Utilizing interior design techniques to craft storytelling elements in digital artwork creation
In a fascinating tutorial, independent artists and illustrators Fiona Zeichnet and Magdalina share their techniques for creating a lived-in 3D scene as a storytelling tool, using Blender for setting up the scene and lighting.
Fiona, who has been working in Vienna since 2018, specialises in character design and has collaborated with an English book publisher on book covers and children's books. Magdalina, a self-employed artist and illustrator with a passion for character design, brings a wealth of knowledge and hobbies to the table.
The tutorial begins with the scene creation process, starting by building a rough 3D scene to establish the camera angle and composition. Colour plays a crucial role in communicating the character's personality and setting the mood of the scene. Users are advised to choose one colour as their 'black' to affect the rest of their colour choices.
Blender is used again to set up the lighting, with the goal of supporting the story while creating an engaging composition and separating the character from the background. Small details like tangled cables, a messy drawer, or scattered art supplies can breathe more life into the illustration. Textures like worn spots on the floor or smudges on the desk give life to the scene and enrich the character's story.
To refine the lines, users can either clean up their sketch layer or make a new pass on top, ensuring to group elements onto separate layers for easier changes in the future. Using adjustment layers to add the lighting gives you a lot of control over the image. Duplicating a layer and applying Gaussian blur gives the light that soft glow effect.
A Hue/Saturation layer is used to bump up the saturation and add warmth in the image. Adding a Color Balance layer also brings more reds and yellows to the highlights. A layer on the Hard Light blending mode is used to enhance the light's vibrancy. Set a gradient map on Soft Light blend mode to help unify the color scheme.
Darkening the background behind the character creates contrast, which helps them stand out and directs the viewer's attention. An Add layer is great for any practical lights, like the two displays or the cat lamp. A shadow layer filled with a dark blue color and set to Multiply mode is also employed.
The character's story informs every decision made in the scene creation process. The character's pose and expression should be motivated by the narrative, and every choice made should support the story. Big volumes are balanced for visual interest, and elements are overlapped to add a sense of depth.
No advanced skills are required, as the tutorial focuses on arranging placeholders and adding basic lighting for reference. The tutorial is ideal for those looking to enhance their storytelling abilities through 3D scene creation.
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