First post: I've completed these creature busts, I would like to hear your feedback on it

_Alexander_

Hello! I worked on these the past three weeks and now that i'm done with it, I hope to get some feedback on what I could've done to make it better. Anxious for some guidance

Orbit

At first, it seems like it'd be best to do some clay bakes rather than final renders but from first glance it seems like they're good concepts but need some work before you go in detailing the busts. The textures seem to be placed as an afterthought - for example the little bit of damage/wear on the chest of the red bust is placed there, but there's nothing else to indicate what it is, etc. The bump/spike in the back also seems random, so in short the character isn't really telling a 'story'.

I'm very much a beginner as well, and I keep running into the same issues myself and it has a lot to do with a lack of reference or not using references correctly.

Here's an example for the dragon bust - in nature, animals that have 'spikes/horns' are either part of the skeletal system or keratin/hair like a rhino. Horns don't really 'grow' from a circular bump, but are just part of the skeletal structure and skin tends to stretch around it, so the valleys of muscle and skin between two large protrusions should be more pronounced in general - almost webbed in between.

For the face, again, this is where real-world reference comes in handy. Animals with small eyes tend to have bad eyesight, so lets say an underground dragon/mole dragon or a deep sea dragon (which is what I assume this is). Real world animals compensate for the lack of eyesight with strong noses and hearing, and its no different in the deep sea where bioluminescence replaces actual light.

 Exaggerating the features, like the bioluminescent fronds, and maybe pushing more of a underwater predator facial features would really push the narrative. Messy example below - : 

Alex_J

I'd put more time into the roughness map, right now they look like made of plastic. 

_Alexander_

Orbit said:

At first, it seems like it'd be best to do some clay bakes rather than final renders but from first glance it seems like they're good concepts but need some work before you go in detailing the busts. The textures seem to be placed as an afterthought - for example the little bit of damage/wear on the chest of the red bust is placed there, but there's nothing else to indicate what it is, etc. The bump/spike in the back also seems random, so in short the character isn't really telling a 'story'.

I'm very much a beginner as well, and I keep running into the same issues myself and it has a lot to do with a lack of reference or not using references correctly.

Here's an example for the dragon bust - in nature, animals that have 'spikes/horns' are either part of the skeletal system or keratin/hair like a rhino. Horns don't really 'grow' from a circular bump, but are just part of the skeletal structure and skin tends to stretch around it, so the valleys of muscle and skin between two large protrusions should be more pronounced in general - almost webbed in between.

For the face, again, this is where real-world reference comes in handy. Animals with small eyes tend to have bad eyesight, so lets say an underground dragon/mole dragon or a deep sea dragon (which is what I assume this is). Real world animals compensate for the lack of eyesight with strong noses and hearing, and its no different in the deep sea where bioluminescence replaces actual light.

 Exaggerating the features, like the bioluminescent fronds, and maybe pushing more of a underwater predator facial features would really push the narrative. Messy example below - : 

I admit that for the detailing part they are pre-mature and some of the details I put in were just there for the sake of it as I use my half baked drawings as reference as well.

For the dragon bit I was trying mimic its skeletal structure that of an Ankylosaurus where it its bones (or the outer shell) were literally protecting it from larger predators. It was similar in this case where I thought about larger predators that were hunting these creatures and that they evolved from having more protruding spinal bones or sections where these predators would no longer be a threat to them.



You are right and that I should be using proper references, something that I forget about from time to time. I also have a hard time looking at the teeth of the dragon as it looks like they aren't seaming together with the gums or that the colors probably look too artificial/fake, so maybe that's something I have to work on as well.

I appreciate your take on the piece and I'll make sure to have everything you said in mind the next time I create a new bust. Thank you as well for the examples you provided

_Alexander_

Alex_J said:

I'd put more time into the roughness map, right now they look like made of plastic. 

I agree, texturing isn't my strong suit yet especially when it comes to the roughness probably because I stop looking at references after the sculpting process. I'll keep this in mind, thank you!