Ok first off I missed last weeks post. So let me explain Uni work is taking a lot of my time along with trying to find a paying job so there might be a interruption in my posting over the next few weeks.
So this is the second post on how I go about creating stuff.
So when I start drawing I normally let my mind wonder and do doodles on the paper on the paper most of these would be basic stick men in different poses.
from after doing that for a while creating quite a few of these drawings I then move onto making one as a toon in the drawing adding more and more detail to them. Till I'm happy enough to try and create a full image. The top image is a good example of this strange process that I do as all the lines are still visible on it. So that is it for this week hoping to get some more stuff done and upload it on here, till then have a nice weekend.
This Week I'd like to go over scanning in an image and preparing it for colouring in Photoshop. I'll be explaining how I do it, not the only way to do it, and probably not even the best way. But as far as I know, it produces the best results for me.
First thing is first, Scanning the image in:
I always find it best to scan an image in using a high DPI (around 300) that way we can make edits and shrink the image down, which normally makes it look a lot smoother. If you are drawing in ink, or really dark pencil and want a black line drawing by the end of it, Then scan in black and white. if you have a pencil sketch I find it's normally best to scan it in grey-scale.
Then were going to load the file into Photoshop, the image is going to appear big and grainy at first, thats ok, just means were doing it correct up till now.
Were going to clean the page up a little bit by using the threshold option.
By moving the slider back and forth we can decide how black a line has to be, to be kept. It lets you get rid of stray pencil lines and smudges, but don't go too far or it'll start to eat up your lines. You'll just have to play around with it to get the result you'd like.
Here is one of the images getting cleaned up, I forgot to change my brightness to eliminate pencil lines.
The next step is to do any editing you'd like to do, either erasing lines, or adding them. If your going to add lines I'd recommend using the pencil tool at this point and pick a size that won't look out of place. (It will still be grainy but don't worry. At least it will match)
I'm sorry about the music, it cracked me up so I had to use it.
Once you've edited the image and cleaned it up we can colour it. You don't have to do this now, you can do it after we have shrunk the image. We're going to create a new layer and place it below our original one, you might need to double click the background layer to unlock it, then were going to change the background layers style to darken. This will let us put colours on layers underneath and have them still show through the white, but not the black.
I'd recommend saving our big image as image_clean.psd and then using the save-as option to save again as image_shrunk.psd (that way we can't make any mistakes and accidentally save over it). The last step is going to be changing the resolution to 125 dpi (it's really your own preference), go to "Image" - "Image Size..." and enter the dpi you'd like.
And there we have it... you should have a good looking image, scanned in and looking smooooth.
It's time for an overly edited photography. Mostly because I love taking pictures. Also, I was going to post some sketch book pictures, but I have to pretend that it is organised before I post it. There is a lot of empty pages right now, because I haven't got round to sticking things in yet. *cough* So lazy, very lazy.
This picture is a look over the Quarry in Inverkeithing, where I live, out towards Rosyth and Dunfermline. Okay, this obviously isn't an actual quarry, it is the overgrown wilderness before the quarry. It has lots of paths where I used to walk my dog. build gang huts and the like.
The main reason this photo is so heavily distorted, is because I thought it was a great picture. Because I have a really great view, from the top of my hill. But, the wonderful overcast weather kind of ruined the picture. So I went on Photoshop and creatively vomited until it was all yellow. Apparently. Seriously, it is just messing with colour and light balance a little (a lot).
I am evidently in a rambly, bloggy mood today, so come find me. I'm hiding here on my personal blog.
So here is a couple of ideas I had about an undead roleplaying game, it involved you playing a group of decrepid soldiers, all mushed up into one army and you fought against the living. As far as your character was concerned he was the winning team. There could be no greater cause (your undead, the necromancer is always right...)
These were as always drawn in Photoshop with the regular brush, but the opacity was fairly low. I think perhaps the second image was a little too dark, and kind of like the style I was heading for in the first one.
I come ready with an excuse. I have been ill today, and have spent a large portion of the day in bed, only leaving it to go to work. So appologies, as this is late. But, I decided to go with variety again. :)
This is an image of a lovely lady, taken from a figure drawing class. She is chalk and charcoal on sugar paper. I never got the chance to study figure drawing at school, mostly because the school wouldn't have someone stand naked for students to draw. So I had my first experience at college. At first, it was something very awkward, as it is very strange looking at someone and trying to draw them. Even worse, when they looked at your drawing.
But, it is and always will be the best way to draw a person. I can always draw figures better, from life rather than a photograph. You get to see the dimensions properly. Also, when in a drawing class, the teacher will often get the class to preform tasks, such as 5 minute sketches, where speed is the key, as you try to capture proportions. It is something that learnt me a lot, and helped to me get proportions correct, after years of struggling. It is an experience that I think every artist should enjoy.
