Posted on October 1, 2010

A few items to report today. First, I’ve added the dual and triple-screen versions of “Quartet” to the gallery. In the end I went with the arches scene (even though I couldn’t get all the arches into the render). I think I will use the balcony version (in the Pickle Jar) as the basis for a different scene.

Speaking of multi-screens, professional WoW player and YouTuber John Pyle (aka “Swifty”) signed up as a Member last week and asked if it would be okay to feature my wallpapers in his gaming videos. I normally wouldn’t mention this sort of thing here, but his triple-head Eyefinity system is a sight to behold. Here’s the first video featuring my work. Now I need to get a couple more monitors…

On the subject of new hardware, I’ve added a collection of coffee mugs to my Zazzle store 😉

I’m also running a five dollar off special (coupon code “FIVEOFF”) on new Memberships and renewals until midnight Sunday. Current Members can add a year to their accounts for as little as $7.

Why? I’m saving my pennies for this system (or something very similar that I build myself). Hey, I can dream right?

My new render is in progress (showing 71% complete atm) and I will have it up as soon as it is ready. This one is a bit of a collaboration between my son Ian and myself. I will elaborate a bit more when I post it. Stay tuned!

Posted on September 27, 2010

• I’ve added the dual and triple-screen versions of “Tears from Heaven” to the Members Gallery this morning. I’m stlll working on the multiscreens for “Quartet” along with something new for autumn.
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Posted on September 26, 2010

• I’ve added one last version of “Quartet” to the Pickle Jar this morning. I haven’t been able to get a good multiscreen render of the original “Quartet” because the arches look unacceptably strange on the sides of the widened frame.

  A good number of Members seem to prefer the version I posted without the foreground arches (“quartetsky”), but I think that version is a bit too simple to fit well in my gallery.

  This new version, I hope, retains a bit of the foreground to give the scene context, but also opens up the sky that is really the focal point of the piece. It also has the benefit of being easily adaptable to multiscreen format.

  Let me know what you guys think. Should Quartet4 replace Quartet1 in my gallery? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments thread.

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Posted on September 22, 2010

• Late update: I thought maybe the clouds were a little too chunky 😉 Here’s a version without the clouds that I rendered first (last week) but didn’t post because I thought the atmosphere needed work (too similar to the spring version). I like the scene as I have it in the original, but I think I will leave off the cloud layer in the final version. Consider this a placeholder!

• A few items to report this morning. I’ve added a couple of “alternate” versions to the main gallery this morning. I took “Wintermoon” (first posted way back in May) out of the Pickle Jar yesterday and I’ve added “Highland Summer” this morning.

  I created “Highland Spring” with the intention of doing a 4 season series with it from the start. Differentiating the spring and summer renders, however, turned out to be quite a challenge. The color palette for the two are very similar and the high mountains limit different lighting angles (the sun sets behind the far ridges).

  In the end I chose to use clouds and cloud shadows (and some more flowers in the foreground). The clouds turned out a little chunkier in the final render than I would have liked but I am going to roll with it for the time being. I may try a version without them. The autumn and winter scenes should be a bit easier to distinquish.

  I’ve added gallery pages for my Autumn, Halloween, Winter, and Christmas renders. I will probably add a few more in time.

  Lastly, anyone interested in my new calendar can get it at 30% off until tomorrow. Use coupon code “AUTUMNZAZZLE” when checking out to get the discount.

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Posted on September 18, 2010

• I’ve added a simpler version of “Tears From Heaven” to my Pickle Jar this morning. Quite a few Members requested that I create a version with more sky and less foreground and I am happy to oblige.

  Which do you prefer? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments thread.

  Regardless of which version ends up in the gallery, all the versions will remain available for Members to download.

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