Renderotica

Hello, I am Firefly79.

After a long time just looking, 2 months ago I started to create images by myself. I'm still looking for my own style and scenery but I'm glad that you seem to like some of my images already.

I would be interested if some of you experienced artists could tell me what makes a good image from your point of view.

And I look forward to your feedback, criticism and improvement suggestions. Because I would like to develop and improve in this area.

Thanks

You should do your art for you, first and foremost.  Then share it with the rest of us here.  I like to see it when an artist obviously enjoys what theyre doing.  I'd say to get real good at what YOU do and depict what you enjoy.  Others who like the same thing will eventually find their way to your art work. 

For my part, I dont need images to be overly cluttered.  Sometimes less is more.  2 people on a bed... I dont need the same 2 people on a bed inside a well stocked fascimile of a 5 diamond hotel with different views of the Caribbean out each window in the same pic.  Also, the more you put in an image the longer it takes to render, which is a real pain in the ass for the artist, unless you have a top of the line computer system.

I can appreciate lifelike photorealism, its just not that necessary for me.  I like interesting, realistic looking characters, rather than those that just look like typical fashion models.  I appreciate good poses that go as far as to incorporate hands, fingers and feet posed as well.  The better you get at your craft, the more youll notice and appreciate those who do the little things. 

"Darling" and "Maid" caught my eye. It looks like you experimented with the lighting here. I think that an all around well lit scene with no shadows will look a little dull. Because it lacks character in my opinion, even if it's an out door shot, but some viewers will prefer it like that. When I did "Oh No It's A Monster" many hated it. They thought it was too dark because only half the scene was lit, but then others said that it was one of my best works, so which leads me to the conclusion that you can't please everyone. Since 7 years now I've been doing this and I and many artist before me have all come to this understanding. You need to find the balance with pleasing your fans and yourself.

There are a lot of great opinions in this thread. Very helpful. Also, your own style will come with time, trust the creative process. Good luck!

Casgra

"Likes" are a strange creature, for sure. I have a few images that have sold multiple times on *deleted*, but only pick up a few likes when posted here (in smaller format). Different audiences can produce significantly varied results.

As mentioned before, light and shadow can make or break an image. Unless you are after a traditional portrait look, you want to avoid even, flat lighting. This can also help to enhance the models curves and shapes.

Edited by moderator Saturday, March 4, 2023 1:53:38 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

I think many (most) will use DAZ (and products created for DAZ) for rendering - plus post-processing with Gimp, Photoshop, etc.

In Blender you can also render well - but (as far as I know) the Iray materials don't work ... or at least they don't work as well.

But Blender is the first choice (in terms of price and scope) if you want to build your own objects like clothes, props, accessories, create your own body morphs etc. pp....

... and yes: in the beginning Blender can be very irritating and intimidating. But it's definitely worth investing some time.

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There is also Marvelous Designer a program often used by DAZ Artists (Marble, Enchanted April, Barbult, Mada). I tried it about 2 years ago, but couldn't do much with it, since the program at that time put heaps of tris instead of quads into the projects. There's a 30-Day Free Trial if you want to create clothes.

Edited by user Saturday, April 15, 2023 8:27:10 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Added information

Originally Posted by: Firefly79

Hi,

after the first few months a question comes to mind: do you all actually largely use DAZ to create your images? Or are there other programs that are recommended? I'm currently also playing with Blender, but it's still too complex for me. Thanks for your feedback.

Firefly79

I primarily use DS and Photoshop. None of my final images get posted without some time in PS. Sometimes I'll use 3DS Max to make a small prop or tweak something, but only rarely. I don't have time to make my own assets at the moment.