Making of Distant Shores

Making of “Distant Shores” by Andreas Rocha
Following, I present you the process of creation of the matte painting “Distant Shores”, inspired by the magnificent works of matte artists Dylan Cole, Steven Messing and Yannick Dusseault (among others). This painting is also fruit of the many things I learned from the book “D’Artiste: Matte Painting” (Ballistic Publishing) which compiles some of the richest collection of techniques and works related to matte painting. I strongly advise anyone interested in matte painting to acquire this book. You will not be disappointed!

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My aim in this painting was to try to capture the huge scale of seashore environments. A trip to the “Serra da Arrábida”, here in Portugal, really impressed me and luckily I had my trusty digital camera with me, which allowed me to capture some of the things I had seen that day. There is such a sense of freedom when you are standing at the tip of cliffs, hundreds of meters above sea-level, contemplating those magnificent views all the way to the horizon…it is really mind blowing!

My first step was to establish the overall mood and color scheme through a quick 1 hour sketch referencing some photos of shore environments, some of which, I would eventually use for the finished matte painting.