Description
A fractal Halloween Planetscape. Dedicated to the father of fractal mathematics, Benoit Mandelbrot (1924-2010).
The Haunted Nebula (Happy Halloween!)
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The Haunted Nebula (Happy Halloween!): hauntednebula2117 reviews for The Haunted Nebula (Happy Halloween!)
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Mario Carini [basicmember]
I don’t think I’d want to travel to this part of the galaxy! I might find some live pumpkins chasing me!
Kelton [nonmonthly]
Great work! Love it
RSA
You really hit this one out of the park! I’m really digging this.
Jeff R.E.
What a great idea. Way to think outside of typical, traditional!
Mike
I guess it’s a bit late for this comment, but the iPhone 4 version is the wrong resolution.
Pritesh
I didnt know you were a fan of The Great Bob Ross?? The guy was a legend! Both of you are a true inspiration!
Spike
I really enjoy this one – a clever, cosmic twist on a Halloween theme!
Chris
I really like the costume and the works you have been putting out lately are really going above and beyond. I love looking at your past works from years back and comparing them to present day. Everyone who sees my computer has something good to say. Thanks for making my day better everyday.
Pariah
Perhaps a native american theme for the thanksgiving wallpaper…
Ryan
I’ve yet to try a Thanksgiving wallpaper. It just doesn’t have the same kind of visual motif that would fit in with my other work (too many food connotations for me). Still working on a proper theme. Some have mentioned that I included a “hidden” turkey in my Haunted Nebula…
Duncan
I was looking for something to decorate my monitor in honor of Thanksgiving but didn’t find anything. Any chance you have a 3D Turkey Treat on the menu?
Silverfox
Brilliant, mesmerising,what else can I say. I really liked this first class wallpaper. Thanks Ryan
JDD
Funny that I recognized it. A few more years and nobody will know who that is. Trick or Treat!
Henry V.
Ryan, perhaps you can look into do another version that has a little bit less symmetry. Maybe even place a star cluster (or some other space anomaly for the mouth) inside the nebula instead of having it appear outside.
fenterbug
First of all, this isn’t criticism. I love the piece and it’s been on my desktop since the day you put the first version out there.
I did start to think, though, that the “face” was too obvious– too blatant. It could have also been cool if various environmental elements just “happened” to line up in a way that “resembled” a face… maybe a planet’s silhouette for one of the eyes, a comet’s tail for the mouth. Kind of like some of the visuals in Jim Henson’s “Labyrinth”. Again, it doesn’t detract from THIS piece. Just a thought I had to be taken with the appropriate amount of salt. 😉
Sean S.
I do prefer the open mouth but it should be dark like a black-hole rather than light.
By the way love the wig.
Walo
My mom is a big fan of Bob’s art, she never misses an episode(episodes are airing where I live). She calls him “the painter with the afro” lol. I’ve seen a couple of episodes and I must say that he was pretty good.
Brian
Bob Ross was must see TV in collage when you needed a soft landing the morning after.
Ryan
I learned a lot about color and composition from watching Bob Ross on PBS. I’ve been compared to him online many times so I thought it would be fun to actually play the part. The best (and maybe scariest) part was that the only item I had to buy extra was the wig.
Brandi
I prefer the smile version. The gaping “O” is too bright and makes this look funny to me, not haunted.
I still think this is one of the coolest ideas you’ve had. Love that you did a “haunted” planetscape.
Hunter
Ryan, you have a cool beard. I want one.
Er, sorry… Nice costume though! With regards to Haunted Nebula, I prefer the first version. Though I am one of few people that don’t celebrate halloween at all – It’s just a holiday that I don’t really see the appeal of, I mean it’s not like you get a day off of work or anything.
But that’s just my opinion on the Holiday – the wallpaper, though great, just doesn’t belong on my desktop because of the reasons above. My current wallpaper is ‘4th of July 2004’… Over in England it’s almost Guy Fawkes night, and the one time in the year that we have fireworks.
Too everyone, no matter what holidays you celebrate, have fun and stay safe!
Ryan
I’ve decided to go with the original render. Thanks for the feedback everyone. I do appreciate it and I am more than willing to make changes when I think the idea is a good one! I’m just honored that people care enough to share their ideas.
Tyler
Congratulations on being creepier than either version of this!
Thomas
I’ll be honest, this is my least favorite wall here – but this site is light years better than others, so I really can’t complain.
