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novemberkris In reply to Lovz2Draw [2012-11-24 12:48:38 +0000 UTC]

Thank you. This was the illustration where I discovered the brushes I have been using for magic effects.

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Lovz2Draw In reply to novemberkris [2012-11-24 23:11:05 +0000 UTC]

there very cool did you make them?

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novemberkris In reply to Lovz2Draw [2012-11-25 21:27:55 +0000 UTC]

No, I want to get into to crafting some brushes. However these just come from applying different blend modes to a few of the default "special effect" brushes that come with Photoshop. They've worked really well. Sometimes, I add a couple gaussian or motion blur effects to layers to make them more like "light".

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Lovz2Draw In reply to novemberkris [2012-11-26 00:17:23 +0000 UTC]

what you do gives it a maigcal look

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novemberkris In reply to Lovz2Draw [2012-11-27 01:20:33 +0000 UTC]

Thanks--if I can find time again (hah, full time job and weekly webcomic--oh time), maybe I'll try to screencast or make some kind of tutorial of the process. I'm sure it can be modified for a lot of different effects.

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Lovz2Draw In reply to novemberkris [2012-11-27 02:31:44 +0000 UTC]

your most welcome ..and that would be soo cool

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novemberkris In reply to HannajimaShields [2012-11-23 14:49:20 +0000 UTC]

Glad to hear it! I hope you continue to enjoy. I swear every time I get to a new page the script gets an edit, so hopefully it will meet everyone's expectations!

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 13:48:09 +0000 UTC]

Thank you kindly! This project is definitely my "baby". I've been saying I would work on it since high school (wow, and that was over 10 years ago). Lucky for me I waited, it was going to just be a novel, hah! Liked drawing and writing a bit too much for that to work out.

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 20:05:28 +0000 UTC]

Welcome kindly!

I understand. I've got one project that's been in my head forever. And right now I'm working on a comic that was originally a short story I wrote years ago. (I think I must like drawing a bit too much too )

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 03:20:01 +0000 UTC]

I use Adobe Illustrator for the line art, and Photoshop for the rest. I bring the lineart in as Vector Smart objects (copy and paste) so that if I need to make changes once I start adding flats and value, I can easily take panels back to Illustrator by double clicking the layer. I sketch and thumbnail by hand before I start the inks in AI.

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 04:00:00 +0000 UTC]

Ah! Cool! Thank you for telling me

I mostly use free or open source programs myself. Though I seldom use vectors except for title banners.

Thanks again!

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 14:09:53 +0000 UTC]

I found the vectors great for the lines. I can drag end points around and correct curves without redrawing.

I'd been using Adobe in classes for so long, I felt this year it was time for me to set up that workflow at home. It was actually to save me some lab trips. A game engine we used in all my classes could take PSD files directly, so I wanted to use Photoshop to keep images very editable (because imagery often changes or is tweaked in game art).

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 19:03:22 +0000 UTC]

They are great for tweaking. Though I find if I use them I tend to spend hours and hours getting them "right" and I never do LOL. I'm better off personally having a few slight imperfections than trying to do it "perfectly" because all I do is drive myself nuts doing it! LOL

Though if I were doing game art, I'd probably do it that way too. I mostly only use them for things that require precision such as mechanical objects. For those vectors are much easier to use. (and for titles as I said)

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 03:10:39 +0000 UTC]

Thanks--that is one of my summer "improvement" areas (I've always been so lazy with lighting). Thanks for the faves and watch too, by the way! I appreciate it!

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 04:02:17 +0000 UTC]

Welcome! You do good work.

The style of the comic totally matches the mood. (which is important) And the FX matches the style. (I've read a ton of web comics and sometimes all the parts don't match. Yours does.

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 14:08:02 +0000 UTC]

FX are challenging to think through, but therapeutic to paint. There's a way I see different ones in my head that I need to capture, then simplify to fit the scene. Photoshop has a couple go-to brushes for me that really seem to do the trick. Though, down the line, for some FX, I think I'll try my hand at making my own brushes to get some different light ... textures.

