I was asked to post Cooper's picture in this forum so you could take a crack at him:

Age:
11 Months

Weight:
about 130 to 140 pounds and still growing

Disposition:
Sweetheart

Drooling:
none except for after drinking.
And he knows to come and have his mouth cleaned.

A low res pic:
http://www.franklopes.com/public_images/cooper_lr.jpg

A high res pic:
http://www.franklopes.com/public_images/cooper_hr.jpg

Hey Frank. Hope you like this one. I basically did some old fashion mouse smudging of your pooch and simplified the background with Impressionist. I also applied Flaming Pear's Mr. Contrast (actually did this step before Impressionist). The full rez version (around 800K) is here (http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/593/cooperhr9ij.jpg). The lower quality small version is attached. :)

Thank you Frank for posting Cooper he sure does look like a sweety but i don't think i would like his food bill, or have to mop up his footprints :lol:

I couldn't resist having a go at a smudge painting, all though i think i will have a go using the ahb over the weekend.
I hope Cooper approves

Palms

I really like this style of brushing (seen it before), but the closest I've been able to duplicate it is the dry brush. Please let me know. :)

Ikroll on this one i used Sarsa hair brush ( Nansl put a link up but i think there was a problem so here is another one http://www.innographx.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3666 )
Liked your sketchy smudge especialy the snow looks like cotton wool !

Palms

well didn't wait to long to have a go with the ahb

Ikroll on this one i used Sarsa hair brush ( Nansl put a link up but i think there was a problem so here is another one http://www.innographx.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3666 )
Liked your sketchy smudge especialy the snow looks like cotton wool !

Palms

well didn't wait to long to have a go with the ahb

Thanks for the link and complements Palms. Just downloaded the brushes and will try them out later on another possible victim (a ur) subject. :)

palms,

i too love your smudges with that brush. so clean! i've just got to practice more. great technique and wonderful rendition!

craig

Palms,

Very, very impressive!

Now I'm getting greedy: do you happen to have the hi res version of the work that you did?

Thank you Frank for posting Cooper he sure does look like a
...
Palms

Palms,

Very, very impressive!

Now I'm getting greedy: do you happen to have the hi res version of the work that you did?
Thank you Frank, Yes i Have a higher res one ( but i didnt use your hi res image) if you want it. Infact i have sent it to you via the address on your web site
Thank you Craig and Ikroll for your kind remarks, can't wait to see what you come up with when you have both had your practice

Palms

I received it. Thank you!

Thank you Frank, Yes i Have a higher res one ( but i didnt use
...
Palms

I did most of this using Studio Artist

i like that, phil :)

this one is primarily using medhi's 'fur' filter with a bit of a twist in erasing.

craig

had another go with cooper. he didnt seem to mind :)

medhi plugin and paint engine. Paint Shop Pro frame.

craig

Interesting. Of the two I like your first post the best. The second I was a little bothered by the black hairs in his fur.

What to do about Cooper's red eyes. Turn them white or leave them red. Just a question?

Phil I agree with you I liked Craig's first post the best (really cool craig) although i don't dislike the second ! !

I also pondered on what to do with the eyes but decided to leave them red as i do believe ( cat lover here) that some breeds of dog do have the red eyes


Palms

If either of you is after the "realism" angle:
Cooper has brown eyes with the "white" areas slightly red...
The amount of redness depends of how excited he is...

Phil I agree with you I liked Craig's first post the best (really
...
Palms

phil, palms,

thank you!

both were fun to do. the 'fur' one was really easy to do. used the medhi 'fur' filter on a duped layer, then lightly erased around the eyes and nose to let more of that show through from the original. i think i then copy merged to a new layer and added a bit more contrast and lighting. crop, resize and done.

the second one was such a convoluted mess in comparison, that i wont even try to recreate the steps :)

i suppose that just proves out that simple is often better :)

craig

I used Gertrudis Pro for these 2 renditions. Basic workflow was "

1) Went over entire image with a large pastel brush for #1. For #2, I used a large oil brush w/a hatch pattern (last one in drop down list in pattern tool)

2) Then for both renditions I use a smal oil brush on the dog itself. For edges I went back over with mostly transparent (same brush). Then finally went back over carefully with oil brush again to brush back in detail lost from transparent brush.

