Digital Matte Painting: Fundamentals

on

3/04/26 - 15/10/26 (Week 1-Week 6)

Chika Clarissa Widjaja / 0378636

Character Design/ Bachelors Of Design (Creative Media) / Taylor's University

Digital Matte Painting: Fundamentals


TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • TASK
  • FEEDBACK
  • REFLECTION

TASK


On week 2, we were given tutorials on perspective, and were given an exercise to go out and take a picture, then to determine it's vanishing points, or we can find one on the internet. This is the picture that I chose, where I then marked the vanishing points.



1.Perspective Studies 

For the first week, I attempted to do perspective studies on the things that were around me, I drew them on different angles to understand perspective better.




For the assignment itself, I drew three kinds of perspectives, first, second, and third. I drew 2 landscapes and 1 Interior. I think this was fairly easy but what I found difficult was the round shapes, since it's not as direct as a straight line.



2.Compositions & Value Studies






4. Sky Replacements

For this task, we have to pick 3-4 pictures to replace the sky using the sky replacement feature in photoshop. These are the pictures that I chose.

For the last two, I wanted to change the sky to another weather to practice. I am planning to make the sky darker, and the last picture's sky brighter. 



After choosing the sky, I tried my best to make the foreground to match the sky. For example, if the sky is red/orange, I would make the foreground's hue a bit red/orange too because in reality the light would reflect on to the ground. I do this to every picture based on the sky.



Here is the sky replacement results:



5. Virtual Plain air
On week 4, we learned what virtual plain air was and was told to pick 3-4 references for us to paint. I decided to use Photoshop for this as I was most familiar with it. Here are the 3 references I chose. I try to choose references that are raw, with minimal editing and effects so its easier for me to paint. Since the photographs are raw, I want to paint it to look more lively and saturated.



First, I block in all the big shapes first to determine which is which before adding shading. The second picture is from a failed Virtual Plain air that I did before I did the rest but this is how I start my painting. Next, I start to give it values and refine it even more. I'm also using a palette knife brush so it wouldn't feel rigid.



I did the same with the rest of the paintings, and here are the results:





6. 2.5D mattes

On week 5, we got introduced on how to make 2.5D mattes in after effects and photoshop. These are the three photos I chose. I chose pictures that have clear foreground, middle ground, and background so its clearer to lasso:




First, I lasso each foreground, middle ground, background, and the sky using the magic wand tool. For the empty spaces, I generated fill it so when I do the it in after effects, the empty space won't show. I made sure to rename the layers too, for non confusion.


Next, I moved to after effects. I changed all the layers to 3D, added a camera, and started changing the position of the foreground to be closest to the camera, and the background furthest away from the camera by using scale and position. 

I did the same thing with 3 other photos, and here are the results. The results are really surprising, it looks more 3D and has depth now. :

1. 


2. 


3. 




7.Invisible Set Extension
For this task, I spent a long time finding a picture to start with and how to extend it further. My idea is simple, I want to make the atmosphere at night/dark toned with a main structure to be seen. This is the picture I chose to start with.






First, I made the overall image into an atmosphere that I want to convey by adjusting its brightness, hue, and contrast to make it darker and less saturated. I discard the green/yellow color on the hill too.


For the first asset, I added a boat image that I lasso carefully as a focal point and as a size comparison between the hill and the boat. Next, I adjusted its brightest and hue (made it greener) to make it blend into its environment.

Finally, I changed the sky using the sky replacement technique I learned, adjusted the brightness, and added a main structure in the middle, aligned with the boat. I duplicated the sky replacement and added it on top of the structure so it blends in with the sky aswell.

Here is the final result:

Overall, I'm quite satisfied with the result. One thing I would probably change is the main structure. I had a lot of difficulty in finding the asset to put as the main structure, so this was the best I could find. I wish it would blend in the environment more too. What I really like is the boat because in my opinion it blends well together with the water. In the future, I hope I can make more realistic set extensions.







FEEDBACK


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