Step-by-step: The dead awakens…

1 I start with some really rough line work, where I block in the main pose of the skeleton as well as the overall composition for the scene. I’ve done a lot of studies of human skeletons in the past, so I don’t take long blocking in the pose this time around. If you aren’t sure of the human bone structure, use reference image to better understand the correct anatomy. 2 Next up I fill the background with a midgreen and also add a gradient of grey to suggest the direction of the light. I block in the silhouette of the skeleton with a darker value of the same colour and add some basic shadows to start forming the shapes. I also paint in some foliage, in order to try and get a feel of the forest swamp environment I had in mind.

3 Next I clarify the background more by strengthening the lights and adding more foliage and trees. Then I paint in the lights and shadows of the skeleton using a sub-layer and add some ‘magical’ light effects on a Color Dodge layer. I tend to use Overlay and Soft Light layers to strengthen the contrast of various parts and normal layers to add more details. 4 I use various texture brushes to quickly suggest more detail in the background and try to give the skeleton itself more painted details. I correct the silhouette of the bones to make them more anatomically correct and paint in all the reflecting lights. As a final step, I add sharper edges and fine details around the head to drive more attention to the focal area.