{"id":250717,"date":"2026-01-25T06:15:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T06:15:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/250717\/"},"modified":"2026-01-25T06:15:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T06:15:12","slug":"combining-wildly-different-influences-led-to-these-unique-animal-machine-creature-designs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/250717\/","title":{"rendered":"Combining wildly different influences led to these unique animal-machine creature designs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Throughout my life I\u2019ve taken inspiration from the Combine in Half-Life 2. The creatures from that universe have this brilliant blend of insect and machine, to the point where it\u2019s impossible to tell if it\u2019s a machine-augmented bug or the other.<\/p>\n

For my Shimmer line up, I wanted to capture that same feeling but in my own way: something that feels alien, with a strong sense of mystery; A bit gross, but also beautiful. I combined DNA from sea life, 80s-style chrome machines and the glass-like tubes seen in custom PCs to create something fresh. The result is a semi translucent creature that’s part beast and part machine.<\/p>\n

How I create a translucent animal design<\/p>\n

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\"Images\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Max Froer)<\/p>\n

For my process, I used both 3D modelling software<\/a> and then 2D digital art software<\/a> (Photoshop<\/a>) to remove 3D artefacts.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

01. Value sketches<\/p>\n

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\"Images<\/p>\n

I start with rough sketches using no more than three values. If the design feels powerful in just three values, I know I\u2019ve got something promising. From here I work with clean topology, so I can make adjustments and design choices on the go.<\/p>\n

02. Applying texture and lighting<\/p>\n

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\"Images<\/p>\n

Since these creatures have a translucent, organic hard-surface, I found that box modelling offers the most forgiving approach. The model is thrown into KeyShot where I set up lighting and apply materials. <\/p>\n

I test several different lighting scenarios and materials before refining the translucency. I want the refractions to feel chaotic without becoming unreadable.<\/p>\n

Finalise with Smart Blur filter <\/p>\n

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\"Images<\/p>\n

The model is brought back into Photoshop where I colour adjust, paint over and push shapes. I find that using Photoshop\u2019s Smart Blur can effectively remove a lot of the 3D artefacts and stiffness from the render.<\/p>\n

Need new gear?<\/p>\n

Need the tools to create your own character art? See our pick of the best drawing tablets<\/a> and the best laptops for drawing<\/a> or check below for current deals on tablets we’ve reviewed.<\/p>\n


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HUION<\/p>\n

Inspiroy H640p Drawing Tablet<\/p>\n

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Wacom<\/p>\n

Intuos Small Drawing Tablet<\/p>\n

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Gaomon <\/p>\n

Pd1161 Drawing Tablet<\/p>\n

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XP-Pen<\/p>\n

Magic Drawing Pad 12.2 Inch Standalone Drawing Tablet<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared in ImagineFX. Subscribe to ImagineFX<\/a> to never miss an issue. Print and digital subscriptions are available.<\/p>\n

Daily design news, reviews, how-tos and more, as picked by the editors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Throughout my life I\u2019ve taken inspiration from the Combine in Half-Life 2. The creatures from that universe have…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":250718,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,501,156,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-250717","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-artsdesign","12":"tag-design","13":"tag-entertainment","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250717"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250717\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/250718"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}