I decided to model the lion concept I made, and adjusted the proportions to match those of a real lion. I modeled it in Maya and textured it using Mudbox and Photoshop. I only used a diffuse map and added a specular material to the metal pieces.
For a FuturePoly zBrush class that I have been taking, I am creating a sculpt (and eventually low poly bake) of a Catacombs Slasher, a creature concepted by Jaime Jones. I have about 2 weeks left of the class, and hope to finish it by then and possibly place it in my portfolio to demonstrate my ability to work from a concept.