OK, one more "sea monster" painting, this time an elasmosaur, a long-necked plesiosaur.
Here's the finish first. There are some caustic effects on the back, with a few fish scattering before those long snaking necks.
I'm showing two hunting in tandem, with a surprise-attack technique of lifting the head up in murky water to grab fish from below. I had to control the values to make the colors get lighter as they go farther back in the water.
Here are two comp sketches, each of which had qualities I liked and didn't like. I liked the pose of the first one, but the water looked too clear. And the second one was a bit too monochromatic, and the fish looked too much like a "bait ball"-- tricky prey, probably too fast for such a big predator.
And here's the first sketch in colored pencils, playing with the idea of turning the page to see the head. When doing illustration sketches for a magazine, I like to see how the picture looks with type around it.
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Check out your newsstand for the October issue of
Ranger Rick magazine to see the paintings!
Previously on GJ:
Caustic Effects,
Color Underwater
