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TracyWong β Carlo Barberi's Fairchild - Colors
Published: 2013-12-24 14:26:43 +0000 UTC; Views: 17654; Favourites: 365; Downloads: 0
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This is a new coloring technique I'm trying out. Let me know what you guys think. Β I think I like it better than my normal technique, but am on the fence about if it looks better, or about the same, or what. Maybe I'll have to color her again in my "normal" technique and put them side by side to tell which looks better to me.Β
Awesome drawing by: ~carlobarberi
Colors by me: *StacyRaven
Original pencil work can be seen here:
Thanks for looking!
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Comments: 37
Nicely done. Like the use of colors. Very nice.
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Nice work. I was curious what did you do different with this one, is it still done with grayscale then color? For the life of me I cant figure out how to properly apply the color with that method.Β
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This one was done in full color from the start. I usually do grayscale painting first, as you pointed out. But yeah this one I went straight in with the colors. I'm not sure if I like it better or if it looks better than if I do the grayscale first. I might have to do an experiment and color the same image with the grayscale-then-colorize technique as well as a version painted with color from the start and put them side by side to see if I like one better.
As for how to do the grayscale then color - lots of people do it different ways. Some techniques are where you add a color layer over the image and adjust the layer options. Some use "color" mode, others use overlays and multiply layers and paint in color above the image and colorize the grayscale that way. The technique I use utilizes color via gradient maps. This tutorial:Β
Β is what gave me the starting point to try it. I've modified the technique to suit my needs, but it gave me the direction to get me started with coloring grayscale. I hope you find it helpful if you want to try out the colorizing grayscale methods. 
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I like it, I almost thought it was an Elias image but the pencils were just slightly different. Let's see the side by side, though, that would be great!
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WOW! That's an amazing compliment! Elias is one of my favorite artists and he's definitely an influence on my work. Thank you for the compliment!
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You're very welcome, can't wait to see your work on my commission. I also have a Fathom ready for you, hope you are enjoying coloring water!
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Ahhh I can't wait to see the Fathom. I'm sure it will go much more smoothly than the current commission. I'm so not used to coloring water. lol It's a challenge. But I'll do my best.
Thanks, D!
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heheh Thank you!! I'm glad you like it!
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your colouring technique is quite nice. the hair is especially nice with the range of highlights and lowlights. my criticism would be in the range of colours you're using for the skintones. you've used a light purple/lavender as shadow in the fleshtones. it's not a tone normally found in skin shadows (especially for that tone of skin colour) so it takes away from any sense of believability (when bringing a drawing to life)... and it is also being amplified by the lavender in the skirt more so.
i've really struggled with colour theory personally but i think a colour study would help you. try taking a look at colour photographs of people with different skin tones and building palettes around those. start with a simple midtone, highlight and lowlight. then flesh out inbetween colours as necessary -- you'll probably only find 1 or 2 missing inbetween tones.Β
this may also be the result of your monitor calibration though -- how you perceive colour on your screen. you could test this by taking it to a printer and printing a test in CMYK to see what colour comes out. i suspect you'll get a vibrant lavender in that shadow :/
anyhow, great work. just be careful of your palette.
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I pick my palette carefully. If I wanted to painted it ultra realistic I wouldn't have used this style or technique.Β One of the cool things about comics and comic type art - you don't have to pick colors that are always true to life. She's a "toon" type character, "colors from life" isn't what the piece calls for.Β
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i apologize, i should have been more specific. when i suggested picking colours from photographs it was so that you could see the relationship they have to each other and how lighting effects the overall palette. this way you could see how a particular colour transitions into another shade.Β comics and comic art do absolutely have a life of their own and don't have to be photorealistic at all. i wasn't suggesting that.Β
the objective as the artist is to immerse the viewer in that world on paper and that means creating a sense of realism in context with the image on the paper. building that relationship with colours helps draw your viewer into the piece and gives it that rich believability of an amazing comic book world -- the viewer suspends their belief that they're in a comic book world.
colours have a relationship to each other and the lavender shadow you use in many of your pieces has no relationship to the skin tone you used and because of that, your colour selection stands out awkwardly. the colour has to naturally be in the subject OR be the result of environmental lighting. when it doesn't come from anything and it's arbitrarily placed in the piece, it amounts to arbitrarily using crayons in a colouring book and doesn't demonstrate an understanding of colour that you expect from a professional or someone working towards taking this hobby serious. again, your technique is really really good... but you could improve your art by focusing on colour studies -- perhaps take a course at school. if you want to take your work to the next level, that is the most obvious opportunity for you to improve.Β
again, great work. i hope to see more and see you take it to the next level.
