For this piece, I really wanted to try something special, so I decided to try and actually paint for once. The OMC painting from before utilized the polygon tool to create geometric shapes and was more of a mix between digital lineart based drawing and traditional painting techniques. This time, however, everything was hand drawn (with the assistance of the symmetry tool). The original idea for this piece was quite different, actually. It was originally going to be a poster-style drawing featuring the Mimic, Springtrap, the classic 5, and a bunch of other characters. Then, I decided that it would be too cluttered, so I made a much simpler design. The main idea of the new design is just to emphasize the small beginnings of the franchise. I chose the text on the cake specifically from the FNaF 1 paycheck to add to that nostalgia (although apparently the text is actually "good job" T_T).

I started with a sketch, and then moved onto base colors. I used a generic paintbrush on Krita, and was really just experimenting with the brushstrokes. I was very much just seeing where my hands took me in that regard. It took me a while to get to where I was satisfied in terms of lighting; I didn't really have any references and was just kind of winging it. All in all, I think that part turned out decently well for a first attempt. I'm mainly proud of Freddy's main body. I think that turned out very nicely. The cake is alright, but not perfect. Also, I was debating whether or not to include those two eyes in the background, because I wasn't sure if they would read as eyes or not. I decided to anyways, obviously. I also didn't use any major filters, like posterize, on this one, unlike my other pieces.

I actually started this piece quite a while before the anniversary. I anticipated needing much more time to make it. In the end, I only spent about 4 hours on it. I'm actually pretty pleased with the result. It is by no means perfect, but I think it's a pretty successful foray into the world of digital painting. I also just had a lot of fun making this. The entire energy of the anniversary week was so wonderful. Again, read the blog for my full reflection on that.