Large scale map, which of these mountains works best?

[MartinMånsson]

Hello,

This is my first map, so naturally, i evolve and get better as i progress. This has lead to a problem; I used 2 pixels for the ridgeline in example number 1. and a 1 pixel ridgeline in example number 2. And now, i'm torn at which one i will go for. So i turn to you, how do you feel about it?

This map is far from finished, so don't mind anything except for the mountains in the circles.



Comparison far away:

1. Caucasus


2. Cambodia


Comparison close up:

1. Caucasus


2. Cambodia


Personally, i believe i prefer number 2, although it kind of disappears when you move further away... Thoughts?
FYI; I don't plan to paint the terrain, it'll be a thematical map which highlights other things. The mountains are there to convey the message of impassable-ness. With this in mind, you might understand that it's important that the mountains don't dissappear since they'll not be made up of much else than shadows and ridgelines.

[J.Edward]

Hey Martin,
me personally, I prefer 1. Though I would add that I think you would do even better with a brush of maybe 4 pixels, say hard 100% opacity/70% flow with antialiasing on.
That would definitely eliminate the pixelly look and your lines would be stronger and easier to see further out.
All that being said, your mountains look great so far. Looks like good things will be coming from you in the future.

[MartinMånsson]

Hey Martin,
me personally, I prefer 1. Though I would add that I think you would do even better with a brush of maybe 4 pixels, say hard 100% opacity/70% flow with antialiasing on.
That would definitely eliminate the pixelly look and your lines would be stronger and easier to see further out.
All that being said, your mountains look great so far. Looks like good things will be coming from you in the future.

1. While i would agree, the file is kind of tough to handle as it is. If i multiply it by 4 i imagine it would be a nightmare to handle. As it is now, it'll have more than 300 cities in it, which, when i make them visible, seems to be tanking my computer a lot. The map won't be meant to zoom in on, so i'm not too worried about the pixely look close-up. But i see your point in that it would give me more freedom if i upped the size a little.

2. Or do you mean that i can use a 4 pixel ridgeline with the existing size without it looking too blubby?

Thanks for the kind words.

[J.Edward]

Well, I meant more like in the future with new maps.
You have so much done already I would think you would continue with either option one or two.
To redo all of that as a 4 pix brush would take way too long. And making it 4 times larger would not change the ridges.
And yes, it would make one monster of a file to wrangle with.

Yeah, for this one I would just pick 1 or 2 and keep going with it.
I didn't mean to imply that it was looking too pixelly as it is.
I was just referring to the fact that when using 1 or 2 pixel brushes it can often look pixelly when done as opposed to the brush settings I had said about.
You are doing great as you are so I don't want that to discourage in any way.
Ahem... as you were..

[MartinMånsson]

Well, I meant more like in the future with new maps.
You have so much done already I would think you would continue with either option one or two.
To redo all of that as a 4 pix brush would take way too long. And making it 4 times larger would not change the ridges.
And yes, it would make one monster of a file to wrangle with.

Yeah, for this one I would just pick 1 or 2 and keep going with it.
I didn't mean to imply that it was looking too pixelly as it is.
I was just referring to the fact that when using 1 or 2 pixel brushes it can often look pixelly when done as opposed to the brush settings I had said about.
You are doing great as you are so I don't want that to discourage in any way.
Ahem... as you were..

Right, got it! Hmm, i'll wait for more responses, or i'll go with my guts. I'll still have to redo a lot though, and luckily i have the patience for it, so i don't mind... I started with the Himalayas, and it looks terrible in comparison to Cambodia/Indochina. And i will keep the increased pixels in mind for my next close-up maps, thanks!

[jshoer]

I like the thicker ridgeline better - especially if the important thing to you is to convey impassable-ness.

[Diamond]

I like the thicker ridgeline better - especially if the important thing to you is to convey impassable-ness.

I would agree with this.

[MartinMånsson]

I went for the small ridgeline. It looked more natural, especially when i work with so few pixels. The 2 pixel variant made the mountains stand out a bit too much than i'd want. The shadow really helps with the impassable-ness at a distance, and the 1 pixel ridges makes it look great up close. So i'm pretty happy with how it looks as of now.

These are prnt scrns, so the quality isn't very good. I'm not sure how i am to best upload my maps for you to see at top quality;





As you can imagine, it has been a pretty tedious task to redo the mountains - especially since i'm terrible at working with layers.

I can also add that i added a black stroke effect on the mountains, so it looks more on par with the coastline, and is therefore more visible than before.

[Pixie]

I have nothing to say other than this is an amazing job!! Awesomeness drips from every corner

[snodsy]

Hey Martin;

I was where you were a few months ago with the Pixel sizes and stroke apply. Feedback from others and looking at more tutorials and follow some of the really good WIP threads have help tremendously. Hopefully other more skilled ones will respond as well, but what I've found is;

I make the file/map large enough to use a 4 or 5 pixel brush for line work. This allows for better pen pressure/opacity brush setting to have variation in your line weights and in the end doesn't make the lines pixelated.

I've used the stroke command as well to thicken up my line work, but it doesn't have the same feel (no variation) as a hand drawn line. But it can work well for some things and a way to bump up some thickness.

Working with layers is a must in photoshop so I'm sure you'll learn that fast.

good luck your starting out big!