Maika meets the God of the Drowned City

Good evening, friends!
I've got another piece fresh out of the oven for you! This time, it's a full illustration! :D

I want to preface this post by mentioning that I rarely ever show my process for full illustration works, and there's a reason for it. On other websites (and perhaps here, as well), there are a lot of young, aspiring illustrators who follow my work, and my process is ill suited for any artist who is still working hard at learning the basics. As you will see, my composition "sketch" is a composite of 3 different photographs bashed together with a variety of color and value adjustments applied to them to create one harmonious color story.

While photographs are very helpful and commonly used tools to use in both digital and traditional mediums, they should really only be used as part of an illustration's composition if you already have a solid grasp on color, lighting, and values. Otherwise, you may find that their use falls flat of their intended purpose, and can really hinder/cheapen the look of an illustration rather than serve as a helpful tool in composing your painting. Otherwise, experimenting with different methods of thumbnailing, sketching, and painting is always a great idea if you're still looking for a process that best suits what you want your work to do for you!

Phew! With that obligatory spiel out of the way, here's the process to my latest illustration!

and at last, the final illustration!:

A small heist goes awry, and Maika flees into the Drowned City in effort to lose her pursuers.
She trades a caravan of angry merchants for the company of the spiteful god Ishavan.

I hope you guys enjoy this one :D
Thanks, again!!