Rendering A Car Using Photoshop, tutorial Options

[husseindesign]

So here is a tutorial I did a while ago to describe the way I render my cars.
The most thing I payed attention for is descriping the "how". Most of the tutorials on the net talk about "what" to do, only a few or perhaps none describe "how" to do it! And that was my biggest problem when i wanted to learn digital rendering. I'm a self-tought digital paiter, so i put into this tutorial everything I missed in the other tutorials.
You won't even need a tablet to get a good result. I work only with mouse!

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1-You can start with a really rough sketch. No need to scan a clean version of it, since we'll get rid of in a later step of this Tutorial.
First, we turn the background into a layer by double clicking it. Then set the layer blending mode to Multiply. This allows us to color the sketch without having the lines vanished under the colors.


2-Next we create a new Layer (mode: Normal), set it UNDER the original sketch and add the desired color to it using Paint Bucket Tool.


3-Here’s where the fun Begins.. we select the areas that should reflect the environment’s light using the Polygon Lasso Tool .. and then paint the bottom of the selection with a large, soft brush. The color to take doesn’t have to be white.. we can take a bright hue of the BG (background) color, or (even easier) use the Dodge tool. Be sure that a half of the brush is out of the selection.


4-This step can actually be done later too. Darken the bottom of the BG color using a large, softly edged Burn tool (range: midtones).


5-Now that we have -roughly- marked the most important light/shadow areas, we reduce the opacity of the original sketch.

6-While painting new lightend areas I also start to polish up the ones I painted before.. I use the Blur Tool and the Smudge tool for that.


7-I start to paint the air intakes. BTW, I'm not leaving out steps if you were wondering.. when you see new light areas on the car's body in one of the next pictures be aware that it was done just like I did the others before them.
Now back to the air intakes, just make a new layer and select the areas you have to paint and fill them using the Paint Bucket Tool with a dark gray color.. use the Burn Tool to add shadows where they should be.


8-Now we’re gonna give the car more depth by using the Burn tool again.. this time on the upper part of the profile .. And again.. select the areas you want to paint so that you don’t get out of them .. that won’t look that good if you wnat my opinion!
 hussein_tut.jpg ( 1.4MB ) Number of downloads: 58

[husseindesign]

9-The fight of the independence from the original rough sketch starts here.. Fender holes are now marked using the Elliptical Marquee Tool and the Polygonal Lasso Tool .. First (digital) lines are now set in postion..


10-We go on giving the car more depth the same way we started.. Burn the upper part of the bonnit / hood, but you should leave a thick line that have to be lightend later.. we’ll use the Dodge Tool to lighten it. of course all the Burn / Dodge actions must be excuted on the BG.. We also continue drawing the lines following the rough sketch.. I draw them using the line tool, you can do so, or you can use the Pen Tool to make the curves (you need to know how to use it.. I dont !).


11-On the same layer we made the fender holes, the tires / Wheels are drawn using the Elliptical Marquee Tool. fill the upper right corner of the selection with a white, softly edged area.. then go to the menu (Select>Modify slection>contract) and take a suitable value. Now fill the new selection black, so that you get that highlight area on the wheel as seen on the imge above.


12-Say Hasta la vista to the sketch! .. now we've got a pure digital painting here after deleting the rough sketch.. Before removing it w’eve selected the out line of the glassy roof.. in this step we'll paint it.. you can choose the color you want (we're not looking for realism, but coolness!).. for shading we use as usual: Burn Tool to darken. Dodge Tool to lighten.


13-Here we start to render the head light.. i’ts actually not that important, you can practicaly fill it black, because ...


14-... the light will cover your job. The light is drawn on a separate layer.. just a thick white line made using a soft brush.. then we go to the menu (Layer > Layer Style > Outer Glow) and choose some kind of turquoise or a bright blue as a glow color, and thats to give the light that glowing xenon effect.


15-We add some details to the image: shadow of the side mirror.. a place for the three pointed star on the bonnit /hood and ...


