I think this may be finished. I may reconsider the hair texture. I'm not yet sure.

I'm reworking Sagittarius.

Still tinkering with this one...

It seems that each version still has this CGI feeling that I’m trying to eliminate. I guess I should accept what it is, but nope.

Rendered at 500% with key lighting

This took roughly 24 hours to render. I touched it up in Paint Shop Pro, but I’m not sure which result looks better; this…

Or this…

The first one seems almost offensively too bright. The second one, however, may be a tad too dull. Clearly, I am not yet done with this piece, but I want to get it done soon since “Leo” begins in a few days.

Rendered at 350%

This took 6 hours and 55 minutes to render after I reduced the samples to 512. There is still a lack of realism in this piece that I can’t seem to pin down even with the characters seen from a distance and in the dark. I guess I’m not yet done.

Final Test Run

This is the final test render. I’ve since added some color saturation to the ground.

Because rendering in 500% resolution will take about 3-4 days to complete, I’ll try rendering in 400% instead.

Second to Final Test Run

The last few issues I aim to correct are 1) the shape of the hair, 2) the lighting applied to the body, 3) the height of the horizon, and 4) the ripples in the sand. I’ll test render it one last time before I render in 500% resolution. That will take a few days to process.

W.I.P.

This piece is always in progress.