Paper Tiger

Ok, I don't know any of you yet, and this is a good thing. Why? 'cause I'd like to get some feedback on this image from people that won't just go "hey that's cool dude" because they know me...know what I mean? This seems like a great forum and hopefully I'll hang around and eventually get to know everyone. But for now, here's the image I'm talking about:

Paper Tiger (view whichever size suits you)

1600x1200

1280x1024

1024x768

800x600

Done with Photoshop and lots of layers. ;)

I like this piece very much. The texture is very relaxing; yet the mass text of text, sort of clouds that, i like that contrast. I do think it would have been more powerful if it had a LITTLE bit more symmetry.

The last of the liquid type ripples, on the left side, doesn't look right for some reason. The rest do, but not this one, maybe it is because it is liquefying an actual image that this part doesn't fit.

Other than the things I did mention, it is a very nice piece, great work.

is there more to it? Like..where's the nose/mouth part?
it looks pretty cool as it is but I keep wanting to see the "rest."

Also I believe a good improvement would be to "burn" the edges of your paper where the tiger's eyes are...like making his gaze a truly "piercing" one

welcome to the forum

Yup the hairy things from the nose and the eyebrows look like somekind of filter thingy...
And as Mihai said...why can't i scroll down?
It's cut of pretty wierd.
Otherwise it's pretty okey...

I dont like the ripples that much. A normal peice of paper wouldnt look that "wavy." I dunno if you just used the ripple or liquify filter, but either way it takes more away from it than it adds..I think. Just some smaller ripples on the side, and it would look a lot more like a peice of paper.

i think he used a displacement map maybe ..... also the pic looks cool and the paper shouldnt be wavy as link said ... zaz a ;p

It's eye candy, very elegant, lovely. I like the paper fire idea for the eyes that Mihai suggested but i'm not sure how you would pull that off.

Thank you much for taking the time to check it out and offer any thoughts and feedback. The strangest things about this piece is that I have never received such a wide variety of opinions/suggestions that are polar opposites of any number of opinions/suggestion from others that offered me their insight. For example, a handful of people have said, quite confidently, that it's overall too dark with too much contrast...while an equal number have told me, just as confidently, that it needs more contrast and deeper blacks to create more depth. Some love the soft, "watery" flow of the paper while others say it should be sharply folded with rigid angles like origami. Some love the colorful, realism of the eyes piercing through the surrealness of the soft paper while other insist the eyes should be black/white to match the newsprint. Some say to tone down the whiskers and make them blend more and others say the whiskers don't "jet out" enough and should not blend in so much. Interesting listening to all these opinions. lol.

I guess it's a good thing that this has been one of the *very few* images I've ever produced that I'm satisfied with. I can look at it, with no one else around, and say, "yeah, I like it. It's not perfect, but neither am I." Hope that doesn't sound conceited, because I'm usually much more self-conscience or just not happy with my stuff. I tend to nitpick and only see the flaws and oversights. Ya know, the typical self-loathing artist type behavior. 8^/ [shrug] Hmmmm, I bet this is the fact as to why I've been actively seeking what others think about this image. I guess my own satisfaction with it acts as a shield, or a buffer against any possible negative opinions that usually haunt my feelings about my artwork. I'm verging on rambling now, ;) but hopefully one of you can maybe understand whatever it is I'm trying to convey here.

Specifically about this image, I know the waviness of the paper is not realistic, but I didn't want that. I was aiming for a soft, surreal, subdued "feel" to the shaping of the paper with no clear points of focus. But I wanted the texture of the paper to be just a bit more real and tangible looking but still have no sharp, defining areas that could distract the eye. Then in contrast to "artsy" surrealness of base I went for real-realness in the eyes by using, obviously, actual tiger eyes. The whiskers were initially real too, jetting through the paper, but I nix'ed them and opted to recreate them in their same 3D location but as if they were possibly constructed of newsprint. To me this gives a balance to non-real shaping of the paper face but also doesn't detract from the piercing gaze of the cat's eyes (which the natural colored whiskers where guilty of).

The eyes, while indeed from another photo, are not "cut 'n paste"...per se. Actually they are the only visible part of the entire tiger face photo which resides under, at last count, 42 layers of newsprint, whiskers, shadings, highlighting, adjustment layers, etc., most with their own layer mask and many of those also with a vector mask. Of course if I were more organized and less sloppy then I'm sure I'd have only a quarter the number of layers. ;) But to me, "organized" is not "fun". I'll agree that often it's necessary...but just not "fun". I had fun making this image. ;)

If anyone is still reading, lol, thanks for wading through the babble. Don't know if I made sense to ya, or if I even needed to. Like with the image, I just had fun writing this post. Thanks for allowing me. Now it's time to nose around and see if this is going to be a new "hangout" or not. (Speak now or forever hold your piece, or is it peace? Depends on your perspective I guess.)

-Outpatient

:\ change ur name to gonnabepatient ;p cuz it doesn't fit with that load of words p;`

It's noobs like Mak that dumben the intelligence level of this forum. I swear to God. Outpatient is a newcomer with a lot on his mind, and he's sharing with us. He's writing a long post, that's not bad! In fact it's encouraged, he's not being a postwhore - like some people.

He posted because he had something meaningful to say. Don't post unless you have something meaningful to say as well.




As for the picture, I think you did a pretty nifty job with it. What'st he deal with the accordion guys to the left? It seems to serve both a good and bad purpose for the picture - on the one hand, it breaks up the repetitive flow of the chinese characters; on the other hand, it throws off the balance of the picture.

Also, I really don't know about the 3d metallic whiskers. Those might have to go.

Otherwise, I dig it. I like the ripple. And I especially like how you flowed those characters around the tiger's eyes... Nice job. :D