Dos and Don'ts in chopping.
I was determined there was a thread similar to this that already existed but I can't seem to find it? Maybe it's on another forum, I don't know. Anyway, I thought I'd put together a list to help some people out.
Don'ts:
Don't use the same rim for both front and rear as this looks cheap, and you can spot it a mile away. There are plenty of donors around, so just look until you find a good one
Don't add a reflection of the car in a dry floor. Also looks extremely tacky and makes no sense. You may thing this adds to the whole effect, and is a good idea in a purposely shiny floor like a studio shot or if it's raining, but on dry concrete? seriously?
Don't use stupidly bright blurry white highlights everywhere. I was a perpetrator with this not so long back, unless your car is sat on the surface of the sun, this will make no sense and your car will look plastic. Some people can really pull this off and make it look awesome, but they tend to adopt that style and make it their's which is cool, and they work with that awesomely.
Don't jump straight into a full brush if you are a beginner. You WILL get pissed off when it doesn't go right, try copy and paste and study the way light works on a car with reflections first. Use reference pictures to study shadows and highlights, colours etc.
Don't post a car that you know has a mistake in it even if you can't be bothered to fix it. People WILL spot it with their annoyingly hawk-like eyes, and make you look like a fool. (personal experience)
Do's:
Pay attention to detail, they pay off in the end and will earn you more respect. It helps to have slight OCD when chopping. People will spot details just like they spot mistakes.
Try and make the background in perspective with the car. That's the first thing people will notice, and 9 times out of 10 if it's not angled right, your rear wheel will appear to be on a car jack being supported by a cloud.
Take your time... speaks for itself.
Ask for critiques from other artists, they will spot things that you haven't. Pay attention to what they say too, they're not trying to be an ass and destroy your career.
Flip your canvas horizontally from time to time when working on a car, you'd be surprised at what you notice looks wrong when you do this.
If you see something on a reference picture that looks strange, include it anyway. The reference picture is a photograph, so it is as realistic as you will get it.
Imperfections make a picture perfect. There's nothing more unrealistic than a chop that looks TOO clean and perfect. Add some slight dust here and there or a few tiny scratches, but don't go overboard. Try not to make the colour too bright and in your face.
Don'ts:
Don't use the same rim for both front and rear as this looks cheap, and you can spot it a mile away. There are plenty of donors around, so just look until you find a good one
Don't add a reflection of the car in a dry floor. Also looks extremely tacky and makes no sense. You may thing this adds to the whole effect, and is a good idea in a purposely shiny floor like a studio shot or if it's raining, but on dry concrete? seriously?
Don't use stupidly bright blurry white highlights everywhere. I was a perpetrator with this not so long back, unless your car is sat on the surface of the sun, this will make no sense and your car will look plastic. Some people can really pull this off and make it look awesome, but they tend to adopt that style and make it their's which is cool, and they work with that awesomely.
Don't jump straight into a full brush if you are a beginner. You WILL get pissed off when it doesn't go right, try copy and paste and study the way light works on a car with reflections first. Use reference pictures to study shadows and highlights, colours etc.
Don't post a car that you know has a mistake in it even if you can't be bothered to fix it. People WILL spot it with their annoyingly hawk-like eyes, and make you look like a fool. (personal experience)
Do's:
Pay attention to detail, they pay off in the end and will earn you more respect. It helps to have slight OCD when chopping. People will spot details just like they spot mistakes.
Try and make the background in perspective with the car. That's the first thing people will notice, and 9 times out of 10 if it's not angled right, your rear wheel will appear to be on a car jack being supported by a cloud.
Take your time... speaks for itself.
Ask for critiques from other artists, they will spot things that you haven't. Pay attention to what they say too, they're not trying to be an ass and destroy your career.
Flip your canvas horizontally from time to time when working on a car, you'd be surprised at what you notice looks wrong when you do this.
If you see something on a reference picture that looks strange, include it anyway. The reference picture is a photograph, so it is as realistic as you will get it.
Imperfections make a picture perfect. There's nothing more unrealistic than a chop that looks TOO clean and perfect. Add some slight dust here and there or a few tiny scratches, but don't go overboard. Try not to make the colour too bright and in your face.
Hello.