The eyes look too mournful to be frightening, almost like a hungry puppy – which is what I thought the originally initially was.
The nose looks like a ghostly turkey or full bird on an oven rack and now, this mouth, looks like some internet meme I imagine about received an unwarranted act.
Or the Office Space O-Face.
Still. I love this site and the creativity and hard work behind each piece. And I love that we are able to voice our opinions as well.
Tim H
Ryan, that is hilarious. I guess Jonathan was typing at the same time I was. Although I must say I do like the new version better with the open mouth. Sometimes I just feel people make you change your work too much. If you decide to change something it’s one thing but when people want you to alter every piece it bothers me. Keep up the fantastic work, I really do enjoy it !
celmendo
I like both but the round mouth looks more “haunted” to me. I do like the jack-o-lantern quality of the other mouth too. Maybe if the mouth were less bright and more like a black hole with light swiriling around into it it would be less focal. I guess it’s whether you want a little more fun or more creepy. Today I’m going with the creepy round mouth.
Tracy
I liked the original better. The mouth seems too much of a focal point in this version.
zephyr
looks more creepy with his mouth open like that, esp with the bits of planet dust in the foreground
very creative
Duncan
I like them both – just that the nose reminds me of some bird that will be roasting in my oven next month. But nose job aside, I enjoy options and may use a slow transition between the two on my desktop.
Walo
between the 2, both have their merits and drawbacks.
Curtis
I would prefer the original over the remake. I am not liking how bright the mouth is, it sort of looks like he’s got the sun as a mouth which in a way would go with the whole space theme, but I don’t think it turned out as good as your Original. 🙂
I have to agree with another commenter, that maybe the mouth would be cool as a black hole, make it look more menacing – evil.
kellzilla
I prefer the original, with the change of a slight “smoothing” of the mouth. It was just too jarring a difference between the eyes/brows and nose.
This new one is an even bigger difference and it looks very kindergarten-y.
Chris B
It is funny when you set it to alternate between the two! I highly recommend it.
I think you need a combo of the two mouths. The first one looks more like a jack-o-lantern which I think you were going for but the mouth did look a little “drawn in” but I think it works… Like the nebula is a living thing & it’s kind of hiding/mimicking a nebula until the unsuspecting prey… and it’s giving a evil grin which kind of gives it away. The new one looks like someone said below it’s sucking your soul, or it’s going to suck in a sun or planet or something.
If you want to stick with the original jack-o-lantern theme you could maybe have 3 or however many stars sucking in some superheated stray cosmic dust or maybe stealing the mass of smaller stars or something to make it into the shape of a pumpkin grin.
just my 2 cents, I really like them both. It’s amazing how one little change can change the look & feel of a piece of art.
backfist
Love this! How fun! And spooky too, of course.
Alex
I’m a big fan of this, but I still think the nose looks off. I think you should use negative space to form the nose, as in make it black, like a hole. Have you already experimented with that idea? Just my two cents.
-Alex
Mike
I do admit the smile looks to be a bit tacked onto the original but there is something sinister which makes it beter then gaping hole.
JT
The original one was kinda funny. Pick the one that you’re in the mood for this season. I like the new one. >:-# Happy Halloween!
Kristin
I have to be on the side that likes the original. The original was definitely creepier and had an ‘other-worldly’ feel to it. This one just seems like an evil overlord spying on his nebula.
FabioZak
The first version is better!
Randy
Jack-o-lanterns have toothy smiles, not gaping mouths. At least from my childhood.
Daniel
Maybe the star is a bit too bright in the new version, but the new mouth dominates the picture a bit too much. The original was more spooky IMO and therefore better.
Dan
I like them both, but the other was too obvious a jack-o-lantern in my opinion. When I saw the thumbnail, it appeared to me as a straight up pumpkin. I like them both, but this is more subtle which I like more.
Johnny
It looks like it’s inhaling my soul…
Jenanne
Although I love both, I’ve got to go with door number 2 this time. I agree with Psyclone — I prefer the mouth on this one.
Psyclone
Reminds me of Edvard Munch. I love it. I was going to say something about the mouth being a little… off… on the first one. Something just wasn’t quite right with it, but I think this one really works.
Daniel
Maybe the star is a bit too bright in the new version, but the new mouth dominates the picture a bit too much. The original was more spooky IMO and therefore better.
