Using the AI Image Editor of Deep Dream Generator

For quite some time I have been using Deep Dream Generator as my second AI Art generator. Nightcafe Studio is still the first I am going to, but then Deep Dream Generator comes next. One of the reasons of doing so is the fact that they have some additional tools which I find very interesting: One of them is the "AI Art Assistant" which helps you with creating an effective prompt, and the other one is "AI Image Editor". How does that tool work? I'll give you an example:

The photo on the left was taken during my vacation in California in 2016 near the Grand Canyon. It is in need of a bit of postprocessing with a photo editor, I have to admit.

However I wanted to use it as a start image in Deep Dream Generator, so I uploaded it to their website without changing anything.

I selected it then for the AI Image Editor and added a prompt: "cartoon drawing in the style of Boris Vallejo."

You can see the result of AI image editing on the right. 

I am still experimenting with the kind of prompt I am adding; up to now I focussed on the style of the painting (here: cartoon drawing) and the artist (Boris Valleyjo). However I figure that I could also change the light (sun from behind? Moonlight?). 

Color swatch with alizarin crimson

I mentioned in my last blogpost that I want to do color swatches in order to find out the range of colors I can get by mixing the paints I have.

I started with mixing acrylic inks. I grabbed the bottle with alizarin crimson and the Dare Orange Molotow refill bottle. I used empty joghurt cups for the mixing (one for the Alizarin Crimson, one for the Dare Orange, one for White and one for Black). Adding the Orange to the Crimson results in a Warm medium red; adding the black results in a dark red which is still warm, not as muted down as burgundy. 

Then I added white and got some interesting pinks. 

What did I learn? First of all, liquid acrylics are harder to mix than acrylic paints out of the tube. The next thing I noticed was the importance of adding only a tiny amount of black to the red. Just touch the black ink with the brush ever so lightly, otherwise it will get way too dark. 

I'll continue with color swatching and will keep the paper scraps in a box. I write down the names of the colors which I used for the mixing and the steps I am taking. This is the beginning of something which I find useful and enjoyable!

Green and Blue shades

I actually have three rather big acrylic paint tubes with shades of green:

• A 150 ml tube of Hooker's Green (System 3, Daler & Rowney)
• A 100 ml tube of Sap Green (Pebeo)
• And a 59 ml tube of Phthalo Green (System 3)

All three of these tubes were bought a long time ago. 

I started the painting in order to practise some mixing with adding white or yellow, even a bit of black in order to darken the greens. I also added some greenish blue. 

I enjoyed the painting, but somehow I have the strong feeling that I really need to do a color chart, starting with my greens. I've got some not very expensive watercolor paper from the 1 Euro shop which will be a perfect surface for color charting. 

 

Using aluminium foil for a palette

 

I have been using all kinds of palettes for color mixing with acrylics:

• plastic lids of yoghurt containers
• coated paper platesa 

Both are doable, but have their disadvantages: The plastic lids of the yoghurt containers are too small to mix paints adequately with a palette knife. 

The Coated paper plates suck in paint although they are coated. In addition to that once the paper plate is covered with blobs of paint you have to get rid of them. 

So I went for a third way of mixing colors on a palette: I bought aluminium foil and covered one of my paper plates with it. I fixed it on the back with a tape. Then I mixed acrylic inks and acrylic craft paints on it. I noticed that acrylic inks took a bit longer to dry which is definitely an advantage. Craft paints can be mixed without any problems using a palette knife. Yes, you have to be a bit careful with the knife and not scrape too hard, but otherwise things went well. 

Change the style of an image in Gemini

This is a diaslide I took a long time ago during a vacation in the North of Italy. When I shot the photo I felt attracted by the Renaissance architecture. I kept the slide, had it digitalized and then it sat in the depths of my hard drive.

Knowing that you can have changed the style of an image in Gemini I uploaded the image to Gemini and asked it to transform the photo into a watercolor and ink image.

Here is the result. Gemini actually changed the style. I personally would prefer it to the original.