How To Actually Finish Complex Illustrations

Summary

Tim McBurnie demonstrates how he created a complex fantasy battle illustration, from the initial idea through to the final atmospheric polish. The image features characters at different scales, layered architecture, and magical effects.

His central advice is to plan carefully—especially the perspective and construction drawing—instead of trying to invent important details during the inking stage.

Process and Techniques

1. Define the brief and idea

   • Decide what the image needs to communicate and what would make it successful.
   • McBurnie designed the scene as a demanding demonstration, featuring an epic battle, varied character sizes, architecture, depth, and magical effects.
   • He drew inspiration from classic fantasy art, including the work of Keith Parkinson and Larry Elmore.

2. Create thumbnails and plan values

   • Sketch possible compositions, then refine the strongest idea into a black-and-white value plan.
   • Establish the focal point and the order in which viewers should read the image: primary, secondary, and tertiary elements.
   • Use value shapes to test lighting, depth, and placement before adding detail.

3. Gather references and develop the design

   • Collect references for the illustration’s elements before getting drawn into prolonged browsing.
   • Sketch character ideas and use architectural references as a starting point for original designs.

4. Establish perspective and scale

   • Set the horizon line before constructing the scene. It determines the camera angle and helps place and scale figures consistently.
   • Use the horizon line and perspective guides to compare characters on different ground planes and at different distances.

5. Build a detailed construction drawing

   • Treat construction as a full planning stage: work out anatomy, hands, poses, proportions, and how figures relate to the perspective.
   • Add enough information that the final line drawing can be completed without inventing important details on the fly.
   • Spend extra time on the focal characters. Background figures may need less detail if their proportions and silhouettes read clearly.

6. Create clean line work

   • Use expressive, clean lines to convey motion and emotion.
   • Separate elements and depth planes onto different layers. McBurnie used about 20 line layers, making later adjustments easier.
   • For professional review, consider adding a rough color block-in before presenting a dense line-only image, which may otherwise look chaotic.

7. Add flat colors, atmosphere, and polish

   • Choose a simple color scheme and check that the elements work together. McBurnie used a sepia desert palette and mostly flat character shading.
   • Use gradients, light and shadow, atmospheric layers, and color grading to push distant elements back and guide attention.
   • Apply blur selectively with a masked copy of the image to create depth or soften chosen areas.
   • Preserve the visual hierarchy: warm color and stronger contrast emphasize the main character, while quieter values keep secondary and background elements from competing.
   • Use separate layers and adjustment groups to make revisions easier and control the final atmosphere.

Creator featured: Tim McBurnie, host of The Drawing Codex.