PHiL
Did you pull back down the dual/tri versions?
Granpuff
Awesome Halloween wallpaper! Keep those dual versions coming. BTW: I REALLY like your abstacts. They look awsome on my dual 24 inch Dell 2407 WFP Monitors.
Henry V.
But is there a way to kind of make the eye brows look even meaner?
Henry V.
But is there a way to kind of make the eye brows look even meaner?
PHiL
I thought something was broken on my end 🙂
I like this one… looking forward to dual screen spookiness.
Will
the new version just isnt as sinister as the one before. if anything it could have used glowing curled horns than a round mouth. now it just looks like a orange space hoover. thank god for pickle jar!
Ryan
I worked up a new version this morning and just posted it. I only have the single screen version ready though. I hope to have the multiscreens for the new version up this afternoon.
John N.
I like Halloween. I also like the planetscapes. But this is NOT good at all, and certainly not one of Ryan’s best. Don’t do one for Christmas this way!
T3chn0g33k
You should something similar like this for Christmas!
Extstgleft
You do space ‘stuff’ xtremly well. i’m so impressed with the ‘3d’ look you give it.
Nice job Ry.
Electr!kal
I think this Haunted Nebula is great. My female coworker said it looked like female reproductive anatomy, HAHAHA!
OMeyers
well done sir
Foz
I think this has to be your scariest image to date!
Damn fine work!
Don T
I have it on my laptop, BB Storm, PS3 and my dual screen at work. If I could only put it on my garage door as a decoration, I would.
Glenn
Yeah, the mouth is a little silly but the eyes are incredible!! A small tweek and I’d give it a ten!
Ryan
…the Rorschach Nebula. LOL!
JT
Love it, but… that sure looks like a trussed rotisserie chicken there in the center. 🙂
LisaB
I have this on my desktop at work, my desktop at home, my laptop at home, and my iPod Touch 🙂
Granpuff
WE need a dual screen version before Halloween passes us Dual Screen users by. It IS gorgeous but can’t use it 🙁
Granpuff
WE need a dual screen version before Halloween passes us Dual Screen users by. It IS gorgeous but can’t use it 🙁
Granpuff
WE need a dual screen version before Halloween passes us Dual Screen users by. It IS gorgeous but can’t use it 🙁
Mike
This is a really, really innovative take on the theme.
Thomas
I like the glow on the planets, but it would have been awesome if the dog face explosion was a little more globular.
Tyler
When you love fractals and planetscapes what’s not to love about this? Your members seem divided on this one Ryan. Personally this is the best Halloween image to date, and one of the top planetscapes. I wouldn’t change a thing. When I first saw this I was like, “EPIC!â.
Scott
The traditional stuff was getting kind of old, great to see the theme incorporated into one of your spacescapes, which are my favorites of your work.
Walo
that’s a haunting of stellar proportions hahaha, I had good fun watching this image. Like others said the mouth needs a little tweaking to match the rest of the image but everything else is awesome.
GeneralB
… it just doesn’t seem right. The rest of the image flows beautifully, but the harsh contours of the flaming mouth just stick out like green milk.
Miguell026
VERY NICE! was not what i expected BUT
i kind of like it! space – halloweeen mix!
cool! NICE WORK!
Genj
Bad Ass!!!
Bernie
Personally this is by far my favorite halloween image. I find the idea of creating the pumpkin by the nebulae just simply plain awesome. VERY well done, Mr. Bliss… 🙂
Astatine
That’s a really neat idea, and made me laugh 🙂
BenC
What’s the probability of having the multiscreen versions of this before Halloween?
Roberto DG
Planetscapes are not my genre, but this is a nice idea for a different Halloween. Without a pumpkin it is not Halloween for me, but that’s a nice work anyway!
Andy
Maybe you could make the mouth look like a crack in the fabric of time & space?
Chris
You totally took my by surprise when you made this one. I knew a couple seasonal wallpapers were around the corner. The idea of a spooky planet scape is a really genius idea. Space as a whole is kinda spooky when ya look at it. This really emphasized that. I really got a kick out of this wall paper. Thank you for this one! A few people have commented on it’s mouth. I am inclined to agree that a little attention should be done there, however all around a great job. I would be happy with it the way it is if you choose to leave it.
littlemom
While I like the planets and even the eyes, the nose and mouth just seem very out of place to me. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but there is something that I just don’t like in this render. Maybe because the mouth give the whole render a goofy feel, I’m just not sure. Other than the face I love the planets and astroids. Just not a huge fan of this particular Halloween one, although I have loved other Halloween renders of yours. Good try though. This is what being artistic is all about.
