Colour Palette Witch Experimentation

I scanned some drawings from my sketchbook into photoshop so I could experiment with colour. I find that working with colour helps me to develop my ideas and push my designs forward.

I wanted to start my character design by handwriting them in my sketchbook and then digitally colouring the various characters with a huge range of colours, skin types and facial structures etc. Even though I always start off with a specific character idea in my head I think it's always important to experiment and develop in order to leave my comfort zone. For example, I hate some of these character designs and think they're awful. However, at least I tried it out and at least I have that knowledge now. They hep me steer my ideas well.

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Character Sheet 1

I will upload the digital versions of all of my work so that they can be seen more clearly. I like to create sheets such as these for my designs - I think that the white hair and darker skin tone is the most striking.

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Character Sheet 2

I like the idea of the witch having short hair. It's less traditional and also easier to animate. Despite this, I still wanted to experiment with traditionally 'witchy' aesthetics and tropes such as the pointy hat, dark clothing, wand and broomstick. I also definitely want to include the blush in her cheeks as I think it compliments the colours nicely. On the other hand, I'm really enjoying the contrasting skin tones and the white hair. I want to try and nail down her physical appearance before I experiment more with different colour palettes and eventually come to the conclusion of her looks.

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I'm worried that this character design may be too detailed to animate quickly but it's my favourite one so far that I've made. I scanned these sketches into photoshop to experiment with difference colour palettes, brushes and textures. For the brush I predominantly used Kyle Brush: small round basic (watercolour). I also need to explore how to colour using the fill bucket tool while still retaining texture. It will take to long to manually colour every frame for my final film.

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I really like the contrasting tones of the darker skin and the white hair, but the skin tone I like the most is with the black hair and yellow gem. I think that the bottom variation of colour palette is the most boring.

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Character Sheet 3

My favourite colour palettes within this design is the white hair and the ginger hair. I also really like the way she looks here as she does look like a human but there is also something which is a bit supernatural about her. For my final colour scheme for the witch I may make her skin lighter but keep the white hair. I like the way the colours contrast with each other. I thought about her having a gem in her forehead which may match the familiar - this would help to show case the connection they have and help keep the familiar recognisable even when he changes shape. I also want to try more brushes and textures such as a spatter brush for freckles.

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Character Sheet 4

I think that these are the colours I want to go for. I also like the addition of the freckles, however, we'll have to see how it transpires when I properly animate her. I want the witch to have the most combination of colours seeing as I want the backgrounds to have minimal colour palettes - she needs to stand out. I think that her white hair will be a good contrast with the various colours within the forest. I may revise her whole aesthetic, however, I'm glad that I've made these preliminary designs.

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Character Sheet 5

I really liked these costume designs at first, however, I do think now that she looks too much like a forest spirit. I came this this conclusion slap bang in the middle of when I was pitching my film idea. I do really like the colour schemes in both, however, I really think that I want her look to be more casual. Perhaps just a dress or jeans and a t-shirt. Like I said at the pitch, it's a film about friendship and plants - the magic is a secondary element to the story; she just happens to be a witch with magical powers.

I do really want to stick with either of these colour palettes though, depending on the colour of the familiar. I'm leaning more towards the white hair and darker skin, I think the colours really compliment each other well.

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Character Sheet 6

I really like these new costume design ideas as they range from more traditional outfits to nomadic ones to quite modern ones. I'm definitely interested in experimenting with patterns and textures in her clothing, however, i don't want her clothes to distract from the forest so I may just stick with block colour. I do also like how her skin is a little darker from the other designs. I love how all the colours compliment each other - especially the pink cheeks. Maybe her outfit changes depending on her activities? I still want to try out very 'normal' clothes on her too.