Every now and then ideas pop into my head and I just have to put the idea down onto paper. Zombie Astronaut was something I came up with about a month or so ago and it just so happened that it was perfectly timed for Halloween! Zombie films, zombie television show, zombie games and well basically anything to do with those crazy undead creatures instantly captures my attention. Even some of my earlier sketches and a couple of my illustrative pieces on this site feature a few zombie creations.
The idea behind the poster was to replicate something similar to the photos that the real astronauts have taken of themselves. It was going to feature a zombie posing for the camera much like this photo below:
I liked the thought of replicating this but as I progressed, the idea of zombies not needing oxygen popped into my head and how terrifying that threat would be in space.
In the past, I would create my illustrations mostly by sketching first, scanning the image and drawing using Adobe Flash. For this particular illustration I wanted to work entirely within Photoshop as I’ve been trying to get used to the different brushes and more particularly the detail you can get from using a stylus. I went to town with the gore on this one and with the help of a few blood brushes created some decent splats and sprays. I built up the image using layers of shading and then added dirt/grunge and blood on at the end. This enabled me to go back and make any adjustments on any layer I wanted. A really handy tip if you ever make a mistake and have to go back to redo anything.
With the title of the piece I was inspired by the look of The Warriors font with it’s rough spray paint style and The 1985 Twilight Zone title. I wanted to create the title rather than use a font so I decided it was best to try and sketch my version out by hand and once again scan it in. I still haven’t mastered writing using a stylus so this was an easier option for the time being. I refuse to give up the sketching!
Detailed image:
So here’s my poster in all it’s GORY! I hope you enjoy it and have had a fun and safe Halloween! Might get one of these printed and see what she looks like full size!
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