Lighting + Shading Workshop: Review

Hey guys,

So the workshop is finished. Now that all the final images are in, I think it would be cool if we did the following:

1) Examine each image and post your favorite thing about it as well as an area where you think there is room for improvement (ie, a critique). So, as you go through the images, just list the artist's name followed by the pros and cons of their image....you don't have to quote the actual image in your post since I will post them all here at the top of the thread.

2) From all the images, state the one you like best.

Here are the images (in no particular order):

Richard:



Jake:



DarkNemos:



JayG:



Klemen:



BColbourn:

Richard:
pros: Warm, Hazy lighting.
Cons: I miss another fill or back light to make it more interesting.

Jake:
pros: Nice enviroment, too bad its not textured/shaded
Cons: Lighting seem to be simple , like a simple daylight sistem, lacks atmosphere, colors in the light.

DarkNemos:
Pros: Very nice textures(except maybe the lamp post) combined with very creative lighting and a good choice of angle, makes this image to tell a story. Its like a vision from a nightmare , or a begining for a horror movie, who or what got loose from its chains
Cons: Not much, maybe the sky texture is a bit strange, are those bugs or stars?

JayG:
Pros: It's the most realistic. Good integration with the backgorund.
Cons: Too much DOF. The rust spots on the blue paint , are very even, monotone, I would have added some long sratches too.

Klemen:
Pros: Very nice mood, given by the excelent textures , the coloured grafitty and having the sun at a steep angle. Very nicely detaild.
Cons: Its a bit too dark.
The outside part seems strange, lacks contrast. It should be burned in. Its looks like the Grafitty paint has thikness, a bit too much maybe.

BColbourn:
Pros: This image is freaking me out. It has a very strong, sik, psycho like mood. Good combination of the inside and ouside atmospheres.
Cons: The ouside colors are a bit flat, a small variation fo blues, or maybe an almost unvisible sky gradient whould have helped it a bit.

My favorite is DarkNemos!

Richard:
Pros: Nice night time approach, I like where you were going with the soft sort of hazy (good word choice sanyilajos!) night lighting.
Cons: Unfinished, no textures. I imagine this being quite nice when it's finished.

Jake:
Pros: Cool composition/angle, like the addition of the background elements. Plants!
Cons: Unfinished, lighting is a bit flat. No textures.

DarkNemos:
Pros: Textures rock, theme overall is interesting and cool. Nice composition and camera angle. Very nice lighting.
Cons: Shaders on the concrete base (below the wall) is a bit to shiny. My eye is drawn to the specular on it, expecting it to be a little more flat. No textures on two of the signs but a lot of extra elements in there.

JayG:
Pros: None, what was this guy thinking?
Cons: Too much DOF, made it look like a miniature. Too dark in the corner where the ground meets the concrete wall base.

Klemen:
Pros: Best composition overall, great lighting, texture work is awesome.
Cons: Not much going on overall, lack of elements. Blown out light works but you can tell there is nothing there behind it (buildings, etc.).

BColbourn:
Pros: Great approach, tilted/distorted camera gives us a great effect.
Cons: No textures, seems unfinished.

I'd have to say my favorite is Klemen.

Richard:
Pros: Nice hazy atmosphere.
Cons: Totally unfinished, no textures.

Jake:
Pros: Interesting approach, good base, good idea.
Cons: Unfinished, lacks textures, render angle is not the best.

DarkNemos:
Pros: DarkNemos should be shot on site!
Cons: Unfinished, sholdve spent more time on texturing, mood is not defined, background without any real idea. Everything is all over the place.

JayG:
Pros: Great camera angle choice, nice light and overall the most complete render.
Cons: Too much DOF, metal could use better spec map and a hint of reflection, the sign is too clean.

Klemen:
Pros: Nice warm atmosphere! Nice textures on the wall.
Cons: No textures and no story on the outside, metal texture is too generic, the pain chips are too much and not logically placed.

BColbourn:
Pros: Great camera angle, nice distortion, great mood and lightning. Has a nice artistic touch.
Cons: No textures, you couldve putt a pair of red eyes on the outside to further push the spooky feel that the image has.

My vote goes to BColbourn

Richard:
Pros: I like your lightning, looks almost cartoony.
Cons: It's kind of unfinished...

Jake:
Pros: Nice job integrating the scene with the environment.
Cons: Don't like the angle and I feel like more emphasis should be put on geometry we were given.

DarkNemos:
Pros: Nice angle, great textures, I like the mood you created.
Cons: That background and a flare ruin the image for me, I feel like there's to much stuff going on.

JayG:
Pros: Great integration with the environment, nice textures
Cons: Like it was said before, too much DOF.

