Winter Dragon Masquerade

I decided to enter a little contest about Winter Festival as the theme. At first, I was trying to do the scene with the Daz Woodland Playset, but it kept destroying the background image, so I just decided to set it indoors. That and what I was using to make snow had an unintentional side effect of causing the render to take forever.

When I thought of the winter festival theme, I wanted something that spoke of cold and ice and snow, things we always associate with winter here in Canada. But I also wanted it to speak of beauty and majesty and elegance.

I decided on the eastern dragon, rather then the usual western style because, for lack of a better main reason, it is coming up on the Chinese new year, something I always associate with those wonderful dragon puppets that many people carry around. Also, the oriental dragons are not seen the same way as western dragons are seen. In the orient, dragons are more good luck, and favor with the gods then they are destroyers and monsters that western cultures see them as, which was perfect for this.

I decided on the elf form, not just because I have a soft spot for elves (and what dragon doesn't?), but also because elves have that ethereal quality about them that makes them magical. They just have a grace about them that soothes the soul for me. And I chose the masquerade mask, simply because I wanted a sort of festival atmosphere, along with a little mystery.

In a way, this is spiritual successor to two of my pictures. The first being the ice angel, and the second being the ice queen who helped celebrate my 2000th visitor. Let's hope she helps me make it to 4000!