Ship backgrounds

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DOCUP
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Ship backgrounds

Post by DOCUP »

How do you artist's put ships on the sides/shills. Do you have ones that are marked or what? I get lucky with some and other I mess it up.

Teach me your ways, ol mighty ones.
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Korvar
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Korvar »

First, there are certain standard file parameters with which you should be familiar. The standard size is 200 x 60 pixels (width/height), and the required format is 24-bit bitmap (that is 8 bits per channel).

Second, get yourself a good image editor which is capable of layering. Photoshop and GIMP are two popular options.

Next, get your side backgrounds from Big B's Shipyard. I have also attached to this post a blank shil .bmp as a .zip file.

Then you'll need to either get existing ship artwork and scale it down to the proper size, or draw your own art. The ship will be on a separate layer 'on top' of the background and shil layers. The ability to layer is the secret to modifying specific parts of the image (such as the ship only) without ruining the others. You can also make a duplicate of a layer and use it to experiment with modifications. This allows you to revert back to the original layer if everything goes wrong instead of losing all your work.

It's difficult to describe everything involved - it's the same problem any artist would have giving a specific process for replicating their work. A general description is doable, but at some level of resolution the process is 'lost in translation'.

It will probably be best for you to attempt following the general outline above, and then to ask questions when you hit a snag in the process.

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DOCUP
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by DOCUP »

Thanks Kovar
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Korvar
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Korvar »

I'm sure you're already aware of it, but for those reading along - Shipbucket is an excellent resource for ship art. It does take some effort to integrate the art into the AE format, but it's better than drawing a ship from scratch.
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DOCUP
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by DOCUP »

I do like shipbucket. Never thought about trying to copy the art.
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Korvar
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Korvar »

Here are some examples of art requests where I used Shipbucket as a basis:


Image


Image


It's not a simple copy/paste operation, but it works pretty well with some tweaking and shading.
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Kull
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Kull »

ORIGINAL: Korvar

Here are some examples of art requests where I used Shipbucket as a basis:

Wow, those are fantastic! If only there was a similar system we could use for city bombardment screens....
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DOCUP
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by DOCUP »

Those are awesome looking.
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John 3rd
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by John 3rd »

ORIGINAL: Korvar

Here are some examples of art requests where I used Shipbucket as a basis:


Image


[img]https://i.imgur.com/2SOb7QT.png[/imag

It's not a simple copy/paste operation, but it works pretty well with some tweaking and shading.

Fantastic!

Image

Member: Treaty, Reluctant Admiral and Between the Storms Mod Team.
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Admiral DadMan
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Admiral DadMan »

The problem I have when using Shipbucket is with US CVs. The views are always starboard side, while WitP:AE uses port side views.
Scenario 127: "Scraps of Paper"
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CVB Langley:
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Korvar
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RE: Ship backgrounds

Post by Korvar »

Thanks everyone.


Admiral,

I've never tried to use Shipbucket to make carrier art, but that is a good point regarding asymmetrical vessels. Let me know if there is a particular carrier you'd like to have. I have some ideas about how it might work, but I won't know if they're good ideas until I actually attempt one.

The only carrier work I've done so far is to modify the game artwork. Here is the Yorktown class with the big SK set (#0238):

Image Image
My modifications (left) compared to the original (right)

I also did some work on the long-hull Essex (#0240):

Image Image
Mine (left), original (right) - the only difference is the bow.
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