Well, I said in my previous topic that I would create a new topic, as the previous topic was originally created for my first steps in Photoshop.
As I consider myself beyond that step now, thanks to help and comments from various members and through reading tutorials I managed to get my own style and get a good understanding of Photoshop.
Anyway, here is my first annual topic, which will be used for everything I make this year.
Anyway, here is what I have made in '08 so far. Be aware, it is


Leon S. Kennedy


Valkyrie/Profile (battle with Vins)


Ken Masters


Shana


Sheena


Aaaaaughibbrgubugbugrguburgle


Final_Flash


World of Warcraft


Kali Yuga


Xianghua


Juclecia Sebine Re Elcritian

Well, this is my latest work. I am aware of the fact that some of these were posted in the other topic, but considering they are my '08 work as well, I thought might as well put them in here.
I used some new techniques in the latter ones as well, just to try some things out and how they worked out.
Anyway, apart from the Sheena signature, I am quite pleased with them, this is, however, a personal opinion.

Feel free to dismiss =).

Gosh the Artist Forum is dead lately =/.

First of all I have to commend you for your speed with signature making, you make so many in the time it takes me to do one. So thats one good thing I think.
I have to say I really like the movement you seem to achieve in Kennedy, Ken Masters, Shana and Final Flash signatures - you really get a sense of motion and depth to them as you have aptly applied brushes which give the illusion of movement, i.e. with bullets for example. I like signatures which have a sense of movement, as opposed to using stocks in which the character/object is in a linear and boring posture.
I really like the "dirty" look of the first one, it is all grundgy and the black blur really looks as if he has run in from the right side of the signature.
I love your pink one, obviously because i have it as a signature =P. I really like the effects you placed round her, the dark shadowing, and the bright shafts of light eminating from her scarf. Not to mention the use of text on the right hand side. It just really looks like you have thought alot about where you have put brushes and thought about th reason why you put them there and for what effect.
The Valkyrie Profile one is lovely, it has a lot of contrast and nice effects to it and I think the Ken Masters one is really good. You really put this signature together well to give the illusion that the bullet is distorting the air around it, as if it is going slow motion through a movie =).
I like the Shana one a lot, though it does look like the stock takes up a lot of the signature, maybe making the stock a bit smaller might've helped. Having said that I do like that the signature is filled up.
Just like you, i do not like the Sheena one, I don't think the colours go with the stock nor the brushes, but you have to have one bad one amongst so many nice ones. No ones perfect >_o.
The World of Warcraft one is a bit sinister, and dark for me to want it as my signature, but in terms of an art piece, the effects match nicely and overall it is well composed. The border and text fits nicely.

The Final Flash one I think is one of the best, because it just looks so dramatic to me. You've clearly though about direction and limtation in this signature, not filling it with loads of brushes to fill the signature with flames, but instead though about creating a direction in which the flames are going by restricting it to one side.
I was always taught in art, particularly in life drawing, to think about the negative as well as the positive space - thinking about what parts of the page you are not filling as well as the parts you are.

The last one is nice, I like how she is almost lost in the brushes, but also seems to emerge from them. The effects you used seem to compliment the stock well and it has a nice amount of contrast =).

Overall i think you've done a fine job on these signatures. I hope that you continue to improve in this way =).

For the record, I love your current sig. It’s so cute =p (and perfect in just about every way, haha...). The Kali Yuga and WoW sig are favorites as well. As a matter of personal taste, I like the dark and sinister look you obtained with them, and all the rest are just appealing to look at, period (minus Sheena and the last one---last one is good, but it looks too...I dunno. It's hard for me to focus on it. It is good though, just not one of my favorites).

Um...yeah, I don’t have anything else to say, really...You’re doing really well though. Keep it up =).

I'm really digging the Shana sig still. The Valkyrie sig is also really nice to look at on the eyes.

The only thing I have to say as a generalized comment is to work on typography some more. You've gotten other aspects down pretty well, but I think the text could be played into the design more.

Yeah, I agree that text isn't my strongest point and usually I keep it simple.
Maybe I should do it without text in the future.

Anyway, thanks for the comments =).

I'm with Fantasy. The Shana one is indeed hella nice. =) My fav so far!
Next would be Ken Masters. Still my fav SF character.
Good work, Pes.

Well, it has been a while since I last posted some work of mine, so here goes. Unfortunatly, I haven't been playing much as of late and the things I did make were mostly experimental and nothing major appealing.

