye.
09 Were here
11 A little shade
After blending in
the highlights as before,
start adding darker
values to the shadows
in the near foreground.
This frames the centre of
the picture, and provides
a strong visual clue as
to a succession of value
changes that lead back
into space. Note the
greenery thats lining the
path is roughly painted
at this point, because
layers of detail and
blending will be used
to build up realism and
textural variation next.
This screenshot
highlights a couple of little moves that
are helpful in creating maximum distance. Use
a slightly larger brush for the dabs as you work
closer, to reinforce scale.
It can be useful to
work things like
branches and leaves
on a separate layer,
yet too many layers
can throw a spanner
in the workflow. The
method to employ is
pretty simple: open
up a layer above the
one youre working
on, add the element(s)
desired, alter them
as needed, and select
the two layers to be
merged by holding
down the Shift key and
clicking on both layers
in the Layers palette
(this works with
multiple layers). Now
go to the Layers pulldown menu (located
in the menu bar) and
select Group. Once the
layers are grouped
together, go back to
the Layers menu and
select Collapse.
10 Rounder
Tutorial
Managing
layers
12 Details, details
14 Branching out
15 Cast shadows
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Final details
Light, shadow and the finer details
Lead em by
the nose
The object of this
painting is to get the
viewer to follow the
footpath through
the picture. This was
accomplished via a
host of devilish means!
For instance, scientists
inform us that we of
the Western world
enter a picture via the
lower left-hand corner,
so the path begins
there. It is not too
wide, or the entrance
would dominate the
scene and make it
hard to get beyond
it. The path itself is
an exercise in linear
perspective, with its
single vanishing point.
It moves up and down a
varied landscape and is
surrounded by details
that add interest to the
journey. It disappears
tantalisingly close
to the lighted
background, which is
purposefully hidden
at its base so as to be
more intriguing and
alluring. Finally, look
down that path and
count the succession
of groupings of three
items (or shapes)
a rhythm which the
subconscious picks
up and adds to the
overall flow.
20
21 Closing in
19 Leave-ening
22 Wrap it up
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Tutorial
Distance 101
Back groun d
Mid groun d
Foregroun d
The middle ground in this scheme is in shadow, which helps set it apart very
distinctly from the soft, light background and the bright leading edge of the slope in
the foreground. It is placed a fair bit higher than the foreground plane, which serves
to enhance the illusion of distance in space. Pictorial alchemists are aware of this
trick of perception, and use it to great effect.
Linear perspective is a strong element of this layer. The footpath snakes its way
through the gentle slopes, towards an implied vanishing point. The lines of shrubs
on either side work in the same fashion. Details begin to emerge here and there
most of them placed strategically to draw interest to various parts of the picture.
The strong leading line of the path begins in the lower left-hand corner, directing the
journey through the picture. The far edge of the slope is bathed in bright light, which
sets the entire plane off quite sharply from the middle ground. The majority of details
and textures in the picture are on this layer, a nod to atmospheric perspective. In the
same vein, the warmest, brightest and most saturated colours are in the foreground
as well. The small saplings are added to draw sharp contrast with the tall trees in
the background a powerful tool of scale relationships that serves to drive home
the distance between the two sets of objects. Finally, the dark foliage of the trees
combines with the shadows in the near foreground to effectively frame the path.
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Clone from
HDR images
How HDR and Tone Mapping can bring a
whole new look to your cloned paintings
FEATURE
FOCUS
Getting ready
Setting up your camera and taking the picture
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HDR settings
01 Generate
The software
Which software to use?
For this feature we are using Photomatix Pro. But there are a
number of programs which can give us HDR, or other blended
images. Some of these programs also provide easy routes to
Tone Mapped images, and there are still others that provide
some of the effects of Tone Mapping without using blended or
composite images. For example, Photomatix, Dynamic Photo
HDR, and Photoshop CS2 and CS3 cover both HDR creation,
exposure merging and Tone Mapping though the dedicated
programs give good results easier. CS2 and CS3s Highlights/
Shadows filter can give something of the look of a Tone Mapped
image to a single, unblended image as does a powerful,
separate program called LucisArt.
Mapping,
Details Enhancer
02 Tone
The
Details Enhancer method produces
often dreamlike, images. Strength
controls the strength of contrast
enhancements (to bring out detail).
