Québec à la Pixels part 5

Today I decided I should start working on the hotel. It's got a tricky curved face and lots of little details that are making it an interesting challenge, but I think I have a pretty good start on it. Most of the photos I have seen on line of this area focus on the gate, but here is a link to a photo that includes the hotel and the theater as well.

There are flower baskets on the hotel windows that I have not attempted yet, and I am going to have to sort out those little oval windows.

Québec à la Pixels part 4

The skating rink is proving harder to get right than I anticipated. I am happy with the proportions, but the position is causing some trouble. I will have to shift it up and to the right. I've been adding some little details, like street lamps, a fire hydrant, a newspaper box, even a little tree in a planter. All this is to avoid the obvious big job: the hotel that is still just a rough outline.

The red lines on the image are various guides I have created to aid in construction. The triangular guide in the lower right corner helps with determining shadow lengths. At the top are two isometric diamond shapes that help with the angles in the buildings. The street, old walls, and gate are set at a different angle, and you can just see some red guide lines in the middle of the image that I use to help get those angles right.

Québec à la Pixels part 3

I had a chance to get more done today. Moslty I fixed details on the fort wall and tower. I also went to work on the skating rink, even though I'm still not sure it will be included in the final piece. While I was in Quebec city I saw they even had a little Zamboni going over the ice... it might be fun to add one. I added a little street lamp and a person walking by as well. It might be fun to populate the street with lots of people (you can click on the images for larger views).

Québec à la Pixels part 2

Today I made progress on the city wall and gate. I am trying to decide if I will include a piece of the Palais Montcalm in the lower right hand corner. There is an outdoor skating rink as well, which I have partially outlined in white. Still tons to do!

All sorts of details that need fixing!

Québec à la Pixels

I'm working on a few new pixel art projects. One of them is a view of a little section of Quebec City at St. Jean Gate. Most of this was created while sitting in the lounge at the top of the Hilton Hotel. From there the view was pretty similar to an isometric pixel art drawing, so I just went to work using the actual view as my reference, only working on the shadows in the morning. This was rather unusual for me, as usually my pixel art is based on photos I have taken while out exploring. When I realized I would have to leave before I was finished, I ran out and took a dozen or so photos of the area for reference when I got home.