Kai's sketchbook

[KaiAeon]

The aim of this thread is to invite critique and catalogue my growth as a mapmaker. So, please feel free to critique my work and advise me.

The first piece I will share is the first map I consider complete. It's complete because I finished it with ink. I can see a lot of areas for improvement - too many to list. Yet I'm happy with it because it's not a half-finished map like many others of mine. The name of the region I just pulled out of thin air. It holds no significance really. Athrimu is the name.

I actually wanted to participate in the July/August 2020 Lite Challenge but thought it best to finish this map instead.

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[Ilanthar]

Looks good, but it's a bit hard to say more because of the small size of the picture.

[KaiAeon]

@Ilanthar Thank you for the feedback. I'll see what I can do about the image size.

[JoshStolarz]

Hey Kai, the map looks pretty good from what I can see. If you are looking for feedback I would say to try and give some more depth to your forests, since they look relatively flat with some detail trees scattered about. Try to think of how you can imply the rises and falls of the terrain below the trees to add some interest.

Looks like you’re off to a good start though!
- Josh

[KaiAeon]

Thanks, Josh. I will try and do that in my next map. I'm currently working on a different mountain style that will allow for trade routes to be drawn. I'll post a wip early next month.

[KaiAeon]

I've been working on drawing forests for the past few days a la Jared Blando's style. The pic is an example of my latest creation. Any feedback is welcome.

[Ilanthar]

Nice! This is a method that requires a lot of patience and a certain amount of love for forests...

[KaiAeon]

Thanks. I added a third section with denser trees and two hills which need a lot more work.

[KaiAeon]

So, asI said, I am playing around with drawing coniferous forests using Jared Blando's style. However, I didn't like the stark contrast between the pitch black shadows and white capped trees pictured in previous posts. So, I decided to play around with cross hatching and some grey brush pens.

My cross hatching technique needs a lot more work. (Granted that this is my first foray into shading using cross hatching. My 8th grade art teacher never taught me this and I never learned it on my own. All I knew about shading as a kid and teenager was colouring in with a pencil and smudging for gradation.)

[KaiAeon]

For now, I settled on a fusion with the style of @JoshStolarz