Tips on making background more interesting

[Yitcomics]

My first finished background with perspective,yeah i've been avoiding learning perspective until now,I used to just wing it or avoid giving any depth for my background .I still have problem in drawing curve object,also I was very slow since I have to measure everything,so is there any tips how I can get faster in drawing perspective.

As for my background,its finished but it feels kinda of empty and nothing really interesting to talk about or look at in the bathroom,I'm doing a game sorta like Clock Tower,so there's going to be a stalker chasing us and we have to find hiding spot.So the only thing to do here is hide in the bathtub.So any tips how I can make the background more interesting,any tips to improve the atmosphere of the the bathroom.

If you're thinking"Hey this is a horror game how about add some blood,to add scary atmosphere"I can't,not in this bathroom for story purposes.And if you're thinking "I'm thinking too much,the backgrounds looks fine and I should go with simplicity",I understand that but in a way I'm also looking tips to improve any of my future backgrounds.So any general tips how I can make a background more interesting or improve its atmosphere would be helpful.

[Armageddon]

I like to focus on composition first, getting just the greyscale black and white shapes looking good. Usually I have an idea in my head of how the walls and floors are shaped and contrast and the lines converge and create an appealing composition to me.

Then I fire up Google Images and look at every single reference image I can. I think about the type of lighting commonly used in the location. I pick out all the little details like a broken pole, or chipped up concrete dividers. You should really think about how and why things are where they are. How did something get damaged and what were the circumstances that lead to it. Where does the litter collect. Etc.

Then I draw out my horizon lines. Make the perspective 100% correct then I start painting over. I like to paint as if there is no light source at first, just to shape things out and make it easier to use placeholder colors. Then once I have the shape of every object done I begin recoloring, plan out where the lights are and start drawing shadows on top of the image. Then I finish it off with adding some highlights.

And that's about it I guess. Just look at a lot of images, really study them and see what all the details are or why it's visually stimulating to you. Also it sort of comes down to game design. With adventure games you can get stuck making a bunch of connecting rooms with nothing in them just so the environment seems real, that is not only boring to draw but it's boring to play. So plan out your scenes so you're getting the full production value out of every location before you draw them.

[GreenBeams]

i woul say that lighting and composition or camera angle are the two best things for improving a background. try not just to think about making it more interesting but how to make it fit the mood or the story better. that way, you'll not have anything in the shot that doesn't need to be there.

Say if it's a room you want the player to hide in then give some thought to what you want the player to feel when they're hiding. Scared? Alone? Panicked? You could skew the camera angle in an over the shoulder shot to make it a little more panic inducing. You could give the player less visual information by only providing one light so that they may feel scared/frightened. I'm sorry if i'm not giving very many understandable answers here but possibly try this exercise:
1. Find out what sort of feeling you want the player to have in any given background.
2. Once you know that, dig out some classic films (BW Alfred Hitchcock are usually excellent)where you know the same feeling happens in the story.
3. Really study the camera angles used
4. pay close attention to the lighting - the black and white film will show you lighting much better - and try to work out how it affects or creates the mood
5. spend the rest of your natural born days trying to attain the same level of command of atmostphere and mood in a single image xD
Seriously though, try 3point perspective and think about where your light is coming from.

Also, just on an aesthetic note, if you're going to shade the walls and floors where they touch the toilet and bath and stuff, make sure you also shade a bit of the toilet and bath and stuff too. Only a little bit where they touch so you can just say make it out but it works to really stick the objecs together.

All the best and nice go for a first completed job! =)

[Mandle]

Awesome background for a first try with perspective!!!

To me the picture looks a bit unbalanced with a lot of stuff on the left and not much going on on the right. This could be on purpose of course to draw the player's eye to the bathtub naturally. If not I would suggest maybe putting something in the right corner next to the door: A laundry hamper perhaps (But not large enough for the player to hide in). Also the way the toilet is just kinda in the middle of the wall looks a bit unnatural, like it would feel weird to be sitting on the toilet in such an exposed area. Maybe adding something homey and simple like a small table with some magazines on it next to the toilet? Also I just realised there's no toilet paper...

