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I won't be very helpful, plateaus are often a problem for me as well... But I like your map, it's a fine job.
I think you've made a very good choice of colours, except for the red labels which are a bit too bright to my taste.
Need help drawing plateaus in WIP Map
Hey Guys i've been working on this map for a bit and have been having issues figuring out how to draw plateaus on my map, or more specifically how to close off the back of it from the perspective I have drawn the map in. In the north there is a massive plateau that takes up most of the northern continent, but while I can draw it from the from I am not sure how to close it off in the back towards the top of the northern continent. Any advice would be great and I would love to hear thoughts on it in generally as this is my first attempt at drawing a map (the one thing I think that needs fixing is the city names and icons need to be larger)
Map-10.jpg
I won't be very helpful, plateaus are often a problem for me as well... But I like your map, it's a fine job.
I think you've made a very good choice of colours, except for the red labels which are a bit too bright to my taste.
The cliffs are looking good and I think you should consider making the mountains in the same style, it would be even better.
I usually don't put plateaus on the map and if I do, I mostly use hills.
Alright, I'm pretty new to this still myself - but if I was going to do it in that perspective I would probably do something like this:
How-I-would.jpg
My personal advice would be: Keep it simple and in line with your mountains, and remember sometimes less can be more. Nice looking map so far!
*edit*
I realize, now, that I probably didn't explain myself very well. What I mean is to just close them off with the lines. Take it easy, make 'em thin, just like you did with your mountains. There's no reason not to, considering how you've drawn the rest of it, it's a drop off/ending of the side you can see so why not? Doesn't need to be flashy - heck, you might even be able to do it by using a bit more of a white line/area at the back/northern edge of them. Frankly, in my experience thus far, a lot of this can be trial and error and the worst thing that happens is you find something that doesn't work(this time) and try something else.
Last edited by Psylence; 12-17-2013 at 04:33 AM.
Firstly, that's a really cool map so far! And welcome to the forums
So, plateaus… Well, you've already drawn the hard partTo close it off, a slightly jagged line will be all that's needed, maybe with a few small peaks here and there to match the look of the front. But just imagine that you are standing on the plateau, or hovering a little bit above it; all you'll be able to see is the edge. I can do a paintover on your map if you want, to demonstrate, though Psylence already showed the basic idea! (A masterpiece by the way, Psylence!
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Maydris, I really like the map so far, especially your palette. Am I correct is guessing that you did the mountains by hand and matched it up with GIMP/PS for the rest?
Also, what about black lettering edged/highlighted in dark red to make it stand out for your labels?
The mountains are brushes drawn by StarRaven.Originally Posted by PWKerns
Wow, those are some great brushes and are used to really good effect by the OP. Inspiration to step-up my brush-making and use skills.
Oh, and example of my (poor inkscape skills) suggestion that you could use black edged with red for city labels:
test label.png
Maydris, I really like the crease effects you did on different parts of the map - any tips or tuts on how to make that effect?
Last edited by PWKerns; 12-18-2013 at 09:56 PM.
Thanks for the advice, got distracted with life stuff (got told i'm being laid off) and completely forgot I made this thread. I think you are right Psylence when I was working on it I really was trying for the whole less is more, I wanted it to be styled in a similar method to that of a lot of the middle earth maps where it conveys more detail than is really drawn in. I think I will try for some simple lines along the top edge and throw in a mountain or 2 to break it up a bit like Lingon said to get a good look. going out of town for a week in a couple day so ill probably work on it when I get back and post a new shot for some critiques.
These brushes were a great help in working on the map, I would definitely suggest them, wish I could say I was at a level where I would be confident making my own, but this is still my first map, so in the future we will see. I did however do some of the mountains by hand when the brushes didn't match what i was looking for or the angles were not right (also editing some of them to create a bit more variation). as far as the creases go most of them came with he original paper texture I used, if you go to deviant art a lot of people have paper stock images to use for free as long as you give them credit, I started this awhile ago and can't recall where I picked it up from though before I decide to post the final image anywhere major i'm gonna hunt it down.
Though as far as drawing creases go I can give you some advice, the key is distinguishing the crease as a slightly brighter color of the base and applying a shadow along the edge where the light would be shining on the paper, just make sure all the shadows go in the same direction otherwise it wont read as real. If you have problems tapering off the ends by ending them abruptly or where it contacts the edge you can always put a hole or a torn bit to make it read a bit better (though I would do it sparingly)
I also agree with you guys that the red is a bit standoutish for what I was going for, I think I will switch to a black and probably work on upscaleing it so its more legible.
Last edited by Maydris; 12-19-2013 at 03:51 PM.
