'Transaction Complete'

One of my best, certainly in times of lighting. The main effects have come out well: the hunched, semi-lit man in the foreground, the glow of his cigarette, the brightly lit woman with her huge shadow. Her posture is far from perfect, being a muddled compramise between intended and achievable. And I know the lamp looks rubbish. But great smoke, eh? - added after rendering by my own fair hand, but I can't quite remember how. The Jesus poster is another modification of the ever-useful pirate map on the Daz site. I remember reading somewhere that some prostitutes have religious pictures on their walls. Even if not true, I thought the image formed a neat contrast with the general mood of sordid disgust.

'500 Years After The Siege'

The first image I made with the help of Hexagon. This is another Daz product which, in theory, should allow you to make complex objects from scratch. It's so difficult to use, however, and I'm such a dunce that I haven't got much out of it. I mainly use it for modifying existing models, usually by hacking bits off. Like here, where I kicked off the back of a gatetower so only the facade remained. Sounds easy, though knocking down an actual fort would probably have been quicker. I was inspired by Welsh castles like Cricceth where there is a big fuck-off gate and virtually nothing behind them. And their contrast, Harlech, which has opened its doors to any approaching army and consequently is still largely intact. The two tiny figures are supposed to be tourists parodying attacking & defending troops, though you can't really see them well enough.