Light Smoothing smoothes light
variations higher values help to
reduce halos. Luminosity compresses
the tonal range more boosts
shadow detail and brightness. White
Point and Black Point determine the
maximum and minimum values of the
tones. Gamma adjusts the mid-tone.
Colour adjustments affect the colour
temperature of the nal image. Micro
adjustments affect how far details are
accentuated. Shadows and Highlights
Smoothing, and Shadows Clipping,
reduce contrast enhancement in
shadows and highlights, and how
much the shadows range is clipped.
Mapping Tone
Compressor
03 Tone
Broadly,
Tone Compression works on the
whole image and produces an image
closer to a straight-out-of-the-camera
photo. The two adjusters that may
be unfamiliar are Tonal Range and
Contrast Adaptation. The former
controls how the HDR images tonal
range is compressed in the Tonal
Mapping process. The latter sets how
much the contrast is adapted to the
intensity of the pixel values. However,
in practice, the parameters that seem
to have the most intuitive and useful
effect are Brightness, White and Black
Points, (colour) Temperature and
(colour) Saturation.
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FEATURE
FOCUS
We
open up Photomatix Pro and select
Generate HDR Image from the Windows Shortcut
options box (that appears automatically). We could
use Exposure Blending to produce a composite
image and process it, but this time we will create
an HDR composite.
The
Generate HDR Image appears, and we
use the Browse function to nd the three different
exposed images we are going to combine. We will
use three les, which you can nd on the CD. Once
the three images appear in the boxs window,
click OK.
Checking
the HDR
04
image
05
more colour
44
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The
White Point and Black Point settings
control overall contrast in the image, and the
Gamma controls overall brightness. Moving the
slider to the right increases contrast across the
image. You can experiment with these too, but for
now make the value for White Point 0.559%, and
for Black Point 1.672%. Set Gamma to 0.81.
09 Color settings
The Temperature
sets the warmth or coolness of the
overall colour. The Saturation Highlights and
Saturation Shadows effect the colour intensity in
the highlights and shadows. We want to get the
look of warm sunlight, so set the Temperature to 1.
Leave Saturation Shadows at 0, and set Saturation
Highlights to 2.
Feature focus
Automatic
Exposure
Bracketing
11 Shadows/Highlights settings
10
We are now
ready to apply the settings, and to do this we use Process. The
processing will take a few minutes. You will then have the Tone Mapped
image, which is nearly ready to take into Painter. When the nished image
appears we save it. Go to File>Save As and select .tif<TIFF 8-bit> as the le
type. Open Painter and the image le. Start painting!
subtle values
Many people who see Tone Mapped images do not need to analyse
their wider values or increased details to find them attractive and
intriguing. Tone Mapped images are immediately recognisable as
such. They have a very distinctive look; an otherworldliness that is
immediately familiar, but difficult to describe. The view they offer
is dreamlike, sometimes surrealistic and fantastic. They show you
elements of a scene you did not know were there, and reveal a level
of detail in the everyday, which can change and heighten the way we
perceive it. The images show how much we miss day-to-day, even if
we take photographs. In this way they give us, not only a fascinating
way to paint our world, but a spur to our imagination to maybe try
painting in a different way and experiment more.
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We take a closer look at one of Auguste Renoirs paintings and try to learn more about the most
characteristic Impressionist-style features
Tutorial info
Artist
Joanna Michalack
Time needed
3 hours
Skill level
Intermediate
On the CD
hy shouldnt art be
pretty? There are enough
unpleasant things in the
world.
Renoirs paintings are notable for their
vibrant light and saturated colour, most
often focusing on people in intimate and
candid compositions. The female nude
was one of his primary subjects, which he
would not inish until it was as realistic as
possible. In characteristic Impressionist
style, Renoir suggested the details of a
scene through freely brushed touches of
colour, so that his igures softly fuse with
one another and their surroundings.
In the late 1860s, through the practice
of painting light and water in the open
air, he and his friend Claude Monet
discovered that the colour of shadows is
neither brown or black, but the relected
colour of the objects surrounding them.
The works of his early maturity were
typically Impressionist snapshots of real
life, full of sparkling colour and light. By
the mid-1880s, however, he had broken
with the movement to apply a more
Sparkling colour
Softly fusing
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Tutorial
Paint like Renoir
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Online
galleries
If youre looking
for good-quality
reproductions of
great masters and
artists overall, you
certainly need to visit
Art Renewal Center at
www.artrenewal.org.