David
Very spooky.
Alexp
This is totally fracking amazing! The eyes are really well done. The nose and mouth look like they could use some minor tweaking to look more “natural”. Great work!
Eyal
Don’t really know how to explain it. I’m usually a big fan of space images.
Maybe it is just that this one is too ordered to be a classical stellar sight…
Micro78
Your most creative art work in a long time! I’m not a big fan of halloween AT ALL and this is going right up as my background!
celmendo
great Halloween treat 🙂
Brandi
What an awesome idea, and execution. I love this. Very very creative.
WHAT?!
Sounds like MikeD needs to get laid.
MikeD
Not to rain on your parade or anything like that but it looks like a couple of rather large breasts and a turkey. I guess you just see what you are looking to see.
Curtis
This would be a awesome piece of art for Benoit. I love the idea behind this. Combining space and halloween together. I never would have thought this image up myself, that’s why you are so great at what you do.
You never fail to amaze us Ryan, I don’t know how you do it but you are incredible.
Happy Halloween to you and your family! I love this one as much as your 2009 Halloween wallpaper.
Riju
Wow. This is very cool.
Vergil
Easily my new favorite!!
Greg in CA
EVER!!
Geep
It looks really awesome! Its also very unique. Definitely going up sometime. 🙂
JD
This one is “so-so”. It seems a bit contrived.
Amanda
I’ve been waiting, hoping you would do a Halloween wallpaper so I was very excited to see this. It went straight up as my background. I love the combination with outer space so I’ll probably keep it up after the holiday as well.
Henry V.
What a way to combine space and Halloween together. Definitely on my favorites! Could you make another version where the nebula appears meaner? Like angry jack-o-lantern mean?
Oh yes btw pitch for super harvest moon. 😉
Ken
I’ve been checking three, four times a day for the last three days… Is the Halloween one posted yet (gotta have time to stare at it before Halloween!)? You did not disappoint! Very cool!
Elisa
dual wallpapers possible ?
Todd
multipass
Todd
multipass
Alberich
See? Told you I’ve been studying too long.
Alberich
Funny, to me the notes looks more like a set of lungs or other paired tissues/organs. But then, I’ve probably just been studying histology too long.
Excellent image, Ryan; I’ve added it to my Halloween wallpaper rotation. I’ll probably leave it up by itself all day on the 31st.
NikB
From the thumbnail I thought it was a lantern, until I read the text and saw the enlarged image!
Well done, Ryan – very creative.
Ryan
I think you an Jonathan were typing at the same time 😉
Tim H
I love it ryan and it’s nice to see that people aren’t asking you to change your work for once. Happy Halloween !
Jonathan L
Although, would you be willing to make a picklejar version without the face? It looks really nice, I love the reds! (You know, for AFTER Halloween ;D lol)
Will
if i saw that thing up in the sky i think i’d about crap my pants
Alex
So cool that you really went a different way with the Halloween theme this year, especially since I love your planetscapes.
One question though, the face’s nose, is that meant to be a goat, in relation to the devil? When zoomed in I can’t really tell, but it looks like it in the smaller resolutions, and the patterns look far too deliberate to not be anything.
Tyler
This totally reminds me of the way they decorated Space Mountain at Disneyland for Halloween this year! They renamed it Ghost Galaxy. It’s so cool! This is an amazing piece of art!!!
Ben
… because you always seem to put a new wallpaper up when I’m on the site checking to see if a new one is up. 😉
Ditto here, I like it. 🙂
kody
awesome halloween background! keep up the good work ryan, cant wait for the trip screen 😀
James
Very nice Halloween themed background. I hope you will make triple screen one’s really soon.
Jason M Po
That All Hallows’ Eve image very simply…. KICKS ASS!!!
Carysta
I LOVE this Hallowe’en render. I think it’s my new favourite (before, it was the pumpkin with the cats), well, for Hallowe’en, anyway. Very spooky!
Walo
makes me remember that tv guy. “On this episode we will be painting some fluorescent mushrooms…” hahaha