WIP of West Naren (Fantasy Map)

[EverKing]

Oops. I'm new so forgive me for doing this backwards: I already posted in the "Finished Maps" thread, Here.

Media: Micron Pen and Gouche on 22" x 27" matte poster-board.

Here is the WIP progression of the map as it developed. I apologize for the image quality, these were taken under poor and/or warm lighting with my iPhone. The lighting quality, especially, has had an effect on the way the images appear by shifting away from the true white and giving it an almost sepia effect.

I started off with a rough idea of where the major bodies of water and highlands/mountains would be (0.5mm mechanical pencil)
MAP_001.JPG

Blocked out the big forest and started adding some labels (0.5mm pencil)
MAP_002.JPG

Finished the penciling and started inking the waters and labels (05 and 01 Micron pens). Notice I changed the rivers to/from the Maldisc Sea and added some central highlands. Now the River Rimen flows East rather than North and the River Richesse is out-flow from the Maldisc rather than in-flow.
MAP_003.JPG

Started inking the mountains (01 Micron) and added base shading with a Copic C5 Cool Gray marker. I shaded the East side of the mountains mainly because it was easier for me being right handed. Also, shading the west of the Midland Mountains would have put most of what we see in shadow.
MAP_004.JPG

Here the mountains have added detail (Micron 005 pen) and I have inked the forests (Micron 05 pens, two shades of green)
MAP_005.JPG

Now, the entire concept changed. I was going to add some dispersed deciduous trees in the Vanakreji region to represent Oak Savannah landscape, similar to the dispersed pines in Suonnar to represent taiga, but I screwed it up. In the effort to fix it I made a big ugly splotch of semi-transparent white paint and smudged the still wet pen ink. So, I decided to color it after all--which was not my original intent. Here you see the first broad blocking of colors using cheap Hobby Lobby "Master's Touch" Gouache, mostly yellow ochre dulled with a hint of burnt sienna. In the NE mountains I made the shading a little too dark with burnt sienna but I moderated it in the Midlands with a mix of cerulean blue, mauve, & titanium white. I used pure white for the lit side of the glaciated peaks and a mild mix of white and blue for the shaded side. The pure white was put on pretty thick to get a good white tone, which covered much of the previous ink work.
MAP_006.JPG

Here I have added layers to the paint, building up shades of green in the farmland of Bylnira and the cerulean blue of the major water bodies. The matte poster board doesn't take watercolor well so it was curling and "pilling" as I went. I was able to use this effect to easily add texture and variation as I went.
MAP_007.JPG

And the completed map with the mountains re-inked (again with 01 & 005 black Micron and some 05 blue Micron) and the mistake happy little accident in Vanakreji turned into another forest.
MAP_009.JPG