Corel Painter Master - Tim Warnock

Name: Tim Warnock Occupation/Profession: Matte Painter / Concept Artist Employer: Freelance www.thenextside.com, currently employed with Intelligent Creatures Location: Oakville, ON Hobbies: Playing guitar, photography, watching movies and playing with my 5 month old son Liam.

Biography

How long have you been in this profession?
I have been working in digital media in different capacities for about 12 years.

Why did you choose this profession?
I have always loved movies that took me to interesting places and fantastical worlds. To be part of creating those places now is a real thrill. I also enjoy the combination of creative and technical skills that are required for visual effects.

How did you get started?
A whole lot of trial and error. There are so many paths that an artist can take. I didn't have a clear idea of what I wanted to do coming out of school so just kept trying different things. About 5 or 6 years ago I landed at a small shop that gave me the opportunity to do a fair amount of digital painting. It was there that I got the bug for matte painting and concept art. It just took off from there.

What are your most important accomplishments?
Every job brings new challenges and has things that your proud of. I just finished doing some work on The Number 23. I was working on a fairly ambitious shot that runs for approximately 3000 frames. I learned a great deal on that shot. I also did some work on Silent Hill and Babel that I thought was fun.

Describe a special moment in your career.
It's always exciting when you see your work on the screen at the movie theater. I feel like a kid even if it's just up there for a few seconds. It's very rewarding.

History with Painter

How long have you used Painter?
Two years

Why did you choose Painter?
I saw what Ryan Church was doing and had to have it. Sadly the program can't give me his talent. Maybe version X ;)

What are your top five favorite Painter features?
The ability to rotate the canvas.
The keyboard shortcut for sizing your brush.
The color palette is nice.
The ability to organize custom tool sets
Artists' Oils

What are the Painter features that allow you to distinguish your art?
I wouldn't say there is anything that distinguishes my art that I can attribute to Painter. When I use Painter you can usually tell just because of the buttery look of the image. My Painter work tends to be very luminescent and looser then work I do in other paint programs.

Is it possible to get the same results with other digital painting software?
It really depends on what you are trying to do. The painter tools have a great deal of life and character to the strokes. That is unique to Painter.

How do you feel about Painter?
Painter is a beautiful tool.

Technique

The following is a description of how I approach a loose concept painting. Something like this can be worked into a much higher level of detail, but for this demo I've kept things simple.

	Step 1: I begin by randomly playing with shape. I use a broad brush. In this case, it is Artists' Oils - Clumpy Brush. At this point, I'm just playing around, trying to find interesting shapes and texture.
	Step 2: Then I begin overlaying colour in layers, looking for a layer attribute that I like. Again, there is no rule here. For this example, I used Overlay, but it could just as well be any layer attribute. I will play with lights and darks on the overlay to give the image a feeling of depth and texture. At this point, I have a rough idea of where I am headed but haven't made any major decisions as to what all the shapes are going to be.
	Step 3: I then begin to define shapes with a semi-transparent brush. In this case, it is Artists' Oils - Dry Brush, but again you can use whatever you like. It is in this stage where I am thinking more about form and light source. At this point, I am rarely going to my color palette. Instead, I sample my colors quickly from points in the painting by holding down Option on the Mac® and Alt on PC.
	Step 4: Here, I increase contrast and define shapes further. The general shape is pretty much there. I use the Glow Brush to achieve that luminescent look.
	Step 5: The final step is simply adding details to help describe the shape. Devices like panel lines and rivets help sell that this is some kind of mechanical object. I have added light strokes over areas where I used the glow brush to avoid an overly airbrushed look. This is just a fun, quick little sketch that took under an hour to do. Things like this are great for generating ideas or just loosening up. Painter is the ideal tool for that!