Its a great source of
art thats still growing.
a
copy
01 Making
We chose
a fragment from the
Impressionistic side of
the painting (the righthand side) to work on.
When you make a copy
it is important to get
the proportions of the
painting right. The best
way is to draw a basic
sketch over a le of the
original its much faster
than having to draw it
from scratch.
03 Colour palette
We created a colour
palette on a separate layer. Because the
colours will strongly blend with each other its
better to use some bright and clear hues too (you
can also nd these on the CD).
02 Sketch
04 Colour map
05 RealBristle Brushes
For most of
the painting we used Real Oils Short and
a bit of Real Round. They imitate actual painting
brushes well and work similarly to a real brush,
which means youll add a new layer of colour with
every stroke and the colours will blend when you
paint with one continuous stroke.
Shortcuts
You can use these
shortcuts to save time
and make your work
easier: Ctrl/Cmd+Alt
Colour picker,
Ctrl/Cmd+Z Undo,
Holding Space (you
can move the image
freely with your pen
or mouse),
[ & ] resizing brush.
06 Starting to paint
07 The background
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it works
as a whole
10 How
It
is good to take a break
from time to time and
look at your picture from
a distance. It helps to see
how it works as a whole.
Working on a small area
means that you dont
see the entire painting,
so it is easy to overlook
things. We can also
check if the details are
visible enough because
we have to remember
that most of them will
disappear after resizing.
09 Stroke features
Tutorial
Custom
brush
palette
First we need to
dene the shape of the sleeve, which is the
most recognisable part of the womans dress. We
used the FPP and a brighter colour that will later be
blended with the darker background.
12 Blending
13 Colour detail
14 Decoration
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Finishing details
Faces, hats and hair details that complete your painting
Merging
layers
If you create many
layers your computer
might slow down.
To avoid this, merge
layers from time to
time (try to keep
three layers at
most background,
lineart and the actual
painting). If you are
still unsure when
overpainting your
previous work to
correct it, you can
save your picture in a
separate file keeping
all the layers, so you
can always go back.
18 Another sleeve
little
girl
22 The
We continue to
work on the hat using Oils Short to blend
the colours and soften the edges. At the end we
repaint the brightest elements to make them more
visible and dened.
21 Redhead
Now we
can nally move to the
girl with the hoop. We
painted the basic colours
for her before, so now
we just need to add the
details. Shes the most
colourful and detailed
part of the painting.
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Tutorial
Trees
Paint Renoir-style trees
Because we chose only a part of the painting for this exercise we
couldnt include the trees on the left-hand side. However, we think
they are still worth mentioning, so heres a short tutorial.
23 Redrawing lines
First we need to
redraw the lines from the sketch to
dene her features. We draw it on a layer over
the painting while hiding the other layers. We will
merge it with the rest later on.
Now
we blend the colours with Oils Short,
and at the very end add some highlights with
the FPP. At the same time we work on her face,
concentrating mostly on her lively eyes. At the end
we will go back and x anything that still needs
work, as this will be more visible then.
24 Basic colours
26 Soft light
correction
27 Colour
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How to
Whether its pouring rain, mist, rain-spattered windows or stormy skies, we show you
how easy it is to create realistic rain in your paintings
Pourin g rain
GREY SKIES
LIGHT ON DARK
SPLASH ABOUT
VISUAL CLUES
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Step-by-step
The only
thing rainy about our original photo is
the umbrella. Before painting the rain, we used Soft
Oil brushes to paint the structures, medium-dark
skies, and highlights. We were thinking of sudden
summer downpours when the warm sun shines
intermittently between dense clouds and lends a
golden hue to the rain-soaked landscape below.
03 Making a splash
To make the
Splash brush we began with the
Calligraphy Thin Smooth Pen 10, and went
to Squeeze: 2% and Angle: 75 degrees. This
provided the long down stroke. Then we played
with the angle, added 3 shorter strokes, and
captured the whole image as a brush variant.
Once its captured, experiment with size and
angle to get some believable splashes.
We modied
the Leaky Pen brush by squeezing it in
the Angle slider to 8%, and setting Angle to 80
degrees. We chose a light colour from the clouds,
and then went to Effects>Esoterica>Auto Clone.
A couple of tries to get the effect just right, and
voila! We have a downpour! No need to feel
guilty its still your painting, just easier.