16-... the star itself (cut off a real photograph) .. sparkles here and there using a thin, soft brush on a separate layer.. and ...


17-... we're done!.. we just need to find good rims / alloys from a real photograph
and cut them off .. we’ll give them a Radial Blur filter to give it that spinning movement. After finishing you can change the color to what you want.. just click the BG and go to Menu (Image > Adjusments > Hue / Saturation).
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Hope it helps you guys. If you want to ask anything do not hesitate
And please ignore any grammer or expression mistakes

[bart_schilder]

nice tutorial!

And I also like your merc

[PheaL]

hi.. hussein

I like ur tutorial "details" so much its so user friendly!!
and what is amazing in it which I like ;
1.turning such a messy (good looking) rough sketch------> to a detailed good looking rendered object..

2.the way u used the golden\brown background is really cool.. and I would like to see a further step with a gray(for example) background around the car just to see clearly the car's color..


3. the rims r really cool... but the radial blur effect gave some motion to ur sketch
and I dont feel the same dynamic motion in the object.. it doesnt seem like its moving!! or goin to move.. I think its a problem in the front wheels direction .

nice technic.. I like the front part..

pheaL.

[husseindesign]

thanx guys
Pheal: The further step you asked for is pretty easy:
Select the car's body (with the rims) and then invers selection. Now got to the menu (Image > Adjustment > Hue/Saturation) and choose the color you want for the background.


As for the movement effect, you're righ, but that's only because there is practically no background, the emphasizes the motion feeling in the pic

[c r a s h]

Hi, everyone. It is my first post at this forum, but i knew it for a while.
To husseidesign...
I've already saw your tutorial at carspyshots.com, and i've already tried to apply it to my own creations, but it has been a little difficult, and the results are weak.
I have some questions...
How can you control or draw so perfect shut lines, like the ones at the doors or at the hood, considering we're working with PS?
You use lasso tool to limit all bright/dark areas?
How can you make a perfect joint between those areas?

English isn't my principal language. If there's something you don't understand, say it, and I'll try to explain again.

Anyway, thanks! Great rendering and great car!

[Pandoraoh]

Wow that looks amazing Hussein!
I really like the way you render your cars so i gave it a try myself.
i'm a bit stuck however and have a few questions: How exactly do you use the lasso tool to get those nice shapes (how big are your selections and how in gods name do you select em so nicely ?) And for what purpose do you use the blur and dodge tool?

Sorry not a photoshop wizzard like yourself so the tut is a bit brief for me.
Thanks!

[husseindesign]

Crash and Pandorah.. Thanx for posting.
I'll be answering the questions soon. sorry that I can't do it now, because I have to prepare some screen shots for you to make my answers clearer
stay tuned

[Pandoraoh]

Great, looking forward to it Hussein!
Appreciate it!

[Renzsu]

husseindesign: a great tip I got from the designers at Daihatsu where I did my internship is to use the Path tool a lot.. paths are great for controlling your lines, things like shutlines etc..plus you can really change them quickly to make design alterations.. aaand, you can use them nicely to create selections, saves a lot of erasing to get the painted areas to fit.

[husseindesign]

lol, yeah I know.. but for sume reason I cannot control that tool! gotta read the help files.

[c r a s h]

Crash and Pandorah.. Thanx for posting.
I'll be answering the questions soon. sorry that I can't do it now, because I have to prepare some screen shots for you to make my answers clearer
stay tuned

waiting with anxiety for your reply, hussein!!!

[Pandoraoh]

Hehe, it's the end of the year. Everyone is very busy, well almost everyone that is.

[husseindesign]

Sorry for the delay.. better late than never
I tried to answer the questions within this mini tutorial. Every technique used here can be used as good on a whole rendering.

[sixfish]

Hussein....Awesome tutorial. This is the way a Tutorial SHOULD be written. Very nice, thanks again.

-sixfish