The Mermaid

This is a photo manipulation I did, starting with a nude woman on the rocks in the water.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...rmaidsmall.jpg

I'm not terribly happy with the seashells, but I slapped them on so it would be suitably SFW. :P

You are so good it hurts my brain.

That is one fine-looking fishlady.

How did you create the tail? It looks almost more like a whale or dolphin part?

The tail was done in several steps. I painted a blue shape approximating the position I wanted the tail in, shading it so that had some contour to it. Her real legs and their shading were a good guide for this, so they're actually under the layer with the tail on it. Then I made a layer over that which had a darker mesh on it, but which was transparent between the mesh texture. I ran that through an emboss filter so that it would get that scaly look, then trimmed it down so that it fit to the tail properly.

I decided rather than having the tail fade into her body I wanted it to be a more dramatic difference, so I created an edge along her hips and some shadows as though the scales are projecting out from her flesh.

Since she has breasts, one can assume she's a mammal so I used marine mammals as my guide (except for the scales, obviously). When mammals swim it's with an up and down motion of the spine, while fish and reptiles move their spines side to side. So her flukes are modeled after a dolphin.

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Originally posted by Zuul

The tail was done in several steps. I painted a blue shape approximating the position I wanted the tail in, shading it so that had some contour to it. Her real legs and their shading were a good guide for this, so they're actually under the layer with the tail on it. Then I made a layer over that which had a darker mesh on it, but which was transparent between the mesh texture. I ran that through an emboss filter so that it would get that scaly look, then trimmed it down so that it fit to the tail properly.

I decided rather than having the tail fade into her body I wanted it to be a more dramatic difference, so I created an edge along her hips and some shadows as though the scales are projecting out from her flesh.

Since she has breasts, one can assume she's a mammal so I used marine mammals as my guide (except for the scales, obviously). When mammals swim it's with an up and down motion of the spine, while fish and reptiles move their spines side to side. So her flukes are modeled after a dolphin.

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I thought so and I like it. I always thought it made more sense for them to be part seal or dolphin instead of tuna.

A merman this time, using a much more "fishy" concept for the tail. The scales were done by hand and extend up his torso. His fins are modeled after a male betta fish.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...ermansmall.jpg

<3 both of them.

Wow, those are good.

Nice one Zuul.

Those are both VERY good. Just my two cents' worth: the mermaid's tail looks disproportional to me somehow; I guess the mass of it to the left of the kink in it doesn't quite seem right, given the rest of her. As for the merman, I'd change the color of his pubic area to the same green as his tail, and give the large mass of what would be his thighs or upper legs more texture.

But that's just me. These really are impressive pics. Thanks for sharing, and well done!

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Originally posted by Elendil's Heir

Those are both VERY good. Just my two cents' worth: the mermaid's tail looks disproportional to me somehow; I guess the mass of it to the left of the kink in it doesn't quite seem right, given the rest of her. As for the merman, I'd change the color of his pubic area to the same green as his tail, and give the large mass of what would be his thighs or upper legs more texture.

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There was something bugging me about that area on the merman, but I couldn't figure out how to fix it. I think you nailed it. Thanks!

The mermaid's tail is slightly longer than human legs would be, but appears shorter because of the size and position of the flukes. I fudged that because I really wanted to use the water in the background and it cut off there. If I were going to do it again, I'd probably have her tail bend more to fit more length into the frame.

Gorgeous! These made my day. :)

I have only ever saw the first one, her little fish friend was cute lol