Mist
An photo of a girl sat with an umbrella was the inspiration behind this
painting. However, we decided to add drama by painting a downpour. You
havent got to paint each rain drop individually - we show how some
cunning application of the brush controls can give you the perfect effect
without wasting lots of time.
Art study
Pouring rain
04 And a puddle
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Rainy window
An image
worthy of
01
streaks
Choosing
highlights
02
and shadows
We chose
this lighthouse for our
example. To begin with
we alternated Gaussian
Blur with Sharpen, until
we got the required
soft look. Go to
Effects>Focus>Soften
and choose Gaussian,
then Effects>Focus>
Sharpen. Start with an
amount of 6 or 7. The
intended effect is that
of looking through wet
glass, with moisture in
the air outside.
We
want low contrast
lighting, but when
looking through moisture,
whites seem magnied.
Choose Effects>Tonal
Control>Equalize and
move the bottom slider
to the right to lower the
brightness, and then the
top slider to the left to
raise the white points. This
will also retain some of the
focus on the landscape
through the rain streaks.
touches
04 Finishing
03 The rainmaker
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Art study
ATMOSPHERE IS KEY
Unsuccessfu
Successful
RAINY BLUES
GREY COVERAGE
MAKE IT REAL
DEPRESSING COLOUR
Rainy sky
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Tutorial
Create with brushes
Painting from scratch might seem an impossible task but Painters brushes can do most
of the hard work. We take inspiration from Bob Ross to show how anyone can have a go
Tutorial info
Artist
Cat Bounds
Time needed
50 minutes
Skill level
Beginner
02
03
First steps
Pick your colours and start blending them
01
Choose a colour palette Load up the Artists Oils Color Set and
make sure that the Display Name option is enabled. This lets you pick
out colours according to their familiar name (Colbolt Blue, etc). Decide on the
colours you want to use and brush them onto the Mixer Pad. When you have
them all, you can save it for future use.
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To texture or not
to texture
01
02
03
We continued to blend
with Just Add Water and decided to blend away
most of the cloud features, but of course you may
want to leave some uffy edges and later add
more shape and drama to them. The main thing
here is to create interesting shapes rather than
ending up with a monotone expanse of sky.
06 A simple sketch
We dont recall Bob Ross ever making a preliminary sketch, but weve made
a quick sketch on a separate layer so our illustrations will show up better. In traditional painting
you would paint over it, but in digital art its just as easy to delete when it has served its purpose, and we
can ignore it whenever we decide to paint something different.
07 Paint a mountain
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In traditional
painting you would never paint
watercolours onto your oil canvas. Thats part of
the fun of painting digitally we can combine all
mediums, sometimes on separate layers, giving us
even more freedom to explore the possibilities. We
used the Broad Water brush to block in the pale
blues for the stream.
10
Using the
same brush in a deeper green/charcoal,
well now lay in a few shadows. It seems like
magic, as you nd shape and dimension in the
foreground, and the whole painting begins to
take on life and interest. Dont overdo it. We want
more light than shadow.
And
again, back to the digital watercolour
brush this time for the grass. Most of this layer
will be covered up, but we want some variation
in the opacity, and this will even help us decide
where to make shadows and highlights later.
These decisions arent big, but they must be made
somewhere along the way.
Learn more
about the joy
of painting
The
beginnings
15
of texture
09 A watercolour stream
Tutorial
Bob Ross
colour
palette
Once
youve laid down some
random colours in the
grassy area, choose the
F-X Shattered brush to
stir them up a bit. Leave
it at 81% Strength but
reduce its size to around
20. This gives some nice,
unstructured texture to
this area and others, such
as tree trunks and rocks.
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Happy little
accidents
in
some foliage
16 Sponge
This is
the most interesting variant that we came
up with for this painting, and it begins with the
F-X Gradient Flat Brush 20. Warning: youll enjoy
this one so much your trees may become very
branchy! Set it to Size: 4, Opacity: 100, Jitter: 20,
and set Color Expression to Pressure. Vary Size and
Pressure as you go.
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A soft touch
Tutorial
Keep some areas of softness and add one or two finishing touches
23 On the rocks
We need some
outcroppings of rocks to balance out the
softness of our grasses and water. Play with the
Palette Knives to determine which ones give you
the hard, sharp rock edges that work best for you,
and if you create a variant that works well, dont
forget to save it.
Bob Ross
didnt ll in every nook and cranny with
a tree or rock or mountain. Part of the beauty of
his art was that there were also areas of softness
where our own imaginations could play. If youve
lost the softness, you can always go back in with
Just Add Water and nd it again.
