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amorousdino — 4,3,2,1... Takeoff?
Published: 2011-08-10 06:13:32 +0000 UTC; Views: 1568; Favourites: 49; Downloads: 0
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"4,3,2,1... Takeoff?"Tupandactylus navigans. A continuation of my first digital paleoart painting . Added a background. I wanted to draw and color it in Photoshop but I decided to cheat and use actual photographic elements. Photoshop really is the swiss army knife of digital coloring tools.
So here's the scene, its 127 million years ago on some jagged coastline in Brazil and a male Tupandactylus is about to take off into the air using the theoretical quadrupedal launch technique. Its like some sort of super push-up. Here's a vid from National Geographic on the subject [link] .
And here's a little retcon to the storyline as there are some problems with the pose
; he's about to launch but he has been blown off balance by a strong gust of wind and might do a somersault into the water below instead 
. Poor little guy.And I know about the inconsistencies in the light source and showing between the photographic elements and the Tupan's shadows/highlights. This was my first time doing this, so be gentle if you were to critique this piece
Completed on the 10th of August 2011.
Done using pencils and Photoshop CS3
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Comments: 8
This is awesome although it might need little tweaks with background so it might look better around the head.
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I have to agree. The technique and image is beautiful, but the pose could use a tweaking. The hind end looks IMHO, to be too high up for a launch... especially given how stretched out the arms are.
I admit the idea that he is having an "oops" take off, maybe caught by surprise by a strong gust, is fun.
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Critiques! Critiques! I can't really give a critique, but I'll do it anyway! Tupendactylus? Name sounds like a rap singer to me! The takeoff technique theorized for pterodactyls might have worked (bats do it, don't they?), and they certainly had the arms for it. Wait a second.....uh-huh.....yeah....COOL! Okay, I watched the NG vid and it shows what I thought it would. My only problem with your photo/painting manipulation here is the positioning of the forelimbs and hind leg and the head. I could be wrong, but the position of the Big T's legs strongly indicates he is at the point where his wings are going to snap forward, and he will be flying. But the arms indicate otherwise, with only half their full extension back towards the feet being shown. If he extends fully now, it looks to me as if he's going to backflip into the water. And, I think, his chin should be up and the neck flexed up as well, in this part of the launch.
There! A critique!
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Lol, thx for da critique
His pose here shows where he has just heaved his center of gravity past his forelimbs by vaulting with his rear, though he might be a clumsy little fellow as he's sent his rear end so far up, he might do a cartwheel
You know what, I should hav added some motion blur to the rear legs to get a sense of movement
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Oh yes, the pic is certainly possible, and I imagine many newbie Tupendactyli and other pterosaurs cartwheeled a lot of times before hey got the technique down pat. I was just giving my thoughts is all. Might be fun to put another Tupen etc. in the water. And why not blur the legs and reload it...or submit it as another deviation? That would be cool!
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this has got to be one of the most incredible paleoart I have ever seen!as a paleofiction writer I see alot but this my friend is sooooooooooooooooooo awsum!
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