andreasrocha's CGPortoflio Gallery

Peaceful Day

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 03:23:26 +0000

Another Scotland inspired image. It was done simultaneously as "The Waterfall", hence the finishing similarities. Initially these were intended as matte paintings but they went down a more painterly road.

The Waterfall

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:11:07 +0000

After visiting Scotland this summer, there were so many ideas and images brewing in my head I had to paint something inspired by that beautiful country. This is the first I managed to finish.
During the process I constantly referred to paintings by Jaime Jones and Frederic Edwin Church, two artist I greatly admire. I made the painting slowly over two weeks taking care not to rush it and to evaluate each step. I hope you like it.

Laboratory Sport Shoe

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:08:02 +0000

Occasionally, I invade the 3d section with work outside my "comfort zone". I occasionally do architectural previsualizations but this time it's a little bit different.
This was made for Portuguese Photo Agency KryptonPhoto for a campaign promoting science among youth. The brief asked for a sport shoe made of laboratory and hardware related objects. Done in 3dsmax and some Photoshop post-production.

Haunted House

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 11:34:26 +0000

A painting I started a few weeks ago, but which stayed in the "drawer" for too long. Inspired by the beautiful settings of Sintra/Portugal.

Repairshop

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:08:14 +0000

Recent painting using a similar approach as "Treason". I start by imagining a scene in my head and memorize the main ingredients. Then, I try to materialize it with a quick gestural black and white concept done in Painter. Then, I start adding color slowly and all the inherent detail, trying not to fade the initial brushstrokes. This is mostly done in Photoshop but sometimes I come back to Painter to reintroduce that "traditional" feel. When the color changes drastically in my process, it usually means I "hit" the painting with a Color Balance filter. I try to take my time finalizing these paintings to carefully evaluate them. I posted some steps below to better explain my process.
I hope you like it.

Treason

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:20:17 +0000

I did this piece over the last couple of weeks, taking my time and exploring new ways of approaching a painting. I'm always learning new things and constantly finding out how little I know.

Another title for the image was "Angels of Treason".

Some steps:

Port

Tue, 12 May 2009 09:52:07 +0000

Another image I did for a tutorial on matte painting, this time for Advanced Photoshop Magazine. Portugal's past navigation history was quite helpful in gathering references, both at the Marine Museum and from the built patrimony of Lisbon. I hope you enjoy it.

Distant Land

Wed, 06 May 2009 11:56:24 +0000

This was the result of a matte painting tutorial I did for Corel Painter Magazine. It was the first time (and probably the last) I used Painter exclusively to do a matte painting. Nevertheless, it was quite instructional for me.

Fighter

Sun, 03 May 2009 14:20:50 +0000

This painting was done for tutorial for Corel Painter Magazine (Nr29). I am still struggling with character work and I don't want to give up so soon. I hope I will get there someday.

Ambush

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:39:57 +0000

In the beginning this was practice to test some a new workflow, but as I went along I started detailing it and finishing it gradually. In the beginning this was to be a landscape only painting but I decided to practice painting characters and storytelling. I went for a more opaque finishing look, influenced by the masters Ralph McQuarrie, Keith Parkinson and Vincent Segrelles.

Rocky Hills

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:32:18 +0000

A conceptual painting very loosely based on a photo I found in a magazine of some rocky desert. I tried to mimic the textures of the rocky slopes using only simple brushes without the use of photos. Heavily inspired by Star Wars Jabba's Palace matte painting and James Paick superb environmental concepts.

Red Skirt

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 05:19:00 +0000

One of my sumbissions for the upcoming Exotique book. I have a tendency to portray the female figure from the back. I don't know if it's the charm of anonimity or if I'm just too lazy to paint faces. Judge for yourself.

They Came From Above

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 06:03:52 +0000

I made this image for the monthly Gnomon Forums Contest. The theme was "Invasion" and after some doodling I came to the classic sci-fi-invasion-aliens-from-above theme. I tried to infuse the image with much drama by choosing a different perspective (different from what I am used to) and tilting the camera. I tried to converge all movement to the imminent attack of the alien ship.

