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Bens Marker/Anime Howto (Pencils to CG)
By  Ben Bridenbaugh
Pencils to CG:
From pencils to CG with a sort of Anime twist.
By Ben Bridenbaugh
Welcome to my "Pencils to CG" section of FARP. This used to be my
"How To" for marker techniques, but I now use CG (Computer Graphics) for
the coloring process.
Overall, I am more of a storyteller than an artist, always trying to share
a vision or tell a tale. Japanese comics are an influence on me,
but it is just one element that I use. |
Materials:
For basics, I will recommend my favorite starting equipment:
|
Here are my favorite tools:
1. Pencil
2. Draftsman's Eraser
3. Flexible nib Ink Pen w/ Ink (left)
4. Computer system
5. Wacom Tablet (See Below)
6. Graphics software (Corel or Photocopy are best)
7. 3DCG software. (TrueSpace3+) |
That's right, all my stuff starts out as a pencil
drawing although I ink some of it before it goes in the computer.
Now, for drawing on, I recommend a sketchpad. There are two types.
The basic ones at shopping stores and the more expensive "Artists" ones.
Avoid the latter like the plague. They are abominable wastes of money
that no doubt exist to make college even more expensive. I personally
use US$0.99 sketchpads from Target (5"/9") and Canson Biggie sketchpads
(US$5 for two at Michael's) which are (9"/12") I jot the smaller
ideas and the plot layouts on the smaller one, then I plot out my real
drawings on the larger pad for scanning and coloring.
xx Inking: If you must ink outside the computer,
I recommend using Strathmore 300+ bristol paper if you use a fountain pen.
Regular felt tip pens are ok.
My computer platform is a Pentium 200MMX with
64megs of Ram and a 16meg Voodoo 3000PCI card. Also, I have a CD-Recorder,
so I can save the large files to modify later. Don't EVER use "I
need this part/software" as a crutch. There is always a way around
it.
The ONLY critical part is a Wacom tablet.
Don't worry, you can use a mouse, but it sucks.
I don't get paid anything
by Wacom, though I'd love it if they did. They have a superior product.
Their latest tablet is US$99 and better than the "Art pad II" that cost
more, which still works good as new today. If you can't find any
in a store near you, get to www.wacom.com.
Choosing the subject:
For my example, I will use a panel from my online
comic, Braarwood. I draw them full page, scan them in, then split
them into thirds for better image juggling. This is from the middle
of the first page of part 8, "Letters of Review". In it, an emissary
from the Confederacy of Zodenan has accidentally knocked on Gig's door
while looking for her adopted mother, the Countess Eileen Del Soya.
Pencils
I intended for some T&A here to mask a scary
thing about gig. That is, Gig is half-demon, and this shows in more
ways than just her exotic beauty. I have given away the subtle surprise
to the right, the trick is to make it work.
The Drawing now begins:
1. Create several separate layers. I recommend
three for the image itself (under, middle, and over) one for shade, one
for panel borders, and one for the lines/inking itself. If you scan
in inked artwork, move the scanned layer to the TOP and delete all the
non black picture. If you scan in pencils as I have done here, make
sure it is at the BOTTOM, so you can trace over it.
IMPORTANT: If you do not have a Wacom, ink
outside the computer.
2. Do a separate layer named "Borders" You simply
place dark lines for where your panels separate. This will make background
effects much easier to manage.
3. I will now INK the image in the topmost layer.
This is done by making sure that you are on the correct layer and selecting
black. Some people use different colors for their inking, but I find
that black always works the best. You can have effects on top if
you wish, but I recommend black unless you are very good and know exactly
what you are doing.
Make sure that you set it so that your line varies
with pressure. With the benefit of the zoom tool, even a small sketch
can have the detail of a large painting.
4. Now, for this image, I selected and moved the shadow effect
to the right in a separate layer. It is now out of the picture, until
I need it.
5. First, I find out which colors are absolutely at
the "bottom" of the image and color them first. I use the area selector
to outline an image, then I just flood fill the basic color. Anything
I missed can be done with the pencil or paintbrush tool. I keep the
top lines visible, but I find this display will show you to use layers.
If you don't have a Wacom,
use the "Polygonal Lasso" to make the same outline. It will take
longer, but still be far faster than moving the mouse to color the image.
Here is what the bottom colors looked like, minus
the lines.
6. I then add the colors above it in a different layer.
7. Finally, I add the top parts.
8. Now, I have a fancy effect, Gig's nightgown.
She is lusty, but not so as to go naked out into a cold hall. On
things like this, shade after the effect. For this, I used a 50%
transparency effect. This time, I shaded the robe on it's own layer
to make sure the transparency held. As it was over the figure, I
simply erased areas of the robe that would not be covered by it.
 + =
9. Finally, we are done and are ready to shade.
The airbrush and the eyedropper tool are the best. To shade, simply
select the color, and then airbrush a darker version of that color over
it. As this is in it's own layer altogether, play with this all you
like, you can always re-do it. Notice how the shade brings out so
much of the drawing.
10. To highlight the effects, and to save page load
time, I have separated the images for this page, but they look like this
when put together. You do not need to do this as you color, but playing
with layers can help you understand what you are doing much better.
