Deadwood - Art Preview of a Zombie Attack!

Sheriff Mike Foreman is terrified to see what's
crawled out of Boot Hill! Unless he gets a handle on things fast,
this could be the beginning of the end!

Here it is, folks. Our first actual glimpse of a zombie from our upcoming book/game, Gutshot: Night of the Living Deadwood. This image features Sheriff Mike Foreman battling a traditional shambler, which is one of the three types of zombies that will be included in our game. In this case, the young law enforcer doesn't know that you need to shoot for the head, so this battle could be very short.

This is a sample image, where I focused primarily on the techniques needed to combine two figures into a single image. I was interested primarily in the lighting (most of it comes from the muzzle flash), expression and creating a sense of dread. I'm mostly happy with the results, although I now think the pose and angle couldbe a little better (for example, I don't like that the gun is aiming straight through him, it should be at an upward angle). I also should have spread out the zombie's legs farther apart to help convey a sense of movement. And, truth be told, the muzzle flash needs a little work.

Nevertheless, I'm generally pleased with the results and think it's a good start.