Lantern Dance

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 08:51:33 +0000

Inspired by a wonderful little town in the centre of Portugal, called Orgueira. It was a cold end of afternoon, the sun was setting and the sky was overcast. Having my camera with me I decided to take some photos, with the aim of producing a matte painting back home...something that would translate the feeling of that place at that time. Back in the city, I was able to "escape" back to those hills while producing this painting.
Once again, I hope you enjoy.

The Journey Ends

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:55:57 +0000

One of two matte paintings I (slowly) did over the last 2 weeks. This is actually based on part of another matte paintings I did about two years ago. I liked how the grass had turned out, so I started from there and slowly the idea evolved. It's an image with vague ideas and everyone can imagine his own story.
I hope you like it.

"one ticket, please"

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:06:31 +0000

This piece is quite personal as it�s a reinterpretation of something that happened to me when I was about 9 years old. I was with my family at Lisbon�s fun fair and we were at the Ghost Train ride. I insisted to go alone in the �wagon�, convinced I wouldn�t be afraid of anything. As it turned out, as soon as the first puppet witch appeared I cowered inside the �wagon�, closed my eyes and ears, so I wouldn�t hear the echoing laughter and screams (when I close my eyes I can still see her, ). I came out really scared�But now I love everything horror and fantasy related.
This painting is also homage to Lisbon�s original fun fair � the �Feira Popular�, which ceased to exist (political issues!). There was dirt, smoke, neon lights� it all had a gritty underground feeling to it that really contributed to its magic. I wish I could go back to those times� but I will always hold fond memories of it.
I was also inspired by the movies �Big� (the Zoltar machine), �Ghostbusters 2� (Ray�s Occult Books) and �Blade Runner�.
I hope you like it and perhaps some of you will even identify with the image.

Coastal Breeze

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:30:09 +0000

This painting was done in Photoshop over the course of this last week whenever I had some hours to spare. It started out as a simple speedpainting, which I decided to take a step further. As I went along I decided to turn it into a matte painting without the use of photos or photo derived brushes for practicing purposes and to see how far I could take it.
Below, I also post some details and some of the steps to show my workflow.

I hope some of you "feel" the coastal breeze...

Thanks for watching.

Detail A

Detail B

Detail C

STEPS

Lost...Again!

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:29:07 +0000

This started out as painting of a jungle but as I went along it changed into a forest. Some playing with contrast, introducing a character and a humorous story, and this is what I came up with. I don't know if I exaggerated the contrast and saturation. Let me know what you think.

Snowy Sunrise

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 10:36:31 +0000

Recently I did a couple of speedpaintings inspired by a photo of Mount McKinley at sunrise. I took one of those speedies and developed it into a matte painting. It took me about 3 days to complete. The foreground could still use some work, but you just get to a point where you just want to finish it.

The Green River

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 10:50:40 +0000

The last of the 4 simultaneously painted environments. This is probably the weakest of the 4. But it was great practice for me. The all started with the same inspiration, but they all took a different path.

Sailing Into The Unknown

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:06:01 +0000

Done simultaneously as "Approaching the Gates" and "Unexpected Visitor". This painting has a softer feeling to it. I also applied some photos. I think there is something that attracts us to the unknown.

Unexpected Visitor

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 21:27:17 +0000

This painting was done simultaneously as "Approaching The Gates" and was also an attempt to play with atmosphere and light. The title suggests, the viewer interprets...

Approaching the Gates

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:29:29 +0000

A caravan approaching the gates of a city after a long weary journey. I tried to play with a lot of atmosphere and light contrasts. Painted entirely in Photoshop.

Alley in Barcelona

Sat, 03 Jun 2006 20:48:51 +0000

A semi speed painting done entirely in Photoshop. It took me aproximately 4 hours to complete. I am trying to optimize my workflow and I believe speed painting is a very effective way to do that. You don't get stuck with details and focus on the essentials. Of course, if I were to finish this painting I don't think I could do it, but it would result in something quite different anyway. I started with a reference of a New York street and went on from there. It ended up looking more european especially with Barcelona. This was not intentional but somehow that is what speed painting is also about: finding a path while creating.
I hope you like it.