[Lasca]

Looks really nice!
Generally besides all the other great tips and suggestions, you could give some thought to who's bathroom it is. Settings can tell a lot. For example, does the person who owns the bathroom like to bath? Is it a man or a woman? Does he or she light candles while bathing? Like fluffy towels and pictures of kittens? Or is it someone who never cleans? Only uses the bathroom for dirty stuff? Etc. my point is, right now the bathroom feels very impersonal and doesn't tell anything about whose bathroom it is. Fill the bathroom by imagining who uses it (and in what way!).

[Gurok]

Rust. You should add rust everywhere. It's like blood but rustier.

[Monsieur OUXX]

It's the lighting that makes it dull*. You didn't draw the beholder's attention to any particular point. There should be darkers areas, brighter areas. Right now it's all about barely noticeable linear gradients.

For example: what is the light source? A window? (then why don't I see the light it casts somewhere?) A lamp? (then why don't I see yellow light somewhere?)

*Provided you don't want to redraw everything by changing the camera angle

PS : despite my criticism, your background is cool. And is perfectly acceptable for a game!

[Yitcomics]

@Mandle yeah I got lazy,I purposely didn't draw toilet paper,cause even if I draw it,you probably can only see very little of it(I'll probably add it later).

Hmm,I guess I should try improve on my lighting,@Monsieur Like perspective,I never officially learn how light and shadow work,I just practically wing it,just like in this picture(I'm sooo lazy lol).Maybe its time to learn it properly ,but as for the light source I'm imagining it at the center of the room and its a white light.

@Lasca,hmm interesting point.

With adventure games you can get stuck making a bunch of connecting rooms with nothing in them just so the environment seems real

My biggest fear lol,I asked here once whether I should go realism or put interesting stuff without any explanation,I'm still struggling to find the middle ground...

Edit:
@Monsieur if I were to change my camera angle what would you advise(For now i'm only brave enough to tackle 1-point and 2-point(maybe)).I've been thinking about tricks to make sure everything stay 100% so I can use "daring camera angle" like you once said(for now I just make the VP very high).Even though I somewhat understand the concept i'm not sure I know how to properly implement it yet.

[Cassiebsg]

Well, besides the points everyone already mentioned (specially Lasca), like where are the towels? hand soap? etc. Maybe a medicine cabinet, a little closet for towels and toilet stuff, a sitting bench, etc... With such a big room, maybe some picture hanging on the wall.

I would point out the discrepancy of light in the BG. Do this: cover the bottom half of the picture up and look at it. Then uncover it and look at it again. I'm pretty sure you will notice that the top half in very dark and almost sinister, like there's no light at all. Then the bottom half is a "bath" of light, so much that it even hurts the eyes. So, unless your light source is the floor, you need to rethink this.

Bathtub looks a big too small to me, and this type of tub normally have feet, Though it's not wrong to say this one doesn't have. But if you had the feet, then it will have a feel of an old tub. Though it's hard to determine what type of design you are aiming for here.
I'm also not sure what's going on with that toilet. Did you use a reference picture, or just made it the way you thought it should look? Try removing that "weird shape" on the lower back of it. Either go for a clean back if you aiming for modern, or if you want old, then there will be a hole in there.
Like these:

Spoiler

[close]

So, is this an old house? a modern house? and old house with modern interior design?
I would consider adding some wall tiles, at least around the bathtub. But I'm used to having bathrooms with tiles in all the walls.

With all this, please don't think that your BG "sucks", cause it doesn't. It's actually very cool and I like it. It just needs to be fine tuned. But that's why you posted it here, so you could get some ideas and suggestions to do just that. Good luck and keep up the good work!

Remember, Rome wasn't built in one day... it took two!