So this is a really early edit for me but hey why not. Today (Monday) I had a couple of really good ideas during a lecture for motion graphics (and yea I was paying attention to the lecture) so during it I was trying to scribble these ideas down and add more to them. Now your asking what are those ideas? well one is for the motion graphics final hand so I'm not saying anything just now, but the other one is for my portfolio site. and yea its Awesome!
can't really put it in words so I will show you.
Whats THIS!? Glad you asked.
Well this is the overall look to the new portfolio site. The gray hills with the trees in the back will be moving from one side to the other and repeat it self so its a constant moving image. There will be a sign that appears when you click on a menu item that holds the content of that. The next stage after getting those things working will be moving it into Drupal if that works (fingers crossed).
Last year my friend took a game design module at university, he had to create a small game with a partner and write a massive report. Because of everything he had to do he asked me to do some sprites for his characters, he gave me a rough description and I drew out a few design ideas.
The game started off as a silly idea the main character was in his pajamas, and had a bag that carried all his equipment. It then took a more serious tone, and wanted all the enemies to be in suits with glasses.
I had a lot of fun doing this, I hadn't done any pixel art in a while and have't since I did everything here in Photoshop just picked a one pixel pencil brush and 60x60 per frame canvas. The sprites were test animated before i sent them off you can see a few at the end of the blog entry. The "Shooting" Sprite doesn't repeat so you may have to click the image.
When creating the agent sprites, I used the player sprite as a guide, I've left the sheets overlapping to show what i mean.
So, a few weeks ago I bought a new graphics tablet, because I really need to get into drawing, through my computer. Not for any reason really, just so that I have that option. It has always been something I really wanted to do. Especially when I am starting to get requests for Lion King/ Balto style original characters, which are EVERYWHERE when you join any community based around American animation.
So have Vitani. She is a character from The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride. She is part of a group of lions called the 'Outsiders', who are banished from the Pride Lands by Simba, because they believe Scar (Simba's uncle) is the rightful king. Scar, was killed at the end of the first movie, and was the ' bad guy'. So he has a band of followers, who are against Simba, for murdering Scar.
If the first Lion King move, was like Shakespeare's Hamlet, then Simba's Pride is more Romeo & Juliet. Vitani is my favourite character in the second movie, and I just wish that she had a bigger part in the movie. Hopefully, as I practice more, I will post some more lion's as a comparison. The aim is to get it better by Christmas, cause I have a lot OC based card ideas.
well the 24 hr comic challenge has passed and i will warn you that doing that event does sap my creativiness straight away. It was a fun experanice but still got the images scanned in yet so you won't be seeing them today. Instead here is a little some i drew last week for you.
I have not got roung to adding colour to this one but again it does show the frustration of using drupal at times and how easy it is to go and play video games instead.
This weekend past, was 24 hour comic day, I took part in it a few years ago, but didn't make it last year. While I was doing it I recorded both my screen and what my webcam was seeing, I thought it'd be quite funny, but I'm just going to pop my screen up for the moment (It turned into a rather embarrassing karaoke half way through) and I some how managed to miss half the second and third pages...
I was pleased that this year I managed to write an easily 24 page long story, but frustrated because I got bogged down in detail, and picked the totally wrong style to attempt it in. I decided I'd give this digital painting a go, and I'm actually pretty pleased with the results. There's a list of things I'd go back and sort out though, the people were rushed due to time, and there could have been a better attempt at atmosphere and value balancing.
The pages are below in-case your interested and I'm sure you've seen the video above.
P.S I didn't have any of my comic fonts installed so you'll have to make do with what's there, my bad.
A little bit of comparison photography. Just for a change. This is a Bridge in Pittencrieff Park in Dunfermline. I have a bit of fondness for Dunfermline, purely because it is where I was born. The summer picture was taken about 2 months ago. The winter one was taken last December on Christmas eve. When I was supposed to be finishing my shopping. I decided to go play in the snow instead.
I like looking at the differences. The fact that the colour surrounding the stone bridge and wall, makes such a difference to the appearance of the bricks themselves. They look so differnt. And yet, they are
two pictures of the same thing. It makes me think about how colour can completely change the look on something, and as an artist it is something I am always investigating into. It is also why colour schemes should be tried out, you may be able to find something that will convey what you want to say more.
well here is my themed image this week a day late i know. To be honest I had this done a week ago but just took my time to scan it in.
as you can see its a JEDI. found this rather fun to draw and well been trying to get back into drawing stuff more and more now. Not really meant to be after any character from star wars but just a random one. You might get a treat in the next couple of weeks and have it coloured in but my brain hasn't gone that far yet.
