Isvus's art Reviews on Newgrounds

[Cloud Strife]

Ah yes, my second husbando. I was so frikken hyped when they announced the remakes. It got me so jazzed that I went and wrote a fanfiction that I never finished and never will. It's all about the journey, man.

Also I thought I'd ask since I like the way you do lighting so much, how generally do you do it? Do you separate things a lot or keep it mostly on a smaller number of layers? Do you use layer properties to get the final colors or do you directly apply them? It looks like you mostly do things without lines.

I'm also well aware that most of it is just you being a good artist who knows how to render light, but hey. Every bit of information I can get my hands on helps!

RaynLikeRain responds:

I'm glad you like the way I do lighting! I'll try my best to explain though I may not be the best at it

First I'll describe my usual process since I did things differently with this one, I'll describe that after.

After the initial sketch I will refine it (effectively lineart) on the sketch layer, erasing the rough sketch lines as I go.
Then I'll apply the flat colours to individual layers, and shade them to a near finished state.
At this point I'll duplicate the lineart layer and put it below all the colour layers, and set the linart layer that's at the top to Linear Burn, and give it a dark red colour.

After that I usually tweak the colours a bit using Correction Layers (Tone Curve, Gradient Map, etc.) to make the colours pop a little more (I use Clip Studio Paint so if you use something else try looking for an equivalent the main one is Gradient Maps).

Then I get to the fun part where I merge all the layers and can start painting over any rough bits left, this is also the part where you can add any small details that are hard to do with lineart (Cloud's bolts on his shoulder pad for example).
It's important to note that the Linear Burn lineart can get a little bright in some spots, especially around the eyes, so you can paint back in the dark lines whenever you see it.

And that's basically it for my usual process, hopefully some of that makes sense though I understand it's hard without a visual reference :')


For Cloud I did things differently, firstly I was a lot rougher with the lineart opting not to refine all of it, in favour of just refining the important bits like the face.

Then I roughly painted in all the colours on a single layer, and then used a clipping masked multiply layer set to a mid-tone reddish colour to get a very rough idea of the shadow placement.
The important part here was again using Gradient Maps to get a nicer pop of colour.

From there that's when I merged all the layers and started overpainting which took up most of the time spent on this drawing.

Once I had the rendering all finished, that's when I went and added the extra lighting effects such as the red rim light and the subtle glow around the edge from a red glow dodge layer.
Effectively this is the part where you can really integrate your render with the scene, though it's important to always have your scene in mind as it'll influence the colours you go with.

I guess this is a lot of information for a reply but hopefully it can help you in some way!!

[Smuggler]

Holy moly, her tattoos. Man that must have killed your hands. I'm realizing that with you, good fabric rendering is pretty much a given.

Pawsofrage responds:

Thank you, well, I still have a lot to learn, including drapery

[Comic About Golf]

Golf is the pinnacle of conspicuous consumption in the form of a sport. Truly, it was designed from the ground up by the bourgeoisie to demonstrate their wealth and power, which grows by default given that individuals in society are unequal and wealth is an advantage. The vast private ownership of land and exclusive nature of the practice, always restricted by the sportsman's personal wealth and sometimes even barred behind the dreaded "invitational," demonstrate the egotism and paradoxical insecurity of those who rest upon the labors of the society they deride. In the ongoing class war it is, of course, the duty of the proletariat to rise up and fight back by mocking it. Luckily this is not difficult, as it is already itself a mockery of human decency. Any member of the working class knows nothing infuriates the bourgeoise more than an attempt to imitate them, and therefore it is what must be done no matter how sickening it may be for the imitators. UNITE, WORKERS OF THE WORLD! ENGAGE IN MINI GOLF!

This is a great comic lmao

[Ms. ozen]

Sheeesh I like the massive cape. Massive capes always make things better.

Hosinothankdet responds:

I like cloak too🫠🫠

[Swordswoman]

She does! I really like the soft, warm lighting. The contours on her glove and middle look really good.

Pawsofrage responds:

the problem is that I did not accurately remember the exact pipeline

[At the shop.]

She looks so concerned lmao. But hey, at least it's a sale.

[Ain't No Rest For The V1cked]

Ultrakill is in a league of its own at this point. It has transcended game status.

BurntFicus responds:

it's truly one of the _______ of all time

[Plein Airpril Forest]

So much information communicated with so little. This is amazing bro.

[Laci's Wardrobe]

Aww, she's cute! Well done.

Leximation responds:

Thank you, glad you liked it😀