Another Star Wars post. This time I was playing the video game Star Wars Republic Commando. It is an older title but definitely worth checking out if you are into tactical First Person Shooters at all; you don't even have to be a Star Wars fan to enjoy this game. The render is Boss, an elite Commando.

The first level in Star Wars Republic Commando takes place on Geonosis, a dry desert world lined with catacombs. The color scheme is mostly grays and browns. I wanted to try to capture how I felt playing through the dark catacombs on Geonosis in this design, so I chose a color scheme based roughly on the level. 

I did not use any special methods like layer masks or clipping masks for this design. I added detail slowly over multiple layers1 in order to build the design exactly how I wanted it. This design involved manipulating the opacity and color of many layers, all slightly different from each other. I did try something a little different for the background however. I normally make the background by pasting the render multiple times and then changing settings around to create a background which has complimenting colors do the render. This time I took stock photos of rock formations and shaped the background to look like part of the Geonosian landscape. 

I especially like how the background turned out. It reminds me of rocky, desolate terrain and caverns which is exactly what I wanted. The render, Boss, fits into the background nicely and the darkened edges suggest there is unknown all around him.

I still debate with myself whether or not I like the lighting at the bottom of the piece. I think the lighting fits with the rest of the signature, but I do not think I did that good of a job fitting it to Boss. With how bright the lighting is, Boss' hand should not be as dark but I was not able to lighten his outstretched hand in a way that looked natural. I think I might have also let the darkened corner sections encroach into the piece too much. They might have looked better smaller and more subtle. 

Overall this is my favorite piece I have made. Even though I notice flaws, I think everything flows well and am proud of my work.

Terms
1 Layer are like sheets of stacked acetate. You can see through transparent areas of a layer to the layers below. Layers hold the content of whatever is being worked on. Most Photoshop creations have many, many layers.