Painted Map Resources

[Tiachren]

Hello everyone! I paint with Krita, I also have GIMP and I am currently doing a world map in as digital painting as appose to an ink drawn map, in the style where are looking straight down at everything (I am not sure what the right term for that is).

Does anyone know of or have any resources that can help me achieve painting a map in this way?

Even reference pictures of painted maps would be amazing! So far I have been making it up as I went along so improvement has been slow.

[Azélor]

We have two artists that come to my mind:

Viking : https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ad.php?t=24564
Naima: https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...=40941&page=11
https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ad.php?t=43568

They have other works, this is just a sample.

[Tiachren]

Those are some fantastic maps, thanks! I have a few new ideas.

[Tiana]

A nice full color painted map by me since no one else will pimp out my work. There are no tips, it just takes a long time painstakingly rendering everything. Break it into stages like "now I'm doing all of the flats for the mountains" "now I'm doing all the shadows for the mountains" "now I'm doing all the snow peaks on the mountains" and just be prepared for it to take like... 60-120 hours. :[

But I'd do it again and I have replicated the same digital painting style for a southern hemisphere island map and a couple of others which just aren't online yet. My only tip from doing the same style repeatedly would be to create a seamless painted texture fill to use as the backdrop for certain elements, so you aren't repeatedly painting 'desert', but just adding some splash unique elements on top of that to trick the eye.

[Wingshaw]

I've also made a map in this painterly style (shamelessly plugging my map of Ostrom, made in Photoshop), and so can offer that:
A. Tiana is right: it is a very time-consuming and painstaking process, and doing it in stages is an excellent approach
B. I found landscape painting tutorials on YouTube to be very useful (I don't know how experienced you already are with painting techniques)
C. the painterly style can be made as detailed or as loose as you want, which may help you save some time if you want a less 'polished'/more 'rustic' look
D. it is particularly important with this style to be bold and just go with it (even more than it is for ink drawings, for example)
E. it is both a fun style and one that delivers amazing rewards with even just a little bit of effort
F. sharing your progress on the Guild and asking for comments is the best way to improve

Wingshaw

[foreverfalln]

Hello everyone! I paint with Krita, I also have GIMP and I am currently doing a world map in as digital painting as appose to an ink drawn map, in the style where are looking straight down at everything (I am not sure what the right term for that is).

Does anyone know of or have any resources that can help me achieve painting a map in this way?

Even reference pictures of painted maps would be amazing! So far I have been making it up as I went along so improvement has been slow.

I would every much recommend, perusing this forum, looking at the numerous award winning pieces, also Deviantart. Find a artist or style and emulate, read/watch tutorials. But mostly find a style, high fantasy, super realistic and everything in between and practice, this forum nd its member sport such a wide variety of artistic styles, you will find some type or style and make it your own.

Honestly what is really helping me as I am not a painter or illustrator my talents with digital art as a far from cartography as you an get, but there is something thats make me want to get better.