Pepper

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:29:18 +0000

Concept and initial sketch credit goes to my good friend Lu�s M. Santos. I just did the painting.

You can check out more of his work at:
Luis Santos Portfolio

Spring Sunset

Tue, 19 Dec 2006 09:52:24 +0000

My first serious attempt at matte painting. It took me about 4 days to complete. I used 3dsmax for basic modeling of the city and did the rest in Photoshop with a lot of painting and photos. You can also find a link to a short 20sec animation below.

A special thanks to Pedro Camacho for his great soundtrack.

MOVIE

Details at 100%

The Bridge

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:34:41 +0000

Work inspired by traditional painter Brent Cotton. He has some really amazing paintings where he presents this wondrous atmosphere with an interesting play of light.
This is also an attempt to bring about the virtues of traditional painting with all its associated texture into digital art. I primarily used Painter's chalk brush and a custom created texture. Photoshop also played an important role for value and color tweaking.

Detail:

Landscape Concept

Sun, 17 Feb 2008 22:52:22 +0000

Inspired by the wonderful environment concept paintings for The Lord of the Rings movies I created this painting. I was aiming for a traditional look.
The original is 6500px wide and it took me about 10 hours to complete, using both Photoshop and Painter.

Moody Townscape

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 23:05:57 +0000

Conceptual painting done for practicing purposes. It was done alongside other 3 conceptual paintings, in order not to get too hooked up with any of them. This one had a lot of photo overlays as it was initially intended as a realistic matte painting. But once I noticed the initial spontaneity of the sketch was disappearing I came back and adopted a speepainting style.

Infinite OZ - Milltown Exterior

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:29:13 +0000

This image is part of the Infinite OZ experience - "An artistic collaboration that brings to life the world of the Sci-Fi miniseries event, Tin Man." It is best understood by visiting the "experience" itself at:

http://www.scifi.com/tinman/oz/

The following artists also contributed: Philip Straub, Greg Petchkovsky, Martin Lisec, Gerardo de Gerard, Geoffrey White, Raphael Lacoste, Phil McDarby and Rudolf Herczog. The coordination and final animation was done by B-Reel.
The Milltown Exterior image was all done in Photoshop (with a little help from 3dsmax) over a couple of weeks and the final image is about 10000 pixels wide (as are all the others) to allow for the big zoom. Each of the artists was given a short brief about the environment to create but the rest was up to us using our imagination and interpretation. I am quite proud to have been part of such an amazing group of artists.

Precious Stone

Wed, 07 Mar 2007 07:33:20 +0000

I have this weakness for painting pinups. I hope to improve my depiction of the human figure, while having these erotic fantasies. I like to concentrate all focus on the female figure, placing her against bright backgrounds, taking care in the distribution of detail and dressing her in erotic/exotic clothing. Nothing new of course; pinup art has always been like this. I think I paint these more to satisfy myself than to make some specific statement. I hope that along the way you will enjoy it, too. I'm trying to get better at it, so any criticism is welcome.

Exodus

Mon, 20 Aug 2007 10:45:55 +0000

This image portrays an exodus of a civilization. Could be ours someday... There is a feeling of peace and the sunset represents hope of a new beginning.
Regarding the spaceships, there is an analogy with fish both in their design and in the way they are grouped together as in a school of fish.
This image was done for a portuguese forum contest whose theme was "Grand Space". It was done in Photoshop with a little help from 3dsmax (spaceship mockups) and took me about 20 hours to complete. No photos or photo-based brushes were used as it was one of the contest rules.

Here are a couple of details, the painting process and a version without the spaceships:

DetailA
DetailB
DetailC
DetailD

Process

Landscape

Give 'em War

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 22:20:00 +0000

I recently finished this painting. It was made for the last album of Spanish thrash metal band "Angelus Apatrida" (http://www.angelusapatrida.com). It was done in Photoshop and Painter and took me several days to complete. It is related to one of the songs of the album, which is about a factory producing warbeasts engineered by scientists.

