Day 21: The Gate

Welcome back to Thingadailies!

To refresh your memory: I'm currently working on a terrible interpretation of this craptastic AI-generated image. (On a book that got sprayed edges! Why would you make a special edition book and use this image?)

Yesterday, I worked on the rose/cabbage. Today, I messed with the background layer and the gate.

Step 1: Make the arch

I couldn't find a gate with an arch in the stock photos, so I decided to make my own. If I'd really wanted an arch, I probably could have found something decent in the Daz3D store, but that way lies madness large credit card bills. So instead, I bought some thorns.

(Side note: I thought it would be easier to buy an image of brambles or something thorny, but all they have are a bunch of thorn crowns. Many, many thorn crowns. Far more than is reasonable. Looking for thorn pictures on DepositPhotos leads you to the religious torture porn section that should be in a little room at the back of the store.)

Anyhow, I got this image:

With some judicious copying, stretching, bending, and masking, I create this:

I will not lie. There was much laughter about having veered off into a ditch at this point in my progress, but I think it sort of comes together later.

Step 2: Get some gates

I found some reasonable gates on DepositPhotos, though they weren't as separated from the background as I would have liked. But after some messing around with the levels, I succeeded.

I might lop off the spike at the top later. I'm still thinking about it.

Step 3: Make a foggy spooky background

I just used the airbrush tool, which is now my favorite tool. I may go back and mess with this, but it's close to what I wanted.

Anyhow, this is where we currently are (with the rose waiting to be imported from the other file after I finish messing with it.)

I mean, yeah, it's objectively bad, but I think it's heading in the right direction.

Tip of the day:

Don't try searching for thorns in DepositPhotos.