Sponged foliage
A touch of grass
Splashes of creativity
Watery mist
touches
25 Finishing
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BRUSH CONTROLS
Angle
PRIMER
Quick scrapbooks
64
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SQUEEZE IN ACTION
The chalky effect here was not made using the
Chalk brushes. Instead, the Smart Stroke Soft
brush was modied in the Squeeze controls
Primer
Angle Expression
A look at the options in the Expression menu
WELCOME STREAKS
One effect of using the
Squeeze slider is this streaky
effect, that wouldnt have
been possible with the
Chalk variants
Velocity
This adjusts the brush feature
according to the dragging speed.
Drag quickly to minimise the
setting, drag slowly to increase it.
BUILD UP TEXTURE
Extreme Squeezing gives you straighter
lines, which are perfect for adding a few
ourishes of extra texture
Direction
Direction adjusts the selected
brush feature based on the
direction of the stroke.
Pressure
The Pressure setting adjusts
the brush feature, based on the
pressure applied by the stylus.
Wheel
The Wheel adjusts the brush
feature, based on the Wheel
setting on an airbrush stylus.
Tilt
The Tilt slider adjusts the brush
feature based on the angle of the
stylus from the tablet. When the
stylus is held perpendicular to the
tablet, Tilt is set at zero.
Bearing
Bearing adjusts the brush feature
according to the direction in
Rotation
This is a very specialised Angle
setting, and can be used in
Painter IX, Painter IX9.1, Painter
IX.5, Painter X, Painter X.1, and in
combination with a Wacom Intuos
3 tablet and 6D Art Pen. Well
worth checking out if you paint
with these.
Source
Next comes the Source slider,
which adjusts the brush according
to the luminance of the clone
source. Higher luminance (closer
to white) increases the setting
for that particular component,
producing a wider stroke.
Random
Random adjusts the brush feature
on a random basis, leaving lots of
room for creative, uncontrolled
brush strokes with a bit less
control, and a more painterly look
to them.
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Drawing people
This challenge calls for a less is more approach, have the confidence and
courage to stop working at just the right moment
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Drawing 101
Drawing people
the base
coat of colour
02 Applying
01
Use
watercolour to mix up the lightest
tone or colour of one your gures
features. Then, with a clean
medium sized brush, sweep the
watery colour over the shape.
Consider which direction you are
sweeping your brush. For example,
we tried to bring the brush down
to ow over the head and describe
the fall of the fringe.
02
shadows
to the gure
03 Applying
You
will have to use your discretion at
this stage. In some situations the
gures will not need too much
detail, distant ones may be best
left sketchily suggestive rather than
nished and three dimensional.
We have polished our drawings
with layers of shading to enhance
their realism. Keep the marks as
expressive and free as you dare.
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Different stances
Quick guide to people positions
Paintings can beneit enormously from even a
very simple human igure. The easiest position
is the standing still, but this will soon become
laborious. However, just because you are trying
a more dynamic pose does not mean lots of
extra work. Always apply the principle of
breaking the human form down into circles and
lines. Then its just a case of leshing out the
guide by thickening the lines. In no time at all
you have an array of postures at your ingertips.
Part of the left leg is bent sharply behind the right one.
It could be hard to make sense of it in the picture, so
imagine and represent it on your stickman. Once again,
the folds of the jumper and the shadows help to describe
the curve of the back. Decisive but subtle black strokes
on the shoes suggest the patent leather highlights as
they glint and bend.
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Drawing 101
Drawing people
Enjoy the
instinctiveness of
simply suggesting the
eyes and mouth
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BACK TO YOU
This image is a great example of using pattern to help you describe the
contours of the figure. The stripes on the boys jumper follow both the folds
and the arms beautifully to ask the eye to create the jumper on the page. The
folds of the trousers and the shading on the hair are quite detailed in this
image, but the shoes are very sparingly suggested.
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Your
questions answered
Softly does it
Jo Cole
When it comes
to creating art, you often find
little niggles that ruin your
masterpiece. We sort them out
N
The Blenders category offers an
interesting brush in the shape of the
Just Add Water variant. If you do
happen to paint from scratch then this is a
very useful tool for smearing blocks of paint
and getting smooth edges. Youll notice a
lot of our freelancers use it in their work. But
it also lends itself very nicely to the task of
cloning a photo especially where a softer
effect is needed.