3) During all of this I had the lightness setting just increased a tad

Ikroll on this one i used Sarsa hair brush ( Nansl put a link up but i think there was a problem so here is another one http://www.innographx.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3666 )
Liked your sketchy smudge especialy the snow looks like cotton wool !

Palms

well didn't wait to long to have a go with the ahb
Nice image Palms. :-).
I fixed the link to the skin brushes: http://www.fixthepixs.com/test_slideshow

... my programmer overwrote the file when moving over the new upload area and image files to my site...arrrgghhh :(

Craig, I agree with everyone about the first image-vey nice!
~Nancy~

__________________________________
www.fixthepixs.com

nancy,

thank you!

now see, you folks are surprising me here. i was almost sure most would have enjoyed the second one more. i'm mostly just happy if you enjoy any of them :)

craig

Love this dog! What a fun photo! Thanks!
Simplified image. Image to Painter to add some color and hightlights to the snow and Copper...and edit the background... back into Photoshop for smudge brush and final touches. Couldn't handle the eyes; took out some of the red and enhanced a bit.
~Nancy~

____________________________________
www.fixthepixs.com

Nancy,

this is lovely. And you don't know this, but your image captured much better the true color of his fur. My photograph had exagerated reds that you image does not. Well done!

Love this dog! What a fun photo! Thanks!
Simplified image. Image to Painter to add some color and hightlights to the snow ...

Nancy thank you, i agree with you great photo and subject, liked your posting especialy the snow and the colouring ( i just dream about having painter)
Craig isn't it inspiring when you do something different and people like it ? ( mind you any feed back is nice )

Palms

nancy,

i like yours as well! great softening of the image and love your choice of removal of the distractions, both in snow and with the crop. wonderfully done!

palms,

yes. i imagine a chef has similar reactions when he/she creates a dish and where he/she may like it themselves, you never quite know what to expect from others.

it also surprises me that anyone could ever like shrimp, yet the shrimp industry just keeps on growing :) (not quite sure why all the food analogies today, but they seem to fit ).

craig

i like cooper, so had to have another go. anyone that owns or has ever been around a saint bernard will understand this picture :)

craig

:dizzy: Well actually your latest post gives some insight into Craig more so than Cooper.

Done in Photoshop CS2

I do understand the meaning... :-)
However I think he is the exception because he does not droole... only after having his water and we have trained him to come to have his mouth wiped...

However it is still a funny picture...

Regarding Phil's comment:
"Well actually your latest post gives some insight into Craig more so than Cooper" I wouldn't know what to say lol lol

i like cooper, so had to have another go. anyone that owns or has ever been around a saint bernard will understand this picture :)
craig

phil,

no idea what you're talking about :)

dbuckle,

very nice.

now, i'm not quite sure where this comes from, but somehow cooper reminded me of something...

craig

Thanks for letting us play with your pooch, Frank. Cooper is a regal looking puppy.

Here's my basic workflow...

Photoshop:
* Opened up shadows with Curves
* Merged onto a new layer ("Base")
* Duplicated "Base"
* Applied Dry Brush filter 2 times to Base copy
* Dragged "Base" above "Base copy"
* Added a hide all layer mask
* Restored some detail by airbrushing white onto the layer mask
* Saved as "work 1"
* Flattened
* Saved as "work 2"
* closed "work 1," "work 2"

Painter IX:
* Opened "work 2"
* File > Clone
* Save as "work 3"
* Chose brush variant "Medium Bristle Oils 25" from the Oils group
* Resat = 0 (turning the brush into a blender), diameter 10 pxl
* Blended (smudged) away, changing brush diameter as I went along as needed
* Saved, closed

Photoshop:
* Opened "work 3"
* Applied a little sharpening
* Saved
* Adjusted image size (made smaller)
* File > Save for Web

~Danny~

Another attempt at becoming more expressive/fluid and less literal as an artist...
how am I doing?

Great job!!!

Another attempt at becoming more expressive/fluid and less literal as an artist...
how am I doing?

poor cooper, i'm treating him so poorly :)

craig

Here's another Cooper! Done mainly in Painter oils with coarse cotton texture.
MargaretM

No filters, no painting.. only various blurs, layer blend-modes and some level adjustments ;)
Enjoy :)