> By the way, to everybody, uh, I am like really new to fractint and fractal generators in general but I have been playing aroung with it constantly for the last week and I have made some cool images. However, when I look at your web pages I see images that are just like WOW and those are the kind of images I want to make. I have no idea how you guys make them so awesome. I have messed around mostly in Mandelbrot.
In a sense you have answered your own question in the above lines.
Experience comes with time. As they say, "Rome wasn't built in a day."
Those who wowed you with their designs most likely started out the way
you're now doing. It takes a lot of effort and experimentation to come
up with award-winning designs.
I've been doing fractal art since 1993 and still find it to be a
learning process. There's stuff I posted to the Usenet group
alt.binaries.pictures.fractals in 1995-96 that someone is reposting
there currently. I look at them and find that I hardly like them at all
now, but at the time I posted them I was pleased with my efforts.
Since then I've come to learn as much as possible about Fractint.
There's so much that can be done with the program, but all its features
cannot be learned overnight.
My advice is to read the documentation that comes with the program,
press on F1 while in the program or type "makedoc" (I think that's what
it is) at the DOS prompt where Fractint is located. Read it and reread
it. Refer to it often. Also, as you've be doing, study other artists'
designs. Pick out what you like about them and experiment on your own to
achieve a similar result. I have been influenced by several fractal
artists, but the two who have influenced me the most are Sylvie Gallet
and Don Archer. My current idea in fractal designs, creating
kaleidocopic-type images, is a result of their influence.
>
> 1. What fractals do you use most often?
I experiment in writing my own formulas. It's a case of, "I wonder what
would happen if I write this..."
> 2. I am assuming you use a fractal and then zoom in a bunch right?
Not always. Sometimes the first image that pops up on the screen is
artistically interesting.
> 3. Do you use your own formulas a lot?
Only when the moon is full.
> 4. Do you colour map them yourself, as in do you change the colours
> individually sometimes?
Constantly. The color map is the most important part of the artwork, I
feel. A "right" color map is one that can make a ho-hum sort of image
into one that will sing and dance.
> 5. What programs do you use to generate, and finish-up the pictures (do you run them through a rendering program or something)?
Not too often. There are many image-processing programs available, many
of which do the same things. I suggest learning how to design pleasing
art pieces first before experimenting with image processors. This way
you won't be learning how to use two programs at the same time. Get to
know the fractal program really well first, before tackling other
programs.
> 6. What about raytracing and 3d stuff?
Again not too often. I would advise staying away from these
transformations until you are become adept at creating pleasing designs.
I'm not aware of anyone who has taken up Fractal Art 402 before or while
learning Fractal Art 101.
>
> Thank you for any advice you can give me.
>
You're welcome.
Bob Margolis
Fractal Excursions Doodler
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