04-23-2010, 12:52 AM
Ah! That makes sense as to why it would be there. Hmm. Maybe an interesting way to do that would be to make the eyes change to signal, in theory at least. It would be this orange-ish color for armed or a green for safe. However, without something on the bomb, it begins to look more like a blue bulb or frog throat, and loses most of its look as a bomb.
If you don't mind it not being entirely practical, you could leave a fuse or some such hanging so it obviously looks like a bomb. Maybe say that the manufacturer just uses pre-made bombs so the fuse is still attached.
Metal is a curious subject. How it reacts is all subject to the environment around it. Henning Ludvigsen gave a fantastic article on painting all sorts of materials(including chrome and brushed metal) in the October 2008 issue of ImagineFX magazine. Here's a quote of what the metallics from a copy of the article he put on his website.
"Chrome or Reflective Metal:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u...chrome.jpg
Reflective metal, or chrome, is all about reflections. When working with reflections, know what the environment your object is placed in, and make sure these two elements corresponds. If the environment is different than the reflections on the object, then the object will not seem to be a part of the image and look off. Getting into painting reflections is a massive study and can be hard to comprehend. Therefore, use references, to see how the reflections are behaving. Strong high-lights are naturally important when painting chrome. Make note of how the fingers reflect in the shiny blade in this example; a tiny detail, but still an important par to the overall impression.
Brushed Metal:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u..._metal.jpg
Brushed metal is easier to paint than chrome, and you don’t have to go all out and paint every single reflecting object perfectly, but merely hint the reflecting environment using contrast and corresponding colours. For this example, in the end I used the smudge tool set to very low and used my speckled hair-brush to create a vague distortion with horizontal lines along the side of the pot, making it appear to have a brushed surface. Going over with a vague, think brush in the end will make for further detail.
Gold:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u...g_gold.jpg
Gold works just like painting metal, just with a strong colour overlay. Remember, gold isn’t plain yellow; in addition, use de-saturated colours, like greens, orange, grey, and white."
While he wrote the article with Photoshop & Painter in mind I believe, it applies in most situations. I'd take the brushed metal approach, using, as he said, "contrast and corresponding colours." Bits of light bending around the object from behind, touching the back with a touch of highlight, is another thing I've found to be quite useful.
And you're very welcome, I'm always glad to help out.
If you don't mind it not being entirely practical, you could leave a fuse or some such hanging so it obviously looks like a bomb. Maybe say that the manufacturer just uses pre-made bombs so the fuse is still attached.
Metal is a curious subject. How it reacts is all subject to the environment around it. Henning Ludvigsen gave a fantastic article on painting all sorts of materials(including chrome and brushed metal) in the October 2008 issue of ImagineFX magazine. Here's a quote of what the metallics from a copy of the article he put on his website.
"Chrome or Reflective Metal:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u...chrome.jpg
Reflective metal, or chrome, is all about reflections. When working with reflections, know what the environment your object is placed in, and make sure these two elements corresponds. If the environment is different than the reflections on the object, then the object will not seem to be a part of the image and look off. Getting into painting reflections is a massive study and can be hard to comprehend. Therefore, use references, to see how the reflections are behaving. Strong high-lights are naturally important when painting chrome. Make note of how the fingers reflect in the shiny blade in this example; a tiny detail, but still an important par to the overall impression.
Brushed Metal:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u..._metal.jpg
Brushed metal is easier to paint than chrome, and you don’t have to go all out and paint every single reflecting object perfectly, but merely hint the reflecting environment using contrast and corresponding colours. For this example, in the end I used the smudge tool set to very low and used my speckled hair-brush to create a vague distortion with horizontal lines along the side of the pot, making it appear to have a brushed surface. Going over with a vague, think brush in the end will make for further detail.
Gold:
http://www.henningludvigsen.com/images/u...g_gold.jpg
Gold works just like painting metal, just with a strong colour overlay. Remember, gold isn’t plain yellow; in addition, use de-saturated colours, like greens, orange, grey, and white."
While he wrote the article with Photoshop & Painter in mind I believe, it applies in most situations. I'd take the brushed metal approach, using, as he said, "contrast and corresponding colours." Bits of light bending around the object from behind, touching the back with a touch of highlight, is another thing I've found to be quite useful.
And you're very welcome, I'm always glad to help out.