This illustration is the result of a 2025 workshop with Paul Scott Canavan, titled Mastering Imaginative Realism. It depicts a merfolk-type figure riding on his shark companion as he hunts for jellyfish leviathans.
Although I don’t depict them, they are an essential part of the narrative; they serve as a background story element to inform and inspire consecutive decisions made during the creation process. Having a solid story idea really helps at all stages and keeps you focused on what’s important.
However, what made the biggest difference on the technical side was using 3D and a proper reference board. Here's how I approached the piece.
If you need to build your own art setup, see our guides to the best drawing tablets or the best laptops for drawing.
01. Thinking in scribbles
For me, drawing is like thinking out loud on canvas. Following that concept, I played around with as many ideas as possible early on, to filter out the bad ideas before committing to a direction.
My main focus was on thumbnails, concept sketches and reference gathering, which culminated in two distinct sketches.
02. Blending into 3D
I created a 3D base using Daz Studio for posing the main figure. I imported this into Blender to further build out the scene using assets from the Blender Kit library, setting up the lighting and adjusting the models using basic sculpting.
It’s a very useful process if you don’t want to repaint every adjustment from scratch.
03. Paint, paint and even more paint
With a solid 3D base and my reference board and concept sketches on hand, I started the overpainting process in Photoshop whilst paying attention to the overall mood, language, colours and values, etc.
These elements make up the overall contrast: the primary way to guide the viewer’s eye throughout a composition.
This article originally appeared in ImagineFX. Subscribe to ImagineFX to never miss an issue. Print and digital subscriptions are available.
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