Last December we were asked to produce an image of a one show pencil embedded in rock looking as if it was being mined from a cave wall. The image was used to promote ADCD's annual presentation of The One Show. This sounded like a lot of fun to create a real looking rock wall. So with a little thought we came up with an approach that seemed like it would work. We started with placing the pencil on a flat board and surrounding it with expanding foam insulation. To make sure we could get the pencil out when we were done it was covered in vaseline, it was not mine and I did not want to destroy it. Once we had the base form it was a matter of carefully cutting away the foam to give the appearance of tool marks on the rock. This exposed the open cell structure of the foam. This surface would not hold paint well or color washes and close up looked horrible. So we covered the majority of the surface with modeling plaster. The plaster filled voids and made the surface look more organic. After this dried we applied a variety of color washes to give the rock subtle undertones. Another wash of black gave the rock the appearance we wanted. Then it was just a matter of lighting the rock. We needed to add layers of light to bring out the texture of the rock and create a path for the viewers eye to follow. A total of four lights were used on this shot, most all at very low angles to enhance the texture. We also placed about a dozen cards to further sculpt the light. Then it was just a matter of turning the files over to Andrew Webb with Serious Retouching so he could apply some of his post stylings. Many thanks to James Pelz for inviting us to work on this project and for his great direction. Always fun to be challenged by a project.
