WIP fantasy painting, critiques welcome

[Jonas Zavacky]

Hi @jwing I think you can play with the atmosphere more. If you are going for scary moment and want it more powerfull, the lighting is super important. I mean the blue sky and clouds are calming me down and I think that is not your intention. How you can make it more dramatic? snow storm? full moon?

Also I agree with Heather with the eyes.

Otherwise I really like it and am looking forward to the progress!

[StudioLooong]

To me the tiger is reading more surprised than threatening. i think maybe it's the roundness of the eyes and that his muzzle needs to be more "scrunched." Take a look at theses references i pulled from this tool (super useful for future reference needs, it shows all kinds of animal heads at all different angles. all you have to do is spin the skull around and hit "search" again) https://x6ud.github.io/#/.

[jwing]

@Heather-Boyd Thanks so much, I'll try to fix those issues!

[jwing]

@Jonas-Zavacky Thank you!! That sounds good, I'll try that out!

[jwing]

@StudioLooong Thanks a ton! Those references will help a lot

[jwing]

Here's more progress

[Heather Boyd]

@jwing Is his right paw on the ground or hovering? Because it looks like it is hovering. When you step into snow you tend to push it down and away from yourself -and your tiger is mighty big -just something to think about.

Also if you hadn't altered the middle eye towards the people too -push it more subtly to the right if you have already moved it down.

[ShannonBiondi]

@jwing Such awesome progress since your first post! Wowee!! Love it.

[djly]

@jwing - I'm loving the progress from the first to the second draft, nice work! I think you are starting to nail the expression in the tiger.

For the people in the campsite, I'm wondering if there could be a way to get them looking a bit more alert. Especially with the figure to the left of the campfire. I think the tiger is close enough where perhaps at this point in the scene, they'd be starting to make a run for it. Or otherwise, having the tiger just coming over the ledge so that it makes more sense that they are still in the sitting position...

[jwing]

@Heather-Boyd The paw was supposed to be hovering, but now I think a stepping action would look better here, thank you! I'll fix the eye too

[jwing]

@djly Thank you! That's a good point!

[jwing]

Here's the latest version:

Not sure how I feel about the birds, I thought they might make an interesting addition but maybe I didn't pull it off very well heh

[animatosoor]

@jwing I think you pulled it off really well. The colours and the various elements in this painting work wonderfully.

Did you want the birds to be only around the tiger, and nowhere else in the picture, almost as if they are circling it? I wonder if it would have a different effect on the overall mood of the picture if the birds were, instead, fleeing in opposite directions away from the form of the tiger, as they might tend to do in real life when their paths are obstructed and/or they sense danger.

[Nathalie Kranich]

Agree with above, maybe move the birds so that they look more like fleeing as a flock from the nearby trees. I'm glad you changed the poses of the characters, I noted that in the first few WIPS, although I still wonder if they convey the right emotion.
They seem ready to fight but all awkwardly circle the fire, none of them look very startled to me, so if they had time to prepare, why are they standing there with their tiny needle swords expecting this giant tiger? XD I'd personally try to catch them in the act of scrambling to draw their swords, or seeming in better formation to face it. right now, the guy on the left seems to be pointing his sword weirdly to the right, and the weight on his right foot makes it look even more like he is lunging towards the fire rather than the tiger.

[mellebluesworld]

The progress you made is really great, I just feel like the eyes of the tiger could be a bit closed (like in the references) to increase the feeling of threat. In your illustration, the eyes are wide open. In German there would be a word for it, it is called "zukneifen" I am not sure how to translate it properly, so you may just try to look angry yourself, in front of a mirror and see how the form of your eyes changes --> . looking forward to seeing your finished piece .