First of all:



My Matheus sig, which is an Esper from Final Fantasy XII. When I first made it, I though it look decent, but now I find it look too much and too crowded. I shouldn't have made it so busy. This was indeed a piece I experimented with.



My entry for the Valentine competition, which I think won best signature, so I am pleased with that =).
It was a bit of an experiment as well, I tried to gave it a warm feeling, unlike most of my other stuff, which are usually dark, or cold. So yeah, this was the result.



My entry for the Music SotM contest. Personally, I am quite pleased with this one, it was indeed a bit of experimenting, but in the end, I think it ended up quite nice. I'll just have to wait the results when the votings starts, because at the time of writing, it hasn't =P.



My Gohan signature. It has not text, because I couldn't find a good title, nor font/colour so I just skipped that part.
I do like it, but it is again, just an experiment. I am trying various things and I do have to say, this is a step back to my old grunge style. I do like it though.

So, any thoughts and/or comments?

I like the background you used for the Mateus sig, as it’s rather intricate. Though, as you’ve already stated, it’s a really crowded signature; I honestly couldn’t even tell it was Mateus until you said so.

I’ve already stated my thoughts on the Valentine sig in the Feb. SotM topic. =). I will leave my comments for the music SotM sig in the voting topic as well (I figure I might as well just say it once, instead of numerous times).

As for the Gohan sig (who is, by the way, my favorite character from DBZ even though I never watched it much, haha), I like it, except for one thing. You have a stock of him that has him “in motion”, but he still seems rather 2D in it. You blurred the hair, and though you did put white streaks by his hand, he seems rather...immobile yet. If that makes sense...I do like it though. I just think that, with what it appears you were going for, you could have made more of a...I dunno. Contrast between background/image? Not sure if that’s quite what I want, but maybe you get what I mean.

Anyway, great sigs as always (even if you were just experimenting.). =).

Thanks for the reply and.. I'll be honest, I haven't got an idea what you're trying to say about the Gohan sig =P.

Haha, I didn’t quite think you would...Oh well. I don’t know how to word it better at the moment, so just don’t worry about it. =).

Okay....

Well i really like the first signature, particularly because the background looks so intricate and detailed. The colours work well with the stock, and you've blended it all together quite nicely =). I am not at all bothered by the lack of text, because i think when your background is so full with design, i think text would just overcrowd the piece.

The second one is lovely =). The colours are really nice, and go well with the cute stock. i really like this piece, as you said it is warm and a complete variation from your usual grundy style. Shows you have diversity. You definately deserved best signature for this in the battle.

I really like the third one, not only because it is based on the Gorillaz, but also because it is clear to me that you have really thought about the placement and composition of things in this piece. I love how the left corner is so busy and has so much depth, while you kept the right side quiet in comparison. Its a nice contrast, and the colours work really well together <3.

Finally, i come to the last piece. While I am not a fan of Dragonball Z, the piece is quite nice. It is very dramatic which i think matchs the topic in hand. The only criticism i have is that there might be a bit too much white in the signature, but aside from that it is again a nice piece of work =).

There is no doubting how much you have progressed since you first started using photoshop, and i'm sure your work will only continue to improve. Keep at it =).

Cool stuff. I like them all alot ahah. I notice your listening to LROE by the Eagles, maybe use that for one of them. I think it be worth a try.

Well, thanks for the comments =).

And now, Pes has gone a different style =O. Really? Yes, really. Whether people like it, or not... well I hope so =P.



My Elano sig from Man C. My first try at this kind of thing. I feel weird =P.



My Riquelme sig from Villareal and thus my second try.



My Riquelme sig on a different blend, looks better on a white background, hence it is clickable.

To be honest, I’m not as big a fan of these. I like the “splatter” effect with the background and the way you have the text, but I’m not really keen on how the stock turns out. They aren’t too bad though. I’d say the second Riquelme sig would be my favorite of the lot.

Anyway, keep it up. =).

Not a big fan of the first one. The second one looks better and I think the background of the third one is alittle too bright.

I thi you should stick with what you had in the second one but just lighten up his face alittle with the dodge tool. Maybe add alittle more contrast to make it look like the third one more? Basically, I'm going for something looking in between how the second and third piece look xD.

Not a fan of the typography you've chosen for any of them either =/. Plus, I think a border might make it look like a cleaner finish, be careful with what colour you choose though, some colours can block out the textures you want noticed in the piece. xP

Yeah, the third one is too bright for this forum, I like it a lot more on a white background, as the effect isn't blinding =P.

