I Wasted So Much Time on Details Until I Tried This Trick - 'Show' Process & File

Hey everyone,

Here is the process video, file, and brief insights of SHOW, my latest illustration. These kinds of articles are often split into two parts: the concept, where I share the idea behind the piece, and the execution, where I explain the technical aspects like shapes, colors, and value choices. I hope you find this useful; have a great read.

Concept

Initially, I was interested in doing a showman-themed piece. I found the outfit of these characters visually captivating. However, I was also quite interested in other topics related to the same type of entertainment, like illusionists, mages, or escapists. I've decided to do a quick research on each of them to see which one will fit into a visually interesting narrative. Eventually, the image of an escapist trapped in a water box was the most exciting to me.

I did not have an object or reference from which to develop a story, which is the way I usually address storytelling in these last illustrations. I spent a fair amount of time thinking and searching for casual objects related to escapists and eventually chose an old lock. This was inspired by many of the pictures of Houdini being in chains.

I thought it would be interesting to create an interaction in which the show 'went wrong'. The escapist actually can't escape and the assistant (dressed like a showgirl) is trying to help out. The last touch is for the water box to resemble the old lock, at least in shape to some degree. The list looked like this:

• Colors: Red and blue. Black and white.
• Reference: Old lock.
• Action: Showgirl trying to take out escapist from water box.
• Costume: Showman outfit. Escapist costume and props.
• Extra Props: Bunnies around. Water box similar to lock, axe similar to key.

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Execution

The idea was pretty simple to me in terms of shapes: a big rectangular box in which one character would be upside down in panic, and someone at the side about to hit and break the glass with an axe. Yet, it took me 2 hours to come up with a decent composition.

If you look at the video right before the two-hour frame, you will notice the importance of working with thumbnails. I basically zoomed out the composition to check if it was understandable enough in terms of shapes and if it actually looks balanced in terms of values, by checking the sketch with only black and white tones.

I often fall into the trap of details, spending minutes drawing the right eye shape or a small trait that probably most people will miss. By looking at the whole picture, you can address big issues you might be missing that will be more noticeable at first sight. Also, I used the perspective point brush to fix the shape of the box and position the characters properly in the composition.

I spent some minutes cleaning the line art and the colors I chose during the sketch phase. Since the composition had a right amount of information in my opinion, I didn't feel the need to make cloth render too busy. Perhaps I chose to make the box complex enough to resemble the old lock style.

As for the colors, I did push some saturation, especially in the showgirl's dress. Originally, I thought the shadow for the red tone would look nice as red wine. I took some liberties with the water color, mixing turquoise, purple, and blue. And finally, for the box, I was heavily inspired by the reference because I love how light on rough surfaces like the lock turns to look like purple or grey instead of white. Please check the PSD to find out the adjustments made by filters and how shadows and light are actually blended as layers.

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Conclusion

I don't always have the same approach when making illustrations. This time, I tried an old trick, which was turning the canvas really small by zooming out and making value corrections. I guess I just forgot how to make these great corrections, but I hope this becomes useful for some of you! I might write an article about the benefits of this approach soon. Stay tuned and thank you for your support!