Reference art

[tkdguy]

A few days ago, I was walking through the Embarcadero in San Francisco, admiring the architecture. I thought that some of the newer buildings could be used as a template for pictures in a science fiction setting. You could draw the building and make a few modifications to make it look more futuristic. Modifying a photo with Photoshop would also work. Has anyone done this?

Here are a couple of photos of the area that can be used as a starting point:

http://www.citybirds.com/DigitalPhot...rcadero02.html

http://www.citybirds.com/DigitalPhot...rcadero03.html

[tkdguy]

Another one:

http://www.chrischurch.net/2003/06/23/

[keithcurtis]

Some of the shots I did for Millenium City are from reference photos I took from a trip to San Francisco. Basically I used them to get the perspective because although I understand the principles very well, I have a poor sense of scale.

Keith "ooh, what a givaway" Curtis

[keithcurtis]

BTW, Didn't someone post a nearly identical topic last year? You might want to do a search to see if you can turn up other photos.

Keith "Fuzzy archivist" Curtis

[tkdguy]

Actually, I remember posting something about using Photoshop to alter pics. I didn't feel like looking for it, though. Just getting lazy in my old age, I guess.

[tkdguy]

If you can draw (I draw poorly, but it's just for fun anyway), you can also use pictures from magazines and newspapers as reference. You can also cut them out to use as pictures for your game; this was my low-tech method before I got a computer.

Aside from magazines and newspapers, you can also get ideas from comic books and rpg sourcebooks, which I know many of you have. Catalogs that sell fantasy weapons also show good models for drawing your character's weapon.

Of course, don't forget miniatures, including terrain and buildings. They also make good models. If you have a scanner or a digital camera (I don't), you could upload them onto your computer and use Photoshop to alter the image to your liking.