Amazon Captain Ahab

specsowl

Hey there polycount! I haven't posted here in eons. But, I need a new portfolio piece as I will be looking for some studio job soon and I want something that encompasses my current skills.

UPDATE





I'll be making a little scene of Moby Dick with a twist. Imagine Ahab got stranded in the Amazon (just pretend ok) and has to fight a giant white eel catfish. Whatever you aren't here to read, you're here for pictures. Here are my moodboards so far:


Charlton Heston's face contorted in a mix of fear and anger ought to be perfect for our Ahab.


a small bit of what I want Ahab to look like. I don't want realistic. I want something fun and styled but not super cartoony.


Moodboard for the monster. I think a combination of Albino Eel catfish mixed with the alien-ish whales from Dishonored is sufficiently horrifying enough. Edit: "Mody Dick"...what was I thinking


Giant fish and tiny boat. Could be worse (no it couldn't)

I'm here for any opinions. Modeling will start soon!

Shiniku

Those soft-brush silhouettes are killing me, man. I feel like I need to put on glasses. On top of that.. they're not even very different. I see the forearms are more inflated in some, but honestly the overall proportions seem unintentionally off as well, so I don't think your design ideas are really coming through. Even though it's 2d and solid black, you really need to convey more dimension for these to be of much use.

Not trying to be harsh or anything. Nice ref, good luck with the project.

specsowl

Ah alright sorry. I'll see if I can't work on those a bit more

specsowl

Ok Silhouettes are...fixed? I made them different body types and outfits. I'm leaning towards A and E because because I like the big forearms. A however is more of a traditional Ahab and E is more towards what the theme is. B just looks like Abraham Lincoln...so there's that. Have some basic sculpting on the fish, I'll be showing that soon.

Edit: No it didn't take me all day to do these crappy silhouettes. Don't worry.

Stirls

I really like A. Feels more complete.

Greg DAlessandro

I agree, A feels right.

B_Korth

I am a fan of E. I like the arms to body ratio. He just seems like more of a seaman to me.

specsowl

Just a little wip of the fish. Any suggestions before I get too far?

Also A does seem pretty nice. I am thinking E's arms (with sleeves) with most of classic Ahab in A.

Steve Schulze

I like the structure of the face. I think making the gills/jaw line a bit more realistic with the cut wrapping around under the chin would make him look a bit more distinctly fishy.

A dorsal fin might add a bit of extra interest to his back area and silhouette.

specsowl

Jackablade wrote: »

I like the structure of the face. I think making the gills/jaw line a bit more realistic with the cut wrapping around under the chin would make him look a bit more distinctly fishy.

A dorsal fin might add a bit of extra interest to his back area and silhouette.

Hey thanks for the critique! I added the dorsal and changed his gills and he looks a million times better. I also thinned his whiskers a bit so they weren't so thick. Still have some tweaks before I post him in the thread. In the meantime, I have a WIP of Captain Ahab's head. It's super WIP and I feel like his face might be a tad too long.

specsowl

Hey guys.Worked some more on Ahab's face today. Getting closer to what I want with him. Also he doesn't have a beard yet! Also his hair is a hot mess. I am trying to get the face right first before fiddling with how I want the hair. Also might dynamesh out a simple body soon to see how I can get him looking interesting.

Stirls

I don't like the teeth. They're really distracting. Looks at the structure of teeth, then possibly go back and remake those ones. They're very spaced out! Looks like Ahab needs some braces..

specsowl

Stirls wrote: »

I don't like the teeth. They're really distracting. Looks at the structure of teeth, then possibly go back and remake those ones. They're very spaced out! Looks like Ahab needs some braces..

But he's a sea captain!
In all seriousness I'll give him a dental fix.

specsowl

More work on the fish. Need to define his mouth more and redo his side I think.

Redid the teeth. Also removed the paint for this screen, though it will be in the final

Blocking out the body. Ugh something about it doesn't sit right with me. I think his hips might be too high? Also the deltoids look a bit weird too.

Edit: I noticed that the hips ARE too high. I don't know how I missed that. Will be working on that.

specsowl

Hey guys! So this week has been a bit hectic and I havent gotten to work on Ahab much. Here's my progress nonetheless.

Worked on his facepaint, new hat, obligatory neckerchief, and a less derp expression

Here he is with his blobby coat. He has no foot because I am working on it.

Here he is without the coat. Going to get those forms right before going in and old-ifying his body with some wrinkles and sagging. Also his left side will be pretty scarred up. We're talking "'Pay It Forward' Kevin Spacey scarring" levels of scars.