Open up your photo in Painter and go to
File>Clone. Now go to the Blenders and select
Just Add Water. Drop the Opacity slider down
to 30% and start brushing over your image.
Use a larger brush for less detail, or go smaller
for defined areas. You can see the effect it has
Before
After
SHARE
YOUR
PROBLEMS!
If any areas look a little overworked just use the Soft Cloner
brush to bring back detail. Keep the Opacity low, so theres no
harsh difference between the blended areas
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Q&A
Glossy lips
Art class
light source
01 Determine
In order to get the
specular lighting in
the correct position
you must determine
where the main light
source and the viewers
eye are. In my picture
it is a straightforward
front-right light, and a
front view.
02 Foundations
03 Bottom lip
04 Upper lip
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Dramatic Perspective
Whats the best way to get dramatic perspective
in my images?
One simple, but dramatic, perspective you could use
is the single point perspective where there is one
vanishing point in the image. You can draw out a
perspective grid by hand (drawing straight lines radiating from
a point), or use the built-in Perspective Grid in Painter. To do the
latter, go to Canvas>Perspective Grids>Show Grid. Two planes
(horizontal and vertical) will appear, along with a horizontal
line that acts as the horizon line. To position the grids, go to
Perspective Grid Move on the toolbar and drag the outer lines of
the planes. You can hide the grids at any time by choosing the
Hide Grid option (Canvas>Perspective Grids>Hide Grid).
01 Get in line
I started
out with a character
sketch and dragged the
Perspective Grids into
position. To change the
position of the Vanishing
Point, drag and drop the
Vanishing point while in
Perspective Grid mode.
03 Dynamic!
Straight,
angled lines help
to create a feel of
dynamism so some
buildings, or perhaps a
street scene, will be ideal
for a background. Once
you have established
what perspective you
want, you can start
to ll in the landscape
and the other objects in
your painting.
Grid
02 Perspective
Make sure
you are in the Perspective
Grid mode if you want to
make alterations to your
grid, otherwise you wont
be able do anything!
Keep it simple
Is there a beneit to working with
a small colour palette? Ive heard
many people say they prefer using a
smaller selection of colours.
SIMON REEVES
Yes, there is a benefit. In fact there
are many benefits. Using too many
different colours in a picture can cause the
image to look cluttered and disconnected.
Working with a small colour palette can help
to unify a painting and to create a strong
sense of atmosphere, allowing you to convey
your message or intention much more clearly.
Light, warm tones can create a feeling of calm
and serenity, while dark, cool tones can be
interpreted as mysterious or eerie.
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Solar powered
Before
Art class
BRETT SUMMERS
Q&A
negative
01 Getting
After
02 Side-by-side
Well turn
both clones black and
white. Click on one and
go to Effects>Surface
Control>Express Texture.
Select Image Luminance
from the Using dropdown menu. Do the same
for the other clone. You
should have one with dark
shadows and one with
bright highlights. Alter the
sliders until youre happy
and click OK.
03 Merge exposures
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Nosing about
Im having trouble with painting a nose. I am painting
a face thats looking up and I just cant get the nose
right. I ind that it either looks as though it is stuck
too far out, or it looks lat and as though it is stuck on. Its
extremely frustrating, can you help?
01
KITTY JAMES
Noses are tricky, and since they are such a prominent
part of the face they cant, unfortunately, be bypassed.
However, there are a few ways that you can practise your
nose craft. By far the best is getting a reference to look at. This can
either be a photo reference (use one of the character files on our
CD), by looking in the mirror or asking someone to model for you.
These methods allow you to see what the nose, in relation to the
angle of the rest of the head, looks like. The main problem is usually
not the nose itself, but the angle of it on the face. If these arent
practical options, then try to think of the nose in terms of simple
shapes. Try to imagine the shapes below in 3D, and what they would
look like if they were tilted.
02
03
04
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CorelDRAW
Graphics Suite X4
387 | Award winning graphics suite offers something for just about everyone
Box Of Delights
The boxed version of
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite
X4 comes loaded with
useful value for money
extras, including 10,000
clipart images, 1,000 new
iStockphoto royalty-free
photos, fonts, professional
templates, training videos
from www.clicknlearn.
com and printed step-bystep help and inspiration
from design professionals
X4 stuffs plenty in with this latest upgrade offering several creative applications in one.