I'm a sucker for variable line widths on a style note. My comics instructor got me hooked on them last fall and I cannot go back. I told someone last night, I think it is because to me it brings more life to my static images. If it were animated, the variable line width wouldn't be as necessary because the motion does the job of "bringing life".

I admit, I opted for the cell type shading because of personal affection for classic 2D movies. But it makes sense, all of these characters were pictured in this kind of shading when I was a kid because I never grew out of cartoons!

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 19:54:26 +0000 UTC]

I tend to paint FX in too. I use a free open source program called MyPaint for most of my painting and drawing. It has a lot of brushes that are great for portraying energy FX. (plus delayed brushes for inking)

And I agree. I generally reserve the fixed line width lines to mechanical objects and buildings. But, organics look best with variable lines.


And I like cell shading as well. I recently saw a tutorial on Youtube and the tutor said that's how Dark Horse shades their books.

When I do cell shading I use multiply and screen layers and play with their transparency. Which means I only have to use 2 layers or at most 3 to shade a character. One for dark and one for highlight. Though I sometimes wind up with a second dark layer.

Don't feel bad, I never grew out of cartoons either! I still laugh my behind off at Droopy the Dog (a personal favourite)or Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck.

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novemberkris In reply to Wastelander7 [2012-07-16 20:07:42 +0000 UTC]

Hah, same for me. Actually, sometimes it is multiply, burn, or "light" layers. I use color overlays to remove saturation over the flats or adjust for night lighting. Layers are powerful tools for lighting I just can't use in traditional media (well, without consequence).

I'll have to check out MyPaint--no harm in adding to the workflow if a program adds value.

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Wastelander7 In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-16 21:50:01 +0000 UTC]

Yep, it's a quick way of doing it.

And I agree, it does no harm to try out new things especially if they're totally free.

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Wastelander7 In reply to The-BenT-One [2012-07-16 03:08:18 +0000 UTC]

Boromir....BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I didn't see that till you pointed it out

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novemberkris In reply to The-BenT-One [2012-07-07 13:29:53 +0000 UTC]

Hah, he does kind of look like Boromir! How about that ... *snerk* "One does not simply leave the Spiral ..."

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The-BenT-One In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-07 13:31:47 +0000 UTC]

Btw, I'm liking the comics I see for it right now. Do you have a website for this yet? I'll give you a watch anyway to keep tabs.

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novemberkris In reply to The-BenT-One [2012-07-07 13:36:06 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! This actually started as a dA preview while I tested my workflow and tried to get far enough ahead to do twice weekly updates (I have so much story ...). I'm finishing page 08 and the prologue today, so next step is website. I'm torn between setting up a Wordpress or just starting through Wordpress.com (since updating my portfolio by hand is time consuming enough right now!)

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The-BenT-One In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-07 15:51:12 +0000 UTC]

Use ComicPress, run by Wordpress. I plan on using it for my webcomic, SunChild, when I finish the first issue.

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novemberkris In reply to The-BenT-One [2012-07-07 16:05:44 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, I hear good things about it. So long as Wordpress is easier to customize than Drupal (that wouldn't take much) I should be able to handle that. Thanks.

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The-BenT-One In reply to novemberkris [2012-07-07 16:12:06 +0000 UTC]

From everything I hear, it is. Btw, you should take a look at EnterVoid.com [link] it's a comic site where you use your OCs to battle other artists. It's got a great community and is a perfect place to hone your craft.

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novemberkris In reply to The-BenT-One [2012-07-07 16:13:43 +0000 UTC]

Very cool, I will definitely check that out!

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novemberkris In reply to ElsaKroese [2012-06-03 20:38:54 +0000 UTC]

Thank you kindly, especially from someone who's work is so excellent (I love drooling over Spindrift updates!).

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novemberkris In reply to novemberkris [2012-06-03 20:41:24 +0000 UTC]

And the grammar police in me frowns at my who's error. Whose ...

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