Pottery

Here I experimented with creating a unique texture and then using it in a set of three transparent pottery shapes, all in SketchClub. I added a lighting effect and I added mood in iColorama.

I made the pattern in SketchClub using the Vector tool to make the shapes. On a layer underneath the shapes layer, I filled the layer with a dark green color.

Using the Move tool (it’s on the toolbar at the top of the screen and looks like a cross) I shrunk the pattern and positioned it in the top left corner. Then I made a new blank layer under the pattern layer, then I selected the pattern layer and used Copy Down to duplicate it on the blank layer below. Then I used the Move tool to shift the duplicate pattern to be next to the previous one. Then I selected the upper pattern layer and used Merge Down to combine the two pattern layers. I continued doing this until I got this result.

On a new layer above the pattern layer, I painted on red and blue color with a soft round brush. I changed the layer blending mode of this new color layer to the On blending mode. This way, you see the colors only on the shapes and not in the spaces between the shapes. Then I changed the color of the dark green colorfill layer to creamy white. I selected the red and blue color layer and used Merge Down to merge it onto the shapes layer. So now I have two layers: the colored shapes layer, and below that the creamy white background layer. Now I selected the colored pattern shapes layer and used Merge Down to merge it onto the creamy white background layer. So now I have one layers.

On a new layer above this layer, I used the Vector tool to create this negative shape. This is how it looks with the pattern layer visibility turned off.

Here is how it looks with the visibility of the pattern layer turned on.

On a layer just below the previous layer, I used the Vector tool to create this negative shape. This is how it looks with the visibility of the other layers turned off.

Here is how it looks with the visibility of the pattern layer turned on.

On a layer just below the previous layer, I used the Vector tool to create this negative shape. This is how it looks with the visibility of the other layers turned off.

Here is how it looks with the visibility of the pattern layer turned on.

Now I experimented with the opacities and the blending modes of all the pottery layers. After much experimentation, I finally chose these blending modes and opacities: Blue layer, Burn blending mode, 50% opacity. Red layer, Hard Light blending mode, 60% opacity. Yellow layer, Exclusion blending mode, 90% opacity. You can also try changing the relative order of the layers. I kept the pattern layer at the bottom of the layer stack at Normal blending mode and 100% opacity (It is important that your bottom layer is in Normal blending mode and 100% opacity, to make sure you have no transparency when you export your finished image.)

Now I wanted to create a lighting effect. I added a new layer above the other layers and used a large soft round brush to paint pale yellow diagonal lines across the canvas. I left this layer in Normal blending mode and reduced the layer opacity to 80%. To get an effect I liked, I duplicated this layer (to do this, I created a new blank layer below the pale yellow light effect layer, then I selected the light effect layer and used Copy Down). I moved this duplicate layer down to just under the red layer and I changed its opacity to 70% and its blending mode to On. This required some experimentation.

I was still not completely satisfied with the result, so I created a new layer just below the yellow layer, and I painted with a large soft round brush in the area of the tall narrow pot, using the same pale yellow color that I used for the streaming light layers. I kept the blending mode for this layer at Normal and its opacity at 100%.

Here are my layers in SketchClub. Just below the layers you see here is the pattern layer.

I saved the image to my camera roll. I opened the image in iColorama. I used Adjust/Tonelab preset 5 at medium opacity. I used Adjust/Levels at low opacity to increase the contrast. I used Effect/Glow preset 1 at low opacity to enhance the lighting effect. I used Style/Flat preset 20 at low opacity to add some color variation. I used Style/Flat preset 18 at low opacity and with the leftmost Feature slider moved all the way to the right, for a slight smooth blurring effect. I used Style/Water preset 3 at low opacity and zero distortion to enhance the color and texture. I used Effect/Denoise presets 1 and 4 a few times to reduce aliasing (jaggy lines introduced by some iColorama effects). I used Sharpen preset 1 at low opacity to increase sharpness, and Effect/Raise preset 2 at low opacity to increase definition. I used Adjust/Exposure to increase exposure slightly.