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Introduction to Creature Design: Volume 2

Coloring Creature Concepts in Photoshop With Kyle Brown

Description

Senior Character and Creature Concept Artist Kyle Brown returns with Volume 2 of his Creature Design workshop to share his coloring and texturing techniques for Photoshop. With Volume 1 dedicated to the sketching and idea-exploration phase, Volume 2 now focuses on the core skills at the foundation of creature design and discusses the differences between real-world materials and textures that can help to achieve photorealistic results and bring concept sketches to life.


Kyle revisits the original reference used to create imagined shapes in Volume 1 and this time puts them to work to show how to apply color and texture to designs. Taking the final creature concept from Volume 1, Kyle’s first color demonstrations reveal how to rapidly ideate using different color combinations and materials to flush out design options. He then shares quick and efficient methods for using some of Photoshop’s simple yet effective tools to create an additional color option on the same design. You’ll learn how to convey multiple conceptual ideations to a client for feedback, providing them with a wide net of options to see what works and what doesn’t.


Chapters 4 – 7 show Kyle’s approach to designing a brand new creature from start to finish using the lessons from both volumes. Kyle showcases every decision — warts and all — including both the successful ideas and mistakes made through the designing process. His demo focuses on a non-destructive workflow.


The final chapter offers a bonus lesson where Kyle shares his armor- and weapon-design techniques for those looking to add a further dimension to their creature designs.



Duration: 4h 24m

Format: HD 1920x1080

Kyle Brown

Concept Artist working in Film, Television and Games

Kyle Brown grew up in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, where he graduated from the Columbus College of Art & Design with a Bachelor’s degree in Illustration. In elementary school, Kyle first learned about Concept Design after he started looking through a copy of the Art of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. He was fascinated by the works of Ralph McQuarrie and Joe Johnston and immediately knew that was the career he wanted to have. After CCAD, Kyle moved to Los Angeles to attend the Gnomon School of Visual Effects, which led to roles in the entertainment field as a creature and character designer working predominantly in film and television. He has worked on projects from Warner Bros. 20th Century Fox, Netflix, Sony, The Jim Henson Company and Disney. Projects include Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, Netflix’s reboot of Lost in Space, Disney’s Mulan, Birds of Prey, Men In Black: International, X-Men Dark Phoenix, The Predator, and Ghostbusters (2016) with many more on the horizon. Kyle also teaches Creature Design at Gnomon School of Visual Effects, as well as Character Development and Digital Sculpting.

  • Working with Kyle Brown on Star Trek Discovery has been invaluable to our process. Whether we are collaborating on prosthetic character builds or the VFX lifeforms that I am art directing, Kyle's intuitive design sense facilitates even the most difficult challenges. That success is birthed from his ability to quickly communicate, both verbally and visually, with superb clarity. The shorthand we have fostered means that we can present a vastly augmented number of selections and options for the client within very limited time frames. It is the key to success on visually demanding projects.

    - Glenn Hetrick
    CEO Alchemy Studios