Fantasy Stylized Tree

I had an idea in my mind to make a stylized tree inspired by bonsai. as I gathered references I created what I had in mind in 3D directly using Zbrush first. Then I painted over in Photoshop the colors I had in mind and gathered references. This project was great for me as I really wanted to render it in Unreal. Placing the grass was tricky without using landscape so I used static meshes instead and manually placed them in. It was really fun to gather references and try to design while I sculpt as well as understanding composition and simplicity in stylized pieces.

Full Video of render here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_06F56_g20&ab_channel=zk

Special thanks mention of Yiri and Hardy as I was inspired by their concepts for my idea.
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/3dNNAv
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/YaXdqK

Video Rendered in Unreal Engine 5

Zbrush sculpt

Zbrush sculpt

Simplifying silhouettes

Simplifying silhouettes

I took a screenshot of my Zbrush sculpt and envisioned what it would look like with yellow leaves and determined the shape of the foliage silhouette. I wanted it to resemble a Bonsai.

I took a screenshot of my Zbrush sculpt and envisioned what it would look like with yellow leaves and determined the shape of the foliage silhouette. I wanted it to resemble a Bonsai.

Different lighting and fog in Unreal

Different lighting and fog in Unreal