Independent Page
Layers
Users can control and edit layers
independently for each page of a
document, reducing the occurrence
of pages with empty layers
ConceptShare
This lets users share designs and
ideas with colleagues or clients in
real time within CorelDRAW
Enhanced Tone
Curve adjustments
With the enhanced Tone
Curve dialog box, Corel
PHOTO-PAINT X4 users
can adjust their images.
With an integrated
histogram, users now
receive real-time feedback
as they make adjustments.
In addition, the new
Eyedropper tool lets
users pinpoint specific
colour locations on the
tone curve of their image,
as well as select, add, or
delete nodes along the
Tone Curve
82
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Price
specs
CorelDRAW Graphics
Suite X4
System requirements
Handy hints
A simple, but effective Hints box is context sensitive and
offers notes and advice on each tool selected
What we like
Intuitive interface,
much improved
layout tools,
live text formatting
A solid
productive suite
for many of your
creative needs
we say
Features
verdict
No native
Mac version,
ConceptShare
requires monthly fee
8.0
Ease of use
7.0
Quality of results
9.0
8.0
Overall
score
8.0
83
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[mju:] 790 SW
150 | Excellent portability and a design to suit everyone, welcome to the
super-tough camera that will go anywhere you do
lympus has gone all out to make this
camera as tough and ready for every
occasion and activity as possible.
Built to withstand knocks and drops,
with shockproof protection up to 1.5 metres and
waterproof defences up to 3 metres, the 790 SW
is the kind of camera that you dont need to worry
about knocking around, dropping or getting a bit
wet.
Not only is this particular Olympus model
practical, its also stylish. Available in ive colours:
starry silver, midnight black and marine blue for
the more conservative user, and sunset orange
and lime for those who wish to stand out from the
Zoom
The 3x optical zoom is
a bit of a letdown, but it
can be boosted by using
the cameras built-in
FineZoom feature. This
maintains image quality
by combining optical zoom
and cropping the image
Backlighting
Turn on the Shadow Adjustment
Technology to ensure the
foreground subject appears clearly
against a strong backlight. The sun
is shining through these trees, but
the plants are still well exposed
Anti-Shake
Blur is a perennial problem for
photographers, even more so in
low-light conditions. By using the
feature on this camera we were
able to capture this quick-moving
critter with ease
Rich colours
The deep colours of the green grass
were picked up beautifully. Have
a play with the different exposure
settings until you are happy
Slim and
lightweight
Weighing just 136g
with a depth of only
21.3mm, you cant
get more portable
Size
Small, robust
and built well, any
member of the
family should be
able to get to grips
with this model.
Once you remember
what does what,
using the interface is
a breeze
Useful shortcuts
Shortcuts are assigned to each button on the arrow pad to give quick
and easy access to a variety of options, including Exposure, Macro, Flash,
Timer and even advanced settings.
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Price
Exposure compensation
Auto
Manual
Weight
camera specs
23
Build design
Youd think if you dropped your camera in a
puddle then that would be the end of it. Not
with the 790 SW, its shock and waterproof!
Macro
Three impressive Macro settings offer the opportunity for some
excellent close-up shots. Using Super Macro mode, you can get as
close as 7cm from your subject
Scene modes
Make use of the cameras scene modes to ensure you get an
accurate representation of your subject
What we like
we say
A great bridge
between
compact and
DSLR practise
perfecting
settings here and
then move on
Features
verdict
Lithium-ion
rechargeable battery
Practically
bomb-proof
Impressive low-light
performance
Extremely portable
Disappointing zoom
function
Small crowded
buttons can
cause frustration
7.0
Ease of use
8.0
Quality of results
7.0
7.0
Overall
score
7.0
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Reviews Books
Figure In Watercolour
17.99 | Learn essential painting craft through stunning pictures and insightful advice
atercolour painting is
a tricky art to master,
especially when you
throw human form into the
mix too. Thankfully, help is at hand with
this fantastic guide.
Figure In Watercolour features over
125 pages of sound painting advice,
ranging from the basics of purchasing
your irst art box essentials, through to
image interpretation. The main thrust of
the book is based upon the various scenes
and situations you would come across
within igure painting; for example, back
lighting, dancing igures and nudes.
