Creative Essence: Creatures Hardcover – December 10, 2013

This is a great book whether you're an aspiring artist or a creature fan or both. I knew that this book was a "must have" as soon as I first saw it posted on FaceBook, and I decided to get it when I saw that it was available on Amazon. Being someone who is both a creature fan and an aspiring artist, this book is an invaluable resource. This book is great for anyone who aspires to creature illustration. Whether your chosen medium is drawing, painting, sculpture, or digital, there are many examples in this book that will provide lots of inspiration. The principles are the same for creature design as for any creative endeavor, as many of the artists and examples in this book will attest. As someone who has bought a lot of "how to draw" books and "sci-fi/fantasy"-themed books, this book is definitely at the top of the list. Along with "King Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island" and "Pacific Rim: Man, Machines & Monsters", this book will provide inspiration for my own characters and creatures for years to come.

Ballistic publishes the best digital art reference material there is in print.This book is right up there with the rest of their library.My only complaint is that I wished there was a lot more pages to this book. But its a good thing to have on your shelf if you are a character artist or a fan. Or digital sculptor or digital artist.The book is beautifully made and presented.

This book appeals to our whole family, and keeps the 10 and 7 year old boys occupied with imagination games for hours. The illustrations include samples starting from simple line drawings to thumbnails to completed full color artwork. Many of the creatures show all the stages. Some pages demonstrate one stage of the process, like modifying different aspects of the same idea to explore the looks. It's an amazing way to engage in learning how to do artwork, as well as a book of beautiful illustrations.

It a college book for my daughter school college class. She said it fine

Excellent reference material.. It illustrates creature design from conception to final render. There are many full color frames within the book as well as artist interviews that detail the artists frame of thought.

I would like to see more of these books. This is by far my favorite Ballistic book and the skill level demonstrated was better than I expected.

very imaginative characters/creatures and beautiful renders. In this great book the artists walk you through their process of creating. I great source of inspiration.

Been waiting a long time for this book, and got it as a present <3

This is the best book on the subject of creature design and monster making I have read. The book is full of artistist talking in great detail about their craft. I very much enjoyed the fact the talk was focused on introducing the reader to each artists work flow and troubleshooting processes. Hard to find a book that goes into the why a creature design works or does not work. Exactly what I was hoping this book would contain.

As long as you don't expect in depth tutorials. This is a workflow and best practice book so in that respect I have found it invaluable.

What I expected and delivered on time.

This book is absolutely divine. It has some brilliant work from all the artists involved. I do wish that they published the creature matrix that the artists used to create some of their designs.

Ouvrage tout bonnement magnifique!Les créations sont nombreuses, détaillées et bluffantes!Le contenu est dense. Les créatures sont aussi diverses qu'improbables, et en même temps d'un niveau de réalisme inégalé !On se laisse transporter dans ce safari fantastique peuplé de créatures étranges, qui témoignent de l'imagination fertile et sans bornes de leurs concepteurs!Ce livre est agrémenté d'explications qui mettent en lumière la genèse de chacune des créatures exposées. On y apprend quelles en ont été leurs sources d'inspiration (idée originelle) et peut y admirer le processus créatif qui a permis d'obtenir jusqu'à leur résultat final !Je recommande ce livre aux passionnés de monstres et créatures fantastiques en général, mais aussi à ceux qui sont fascinés par les créatures numériques à la pointe de la technologie (CGI) qui peuplent les médias tels que le cinéma et les jeux vidéos.