Leaving Home

Tue, 12 Jun 2007 20:49:27 +0000

This painting started as something completely different. I was aiming for a 60s look sci-fi setting with UFOs in a distant planet. It ended up in an African fantasy setting displaying a tribe leaving its home (to hunt, probably). I was inspired by one of Rodney Matthews paintings called �Drumboogie�, however I only noticed this halfway along the painting process, thinking �I have seen a similar image before!�
Asking for help in the WIP forums was of great help to make me see the mistakes along the way. There could be quite a few things still improved, but in the end I just had to stop. Perhaps I will pick it up again in a few months. It took me between 20 and 25 hours to complete over 8 days and it was entirely created in Photoshop. I also added some painting steps and details below.

Here are some details at 100%:

DetailA
DetailB
DetailC
DetailD

Here are some images regarding the conception:

Initial Sketch Phase
Painting Steps

Beacon

Wed, 30 May 2007 07:10:18 +0000

This painting represents a personal challenge to do a matte painting without the use of photos as painting material. However, I used many photos for reference, though. All the brushes were painted from scratch, too, without any photos. I hoped to achieve a more painterly look like this. It was inspired after seeing photos of Dubrovnik which really looks like a beautiful city. There are so many fantasy elements in it, that you could almost place it in Middle Earth.
It was done entirely in Photoshop and took me about 13 hours to complete over 3 days.

Here are some details at 100%:

DetailA
DetailB
DetailC
DetailD

Here are some images regarding the actual conception:

Medley
Initial Sketch Phase
Painting Steps

Fresh Meat II

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 15:12:09 +0000

This painting was inspired by a scene in the movie �The Omen� (original version), where Gregory Peck goes to a cemetery to uncover his son�s past. I really love this scene because of the fantastic set they built and the mood they achieved. There is just something about 70s/80s horror movies, like The Fog and The Exorcist for example, that got lost in today�s horror flicks. It�s probably because they remind me of my youth when I watched them on TV late at night together with my brother, and those moments hold a dear place in my heart. Pretty corny, I know, but that is how I feel. Anyway�

Another aspect of this painting, which came to me later on in the painting process, is that I have been probably influenced by the beautiful environments portrayed in the game �The Monkey Island� (both I and II). It�s probably because of the colours and the theatrical composition of the elements. So here goes another homage.

Regarding the title, I wanted it to be quite suggestive of what was going on in this scene, without revealing everything and leaving some room for the viewer�s imagination. It has a �II� because I have another painting in my portfolio with the same title in a similar macabre context.

Below, I put up a link to screencaptures of �The Omen� so you can see where I drew my inspiration from. I also added a few details and a step by step process. The painting was done entirely in Photoshop and took me about 12-14 hours to complete. I hope you like it and perhaps some of you will relate to it the way I do.

PS On some monitors the image may look too dark, unfortunately.

INSPIRATION (The Omen)

In Thought

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 22:54:49 +0000

This is 2nd version of my failed Exotique submission from last year. I looked at it and saw a lot of things that could be improved. I am not fully satisfied, though. Perhaps next year I will try to improve it again.

Distant Shores

Mon, 19 Mar 2007 17:40:18 +0000

My aim in this painting was to capture the huge scale of seashore environments. A trip to the "Serra da Arr�bida", here in Portugal, really impressed me and luckily I had my trusty digital camera with me, which allowed me to capture some of the things I had seen that day. There is such a sense of freedom when you are standing at the tip of cliffs, hundreds of meters above sea-level, contemplating those magnificent views all the way to the horizon...it is really mindblowing!
This painting was inspired by the magnificent matte paintings of Dylan Cole, Steven Messing and Yannick Dusseault. It was all done in Photoshop and took me about 3 days to complete.

If you are curious you can find a tutorial of this painting at my homepage.

Smooth Reflections

Mon, 29 Jan 2007 15:28:04 +0000

Done mostly in Painter with some Photoshop for correcting, mainly. Painter blending tools and brushes are really cool to paint smooth surfaces. It looks both textured and smooth at the same time. Fooling around with erotic postures...

Busy Streets

Mon, 22 Jan 2007 08:11:02 +0000

Done in 3 hours using Painter and Photoshop for color tweaking. I mainly used the Palette Knife and loaded variant in Painter. I also tried to retain the spontaneity of the brushstrokes, while detailing some key parts of the painting. The contrast between dark and bright is intentional, however the dark/wet is warm and the bright/sunny is cold. I hope you like it.