BColbourn:
Pros: I really wish you had more time with this one, I like it because it has a creepy vibe.
Cons: Untextured, unfinished...

My winner is JayG.

richard: I like the light haze, but not finished--although thats completely understandable given your current predicament in the marriage department

jake: a few aliasing issues on the sidewalk and kind of flat in terms of lighting. camera angle is nice and i like the objects you've added to the scene as well as the textures that are there. did you model those trees as well?

darknemos: really really like this one. the sense of atmosphere with the particles surrounding the light, the high contrast and general gritty, hard feel of the materials. the one thing is that the 2nd moon on the lower left doesn't make a whole lot of sense but otherwise very nicely done

jayg: nice time of day, though i think for being so light out there could be a bit more contrast between the shadows and the directly-lit areas. really nice texture work on this one, very convincing--though I don't know if i've ever seen graffiti on an edge like that

klemen: really enjoy this time of day, very orange and moody. feels like the camera is coming home from work making iut out of that lit subway and basking in the warm light of the end of the day. did ye do the graffiti work yourself? looks quite nice

my favorite is DarkNemos

Wow! Nice work guys, looks like I came back a little late. Some awesome pieces there. Loving the Japanese Subway stairs JayG!

wow im sorry i missed this one :S
first work got like crazy and then i had a vacation for a couple weeks (that diddnt went very well either -_-)
there are really cool renders within

Here my crit
richard: i like the mood and light feels very natural. I would love to see this with some textures.

Jake: Nice concept but a GI pass or AO pass would have make things a bit better. Using the standart gray of max for render isnt really a good choice Even then just make it white or a very very light gray so it is easier to read.

DarkNemos:I dont know what it is! but i know it looks cool . Good texture work. Has a nice HDR feeling. The lensflare i dont like though :S

JayG:Wow very realistic. Too much DOF though. Gives it a miniature feel. The rust is a bit too uniform a bit more difference in size would have loosen it a bit. and nor graffiti artist (i know of at least)would tag in a 90 degree angle just would have made it a bit more lower so he can write onto the full surface.

Klemen:dont know what to say except: I like it a lot maybe some more visible work on the outside but i really like it how it is.

Ben: Dude you just fooled me i was thinking the whole time that the image was looking down the stairs and couldnt understand how this would work out really interesting render. a bit too orange imo for that white light. maybe a secondary light from outside that would lit up the stairs a bit to give it more of a street feel. now it feels more like a basement entrance somewhere outside the city.

Hey guys, sorry I missed the workshop... looks like fun!

Richard
Pros: That lighting works great as a night time scene
Cons: It looks dead, its missing a bit of life... whether its just the textures, or a night sky, or some rubbish not sure but I just get the sense it needs a bit of something else in there.

Jake
Pros: I really get a feel for a daytime scene
Cons: With a sky that blue and a day so fine, there wouldnt be such harsh shadows all over... The trees look like stock models placed any which way... and the road and trees having the only textures makes it look a bit funny... having textures on particular items only works in some scenes and setups but I dont think so here.

DarkNemos
Pros: Great feel throughout the whole image, looks very cinematic! The additions you've made really add to the scene and vibe of the place.
Cons: In this image I would imagine there'd be 3 primary light sources... 1. The moons, 2. The light Post, 3. from the Underground.... I'm not sure whats causing the light up in the top left but it doesnt seem to fit... if that light was coming from both the moons then it would help bring them into the picture instead of looking like a 2d map around the outside. The stars are probably the things that stound out the most to me, they are a bit too chunky, have no sparkle and are a bit too consistent... there should be some not so glowy, some smaller, some larger, patches without much stars, other patches with lots e.t.c

JayG
Pros: Nice textures and humour! Perfectly integrated into the background scene.
Cons: Dof makes it look very small, like a model, and the area on which is focused is too small compared to the size of the picture. I feel i'm missing out on a lot because its blurred.

Klemen
Pros: Great setup, great textures, great lighting and a great feel to the image
Cons: The top part of the entrance, the bit upstairs looks a little funny, a bit too bright compared to the rest of the image. I'd like to see some rubbish here, it definately looks like a place thats a bit vandalised, and worse for wear... but the floor and stairs are super clean, and its very tidy aside from the walls.

Bcolbourn
Pros: Nice take on the supplied model, very original
Cons: As mentioned, the orange light doesnt really fit... its too dull compared to the light its emitting. Also without any textures on the floor, walls, stairs, ceiling the render seems a bit plain.

My favourite is Klemen's!

Great job everyone, they are some fantastic works of art!
Hopefully i'll be round for the next workshop so I can get my feet wet.