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I've studied much and I'm always studying more and working to improve, and will probably do so for my entire life even when I'm a really good artist, because I feel that every artist will always have room for improvement. But I do not believe my work "amounts to arbitrarily using crayons in a colouring book and doesn't demonstrate an understanding of colour" nor do I agree that my color selections "stand out awkwardly" ... I'm a professional colorist and have been working as a colorist for the past few years, and this is not a "hobby" for me.Β I realize you're trying to help, but I think this is one of those cases where we'll have to agree to disagree.Β
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your original reply was pretty defensive and i tried to be gentle to my response with that but it's not getting us anywhere. look, if you posted your work for accolades, cheers and ego boosts then that's great; i apologize and shouldn't have said anything.Β
however, if you wanted honest feedback, yes, i've given it. you could improve dramatically by taking some dedicated reputable art school colour theory classes because your work doesn't reflect a richer understanding of colour regardless of what you're doing professionally or studies you've taken. you have the potential to go further -- i sincerely hope you push yourself to.
all the best.
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If you read my comment you'll know that I do push myself to go further, every single day: "I've studied much and I'm always studying more and working to improve, and will probably do so for my entire life" - that pretty much spells out how dedicated I am to improving my artistic skills. You telling me to take a "colour theory class" considering how much I have studied and DO study is insulting and isn't helpful.
Though I do appreciate you taking the time to try to help, it shows you care enough to try and help me improve, and for that I'm grateful; but just because I do not agree with your advice doesn't mean I only post my work for "accolades and ego boosts". Not agreeing with your advice and having you jump to the conclusion that I only post for "cheers" really says more about your ego than mine. Β You don't know me nor do you know anything about the hard work I do to improve, so please don't pretend you know anything about me. Your advice was not asked for, and when I declined your advice you proceed to argue with me about it. I'm not angry with you or anything, I just don't agree with your assessment and really see no point in arguing about it. That's really not meant as an insult, simply just a disagreement with your opinion.Β
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Yay! Thanks! I really did enjoy that new technique and think I may try a few more in that style before I decide if I want to make the switch to it or keep using my old coloring technique. Thank you for the feedback, Calaca!
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The new technique looks great.....she looks very hott!
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Thank you! 
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It looks really great! I'm not into that kind of stuff but it looks amazing! ^w^
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Thank you! I'm glad you appreciate the art, even though it's not really your thing.
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It feels like every penciller and inker I watch on dA you are watching aswell.
Also, I noticed that on most of the drawings I take a closer look at in the past few weeks, I find a comment by you.
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hahah Yeah, I love leaving comments, I feel it's very important for the artist to get some feedback. It breaks my heart to see some really awesome art get like no comments. Direct contact with the artists like at the comic cons and what not isn't always possible, but leaving a supportive word on their page or art can go a long way. I think the DA community would be better served if more people left comments.
Speaking of, thank you for YOUR comment!
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Oh and... see you around.
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I love comments, too. D: Especially the ones that are more than "good work". Unfortunately I don't leave as many comments as I actually would want to. When you have 100+ deviantions in your watchlist everytime you log in, even when you log in 4 times per day, I end up going through it too fast. :/
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Yeah, I usually only leave a comment if the image really sparks my interest. Most of the stuff in my inbox gets removed without a second look, as it would be just too time consuming to give a close look to every one of them. But the ones that stand out for me or the ones that I really like I definitely make sure to try and leave a comment.
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Carlo's drawn a seriously gimpy eye there...! Looks like she was dropped on her head as a baby...
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Well ...that's just mean. It's probably just the way I colored it.
Anyway, I made some slight mods to it, better now?
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No, it's in the pencils as well. It's a common problem he has IMOΒ
And looks better now
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