Following an introduction to your
materials you are guided through the
fundamentals of watercolour. Its these
basics that really get you off on the
right foot, standing you in good stead
for larger watercolour projects. The
author gently guides you through the
importance of the initial sketch, not
in pencil, but in watercolour, noting
the vitality that this medium brings to
the paper. This sentiment is certainly
apparent throughout the chapters, with
magniicent paintings springing from the
pages, thanks to their lair and energy.
Much of the artwork is the authors
own, which makes the book even more
of a personal journey. You really feel a
passion has been invested in the making
of it, which means its all the more
fascinating. A great deal of the chapters
Authors
Vicenc B. Ballestar,
David Sanmiguel
Price
17.99
Publisher
Batsford
ISBN
0-7134-8677-5
Inspiring artists
The book investigates the technique
of painting people indoors
drawing upon famous case studies,
such as Edward Hopper and David
Hockney, for inspiration
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Botanical Illustration
14.99 | Achieve perfect petals, sensational stamens
and luscious leaves with this beautifully illustrated book
Author
Siriol Sherlock
Price
14.99
Publisher
Batsford
ISBN
978-0-7134-9052-7
Preparing
the palette
This great colour guide
sets you off on the right
foot for achieving all
those magnificent hues
and blooms
Symphony of colour
Discover the magic of colour with these inspirational pages.
They take you through a flower and its corresponding
colour palette, so you can replicate it yourself
A bunch of tips
This beautiful painting is explained through a list of helpful
tips. You may also pick up a spot of Latin, thanks to the
plants full names
Jon Tarrant
Price
19.99
Publisher
Focal Press
ISBN
978-0-240-52024-7
Going back
to nature
Chapters are divided
into useful genres.
Here, the subject of
nature photography is
explored using bright
and inspiring images
Getting technical
Close encounters
Many of the points made in the book are backed up with
photographic examples, including handy close-ups to
examine the finer points of digital cameras
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Output
Jo Cole
Time needed
10 minutes
Skill level
Beginner
The FrameCo site will furnish you with all you need to
turn printouts into professional-looking framed prints
Both of these are perfect for assembling
picture frames and are easy to use. All
you need is the frame components, and
then these two tools will allow you to
construct the frame and get perfect
results every time.
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Other
options
the
wire
02 Tighten
03 Nail it
With
the corner joints in place,
tighten the wire to make
things nice and tight. Pull
the wire until the slack is
taken up, and move the
spring anti-clockwise to
wind it around the rest
of the wire. Check each
corner, and make sure
the holders are at and
the joins are straight.
When you are happy,
tighten the side handle
on the Strap Clamp.
In addition to driving
nails into wood, the
PushMaster has a
couple of other nifty
tricks up its sleeve.
The magnetic top
part has indented
bits. These are for
pins and bendable
clasps that keep any
backing material in
place. Simply place
into the slot and then
push against the
frame as you did with
the V Nail. The top of
the PushMaster has
another slot. This
holds hook screws
that can be put into
the back of frames
and used to thread
picture wire through.
A genius invention!
04 Push it in
With the nail in position, line it up so that the corner sits on the frame join. Now
simply push down and it will go into the wood. We used a soft wood frame and it was no
bother pushing the nail in. But if you have trouble, or you are using a hardwood frame, you can hit the top
of the PushMaster with a wooden mallet. Its best to use two nails in every corner, which will happily hold
things together. Once the nails are in, you just have to loosen the wire on the Strap Clamp, remove it and
wind it up using the spring. In just a few minutes you have assembled your own picture frame!
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Gallery
01
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02
03
93
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Gallery
04
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05
Title: Buccaneers nd
This illustration was generated for the
book The Buccaneers Of America
by Alexander O. Exquemelin. The
buccaneers come upon a woman with
about 12 arrows in her back. I wanted
to show their reaction to what they
found, without showing exactly what
they had found.
06
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01 Register
02 Your prole
03 Set the le
Waiting
for approval
When you have
uploaded an image,
there will be a short
delay for the image to
be approved. We have
to do this to make
sure no offensive or
legally questionable
images are uploaded.
We approve images
throughout the day,
but take into account
the time differences
if you are in another
country. We are based
in the UK, so are
tucked up in bed while
some of you are just
starting your day!
of
wisdom
05 Words
04 Uploading
Once uploaded,
other members
can rate and leave
comments on your
image. When you
look at your gallery
(or anyone elses),
you can see which
images have a rating
or comments and
how many.
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Pa ge 20
Pa ge 34
Pa ge 46
Pa ge 36
Official Magazine
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