I recommend periodically making the pencils and background invisible to
see if you missed any bits when coloring.
11. The background can be anything you want that adds
to the story/artwork. I use 3DCG extensively for my backgrounds,
though I draw them also, as I see fit. I just used my scene for the
halls in the mid levels of the Countess's manor.
I use re-size functions to make the previously rendered
image the appropriate size. I then use the magic wand to select the
panel area from the adjoining BORDERS layer, then delete the excess image.
12. Now, I add the shadow. By toggling the top
layers, I can estimate where the characters are in the first panel.
The playing with size and cutting the edges makes this fit. Again,
a 50% transparency is perfect. As these halls are at a slight angle,
I also used a perspective mesh.
13. The lettering is pretty straightforward. Just
add a layer on top, which I call balloons, at 50% transparency again.
Letter in text blocks over it, then draw balloons under it. These
layers are to be over all lines and other objects to avoid confusion.
I usually choose white for the background, though different colors can
help in reading in case of multiple speaking characters in the same panel.
14. Here is the completed panel. On a roll, I can
do an entire page in a few hours.
To see the full 3 page story,
go here. (http://www.imt.net/~sutut/writ/braar/cmx/bc8a.htm)
 |
| |  | "Fantasy Art Techniques" by Boris Vallejo, Foreword by Isaac Asimov.
I'd recommend this book even to those who seem to dislike the subject matter and style of Boris' work. Only a fool would deny that the technical execution of these paintings is superb. The artist takes you through the creation process, complete with illustrations, tips and step-by-step descriptions. If you want to succeed at painting in oils, look this one up and read it. |
| |  | A comprehensive encyclopedia of fantasy and science fiction art techniques.
First published in 1996, this A-Z features professional tips and step-by-step instructions for a variety of styles, from horror to heroic fantasy and creatures to characterisation. There are entries on all major tools and techniques, such as acrylics, airbrush, animation & computer software, pen & ink and explanations on how to apply each one. |  |
FARP Article Guestbook
| Date | Name | Comment | | | 27 Feb 2006 |  Lars | Is this guy freaking kidding us? | |
| 20 Mar 2006 |  Jessica Gale | This is a good tutorial thanks isn't it funny how some people comment and put others down and don't have enough courage to even leave a email address bet all of them are real losers in actual life | |
| 28 Jun 2006 | Aleta | I totally agree! | |
| 10 Dec 2006 | JW | Oh god, people can be SO childish :X I think it was a good tutorial, but you should make the shadows darker, especially those on the nightgown. And Spartaqus (or whatever you're named O_o) i would really like to see your drawings!
JW! | |
| 11 Dec 2006 | Anonymous | Thank you for doing a very basic CG article! It really helped my absolute noobness at paintshop.
However, I do have a quibble; doing a tutorial requires some basic drawing ability. I must object both to the quality of the work, the lack of anime style when you call the tutorial anime, and the tasteless nudity of the alien, though the shadow work is inspired. I highly recommend the site www.howtodrawmanga.com, it has some very good free drawing lessons.
to all the people defending Spartacus by saying they drew like this when they started out: so did I, but I wasn't arrogant enough to teach then. | |
| 25 Dec 2006 | Michael <the_yoda_funk@yah...com> | Well, hrm. I found the article quite useful. I've been trying to develope a more cartoony-style, something where I can sketch/color/upload a page in only a few hours' time. I've got work, school, my business, and webpages that I have to edit every week, so I don't have much time to update my comic.
That and the fact that I just now actually got the website set up and uploaded the first one. I don't really like it because you can tell it's got a pencil scan in it. I'm getting a Hyperpen tablet via UPS soon, so that'll get fixed.
Anyway, for those of you bashing this, if you notice, it is stated that this is from an online comic. And if you look at the first year or so of comics like Sluggy Freelance, they didn't do so well either art-wise. But they persisted and developed their work to a degree that you really notice their talents later on.
This tutorial was posted quite a while back, so I'm certain that the author's abilities have improved. I myself only started drawing about a year ago. And I still can't do so well, but I'm improving. Insulting an artist for works several years old is like insulting a college student for not knowing calculus several years prior, even if they know it now.
Peace, love, and EVIL TOASTERS OF THE APOCOLYPSE,
~Kyle | |
| 9 Feb 2007 | Anonymous | Uh... Guys... I don't get it. If the female alien is nude... how come she has cuffs? | |
| 30 Dec 2007 | Anonymous | Lame as heel, don't post if you can't draw. | |
| 30 Jan 2008 | Excet | Yeah, the nudity is a little... yeah...
Anyway, I do agree, the art itself sucks, but that really doesn’t matter, ’casue now I know how to color in photoshop (actually GIMP!). Deviantart.com tutorials really didn’t help me much, although I suppose they said the same thing on coloring.
Decent tutorial. Poor work, though it doesn’t make a difference.
(PS: try to avoid ****! this is ecchi, not hentai.) | |
| 4 Apr 2008 | Kuro | okay, every body hows complaning cuz the drawing werent done by d*mned davinici? shove it down yer ******* throats. i havent seen any of you wanna bes posting stuff. hypocrits. | |
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