The Devil's Fountain

Thu, 26 Oct 2006 13:04:43 +0000

This was done in Photoshop/Painter and took me about 20 hours to complete. I referenced a photo I had of a fountain with little stone angels beneath it. I wanted to give the whole image that classic horror movie setting and see how far I could take the finishing.

Three Men in a War

Wed, 08 Nov 2006 23:51:52 +0000

Inspired by the fantastic work of Chris Applehans. I wanted to play with scale and humanity in a war setting. I believe there are numerous background stories about these three characters.
It took me about 7 hours in Photoshop and Painter.

Farewell to the Rain

Fri, 19 May 2006 23:21:00 +0000

This was my participation in "The Journeyt Begins" Challenge, which I am not really proud of, I must say. It has quite a few flaws and I guess that in the end, I just didn't want to work on it anymore. However, I post it anyway, in hope that some of you might actually like it.

Regards...
Andi

Fresh Meat

Sun, 27 Feb 2005 20:37:53 +0000

I was inspired to do this one after a morning walk through one of Lisbon's parks, where I saw a tree that looked just like a hand ready to grab something or "someone". My idea here was to go for the classic fairy tale look where everything seems "nice" at first glance, but is not quite so after close inspection. I think the title speaks for itself. I hope you like it.

Little Fish

Mon, 14 Feb 2005 01:14:53 +0000

This is my first Expos� 3 submission. Classic pin-up where I was only worried in depicting the female form as sexy as possible, through the use of curvaceous forms, tight clothes, red colors and steel. I kept the background simple on purpose. Don't ask me about the big headlight...It just feels kind of sexy to me, I can't explain it.
Probably not apparent in the image is the Drew Struzan influence, an artist I greatly admire.
I hope you like it as much as I did doing it.
You can see the WIP thread here:
Work in Progress Thread.

Padrone E Serventi

Sat, 21 May 2005 20:55:49 +0000

This is my Master&Servant Challenge entry. I was astonished at the quality of artwork produced for this Challenge, compared to the previous. My congratulations to everyone who finished.
My intention for this one, was to make something humorous from an apparently serious theme. I used myself as a model and from there I went and changed the anatomical features. I had some difficulty drawing the small thugs' hands because I didn't use any props for the photoshoot, so the placement of the hands wasn't correct. Also, the heads of the small guys didn't come out as I wanted to, because of the anatomical distortion. What I am most happy, though, in this image, is the background and the overall colors.
Anyway, it was a lot of fun, and I am eagerly waiting to participate in the next Challenge. It's a great way to develop my drawing and painting.
>> Hi resolution image <<

Last Stand

Mon, 29 Aug 2005 11:57:02 +0000

My initial idea (and the one I tried to keep) was a female warrior's last stand against an incoming army. I wanted to create mood by turning the threat into a shade immersed in deep mist. The viewer shares the same point of view as the heroine, making him relate closer to her. The choice of colors underlines the two opposing sides and also characterizes them: a cold misterious army marching against a warm, almost innocent victim. However, her stance denotes security and calm, and the cluttered silhouette of the army hints to an unorganized, cowardly threat. If you would like to see the work in progress you can find it here:
"Work in Progress"
>> Hi resolution image <<

The Alley

Fri, 09 Sep 2005 22:58:13 +0000

My initial inspiration for this piece were the streets presented in Blade Runner. However, it's difficult (or impossible) to see that here. The image is made up of contrasts: narrow/wide, near/far, cold/warm, fire/water, light/shadow
What I wanted to convey here is more or less the hidden secrets that an immense city can present...those little alleys that noone knows about, but can open a world.

Home

Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:31:24 +0000

This painting shows someone returning home to find his village completely devastated by nature or man. He lights a fire to bring back warm memories of a former home.
This image was inspired by a morning walk on a rainy day to one of Lisbon's most important landmarks, the "Torre de Bel�m".
I hope you like it.

INITIAL SKETCH

Inspiring Photo