[Yitcomics]

@ cassie I wanted legs but when I finished shaping the bathtub,I notice it was too short and cutting it to put legs will make shorter .To shape that bathtub was a nightmare,and I didn't want to experience that a second time,cause i'm still having trouble with drawing curve object in perspective.So yeah...this game is set in a mansion btw.

Anyway...,watched a couple of videos about lightning,still need a lot to learn but I try to do what I do best "wing it!".Followed GreenBeams advice on sticking the object,put shadow where I think looks right and darken some areas.



EDIT:
@cassie Oh about the toilet,I just look at a lot of picture and just drew it the way I think it would look,but I am aiming for an old design so maybe i'll fix that later.

[Ykni]

I tried to add a lightsource to your image Yitcomics. I agree with the previous comments that proper lighting can improve the atmosphere in your background. When you are adding light try to imagine where the source is. From there it is a bit like adding perspective The light will flow from your light source and it will be bright near the source and less bright and more diffuse further from the source. If the light hits a shiny object like metal or your washbasin it reflects so you can add a 'hard' reflection. When it hits a softer surface like the shower curtains you can add a softer reflection. With this type of pin light that I added some objects will not get any light at all. Be bold in your shadows, for instance behind the bathtub will be almost completely dark, the washbasin and mirror are completely in the spotlight (I forgot the reflection on inside of the mirror ><)

Well I hope this helps a bit with the lighting. Btw I love that little window high up the wall in the dark area, I would definitely try to escape through that window ... if only it wasn't that high up

[SilverSpook]

I'd say throw in some mats on the ground, maybe, to break up the monotony.  It's a bigass bathroom! 

Is this a hotel, or do people live here?  A lot of times people leave random crap around, like a newspaper, a charger, a blowdrier. 

[Monsieur OUXX]

@Monsieur if I were to change my camera angle what would you advise(For now i'm only brave enough to tackle 1-point and 2-point(maybe)).I've been thinking about tricks to make sure everything stay 100% so I can use "daring camera angle" like you once said(for now I just make the VP very high).Even though I somewhat understand the concept i'm not sure I know how to properly implement it yet.

It doesn't need to be very daring. Just avoid the "Maniac Mansion" camera angle (with both right and left walls perfectly symetrical). Move your camera slightly to an angle of the room, to the left or to the right. Just a little. Make it so that the horizontal line (the one at the junction of the floor and the back wall) is no more horizontal, but slightly diagonal.

Another way of making it cooler: You'll notice that you put your camera rather high in the room -- higher than would usually be the eyes of a person watching this scene. It's almost like the camera is resting on a shelf. You can make the scene more intimate and slightly creepy by actually making it look like the camera is on a shelf. To do so add some black objects silhouettes in the close foreground (i.e. at the bottom of the scene). For example, the black silhouette of a bottle of shampoo, or something like that. Just like this (the barrels at the bottom), but much closer, and they can be all black.

[Yitcomics]

Okay this is probably gonna be my final update on this picture(I gotta move on,stayed too long on this one picture there's like 20+ background yet to be drawn).
I said I didn't want to redraw the bathtub and BAM!,there's legs on the bathtub now(i'm just awesome that way).Not too sure if my lighting is correct,add dirtiness cause dirty bathroom is scary(literally).I lets you guys work out the minor details,if there's any last minute tweak,please do comment cause i'm moving on.

Also appreciate all the tips guys

[selmiak]

welcome to silent hill
Looks a lot more rundown and used.
If you want to make it abandoned throw some dirt and trash on the floor and add cracks and holes to the walls, destroy the mirror and other bathroom furniture. empty toilet paper roll!
If you want to make it still inhibited but still run down add some more, newer stuff, shampoobottles on the floor, towels, hairdryer, etc.

[Mandle]

Loving the pinpoint highlights on the plastic/metal things in the room. They totally pop!

[Ykni]

Now that looks creepy Great job on the lighting. I love that this some parts are really shady. The tub looks a lot better with the legs.