I just got ArtWeaver, a great and free program. My avatar and this is what I made, I'm a newbie at editing. I like my avatar better because it took me more than 30 minutes.
Before:
(https://forums.hypergamer.net/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmedia.moddb.com%2Fimages%2Fdownloads%2F1%2F10%2F9705%2Fstalker3.jpg&hash=76f46ca8500974e9831f2b24e321758c061153f9)
After:
(https://forums.hypergamer.net/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg34.yfrog.com%2Fimg34%2F7430%2Fstalkertesting.jpg&hash=48683c9368fd045859b101135b7c67798efe6e9a)
The shading at the top is too bright, but I like the smear on the chest.
The text makes it look a bit sloppy/unprofessional... It doesn't really fit into the color scheme well. I suggest doing something to the text and making it a different color. Other than that, it looks fine.
Thanks for the tips ;D
I like the picture in general, where did you find the orig?