I agree that my typography ain't that good. At least, that is what I personally think. I know what I can do, but usually I keep it simple. I should try some trickier stuff than this though, when it comes down to text.

About the border, I completely forgot, usually I always have some border, but I simply forgot it with the Riquelme sig. It wasn't intentional =P.

Anyway, thanks for the replies. Seems I have to get a little deeper in this. Not that I was expecting much from my first 2 tries.

I duno man.... I think they're good experimental pieces, but as for a finished sig, I can't say its ur best. The elements of them are good, that kind of nitty gritty feel and Photoshop Effect of pixelating and distorting things, but it seems kinda plain, and the text really doesn't go with either unfortunately.

I'm sure if you incorporated the style/effects into a different, more complete, sig it'd be nice, but something about them just seems.. "experimental". I guess thats the best way to put it.

I liked the first one. It seemed pretty pimp. The white back ground makes it easier to see the second one for sure, so I woulda stuck with that definitely.

Well, that could be, because they are infact experiments. Those are my very first two attempts at that particular style.
So that explains things, haha =P.

Thanks Noon =).

Well, I wanted to have another go at this, so here is the next piece:


Seoung Mi-Na from Soul Calibur. Just after I finished this one, I saw her Soul Calibur IV art.. dammit ><
Ah well, any thoughts on this one?

AH Bingo. Dude that piece rocks. Love the way u blend the stock into the bg. The background looks real nice too, if anything u could prolly just higher the contrast a tad but it still looks great. Text is kinda hard to read, but at least it doesnt stick out like a sore thumb like most of mine do hahaha

what techniques do u use to blend ur stocks in like that? Layer masks?

Actually, it is using the applying image option, using various techniques such as spatter and then removing things.
I do this several times and eventually you get something like that. =)

Edit:

Here is another piece I experimented with, just like the previous ones:



Asuka =)

Well, I haven't done much these days, but here is a minor update from me.



My fieldpiece entry ^^



Bass.EXE

A thing I made some time ago and I honestly cannot remember when.








My latest work. Ryu from Street Fighter IV, for anyone that doesn't realize this =P.

The MGS for the fieldpiece is pretty cool. Has a good water color effect to it. The Bass.EXE I think I've seen before, I think you've actually posted it up already. Either that or I'm just remembering one that's like it.

The Ryu one is really nice though. I've always loved your backgrounds, and the one you have for this one strengthens that. It's not as "dimensional" as the Bass.EXE's background, but for a grunge sig, it's a nice compliment of colors. The first Ryu I like better, simply because it's not as defined as the second. I like the mellow tones rather than the detail that jumps out in the second. And for that same reason, I like the first Ryu avatar more. But they're both really good.

Nice work, as always. =).

I did posted it before, but nobody commented on it, so I simply re posted =P.

Thanks for your comments, they're appreciated.

Now for some minor updates:
I did some requests some people on other forums, I never did much on requests and because the requests topic on this forum was somewhat dead, I decided to try it on a different forum, here are the results:
Mind you that the choices of colours were mainly theirs

To be totally honest, I'm not too big a fan of these later ones. I like the style and all, but they just seem so empty. There isn't too much in the background except for some contrast with the colors and the sig. They aren't bad, they just seem really empty to me...

Ah well. Good work on them. Despite the empty feeling I get with them, they're still really good. =).

i echo what DB said about these last ones... just seem to be missing.. though i do like the blackout one.

I agree with the above 2 posts as well. They look nice, but nothing really stands out about any particular one. I think the borders look really nice on the 2nd and 3rd one, but there's not enough contrast or spark to any of them to really make them stand out. I think empty is the perfect word for it.

Thanks for all the comments and sorry about the late reply, I kind of forgot about it =S.

Anyway, I haven't been able to do much with PS at all. Actually, I only managed to do one single thing.

Here it is:



So what are your thoughts on this?

I actually really like it, though the border somewhat bothers me, at least in the top-left corner and on the left itself...It just looks like too-highly contrasted pixels, just because there isn't a lot of the border visible around that area...I think if you would've just kept the left side (border-wise) black, it'd have looked better.

But, I do really like the piece. Nice work. ^^

Thanks DB =). I might change the border a bit, it depends if I can be bothered x'D. Sorta lazy with PS lately, hence the only 1 update =P.

Make me a James McFadden signature then I will comment xD

Just kidding, I like it. Jonathan de Guzmán was a nice choice, the background fits in nice with the Feyenoord colours. Its all good.