Playing with Pixels

Alright. I think it's finally time to step out of the classroom to run around the metaphorical schoolyard. As if what we've been learning in class were the techniques of playing and now we get to apply them creatively.

I could also call this section "Explore", "Dive in", "Have fun", Finding your style(s)", or even "Allow things to unfold naturally ". That's my favorite one. Pixel by pixel, color by color, form by form, things emerge, inspiration strikes, ideas are followed, and nothing becomes something. Discovering what feels best when you see it, this is the path of finding one's own style. What feels good inside when you see it? Notice that. You may find many styles that you like to work with. It's being open to creative flow & process, as much as it is that the Pixelverse is sort of magical in its own right. How is it that these blocky forms are so charming? I don't know, and I don't have a need to figure it out. I am glad for it and whatever it is that keeps me compelled and feeling good about spending so much time in the pixel world.

I mentioned in Part One that I use a Wacom drawing tablet. I have done pixel art for a long time with the mouse, and even lots of time spent on the trackpad of a laptop, but having used the drawing tablet steadily for a while I have developed a real appreciation for it. If you're planning on spending a significant amount of time drawing on the computer (in any way) these are so great. And a small one is perfect since you can carry it around easily with a laptop, to coffee shops & the park for example. The laptop becomes a much more hospitable place for doing serious illustrating or the most simple pixel art.

Exercise 12: Make Stuff

How about we stop reading in a moment, go into Photoshop or other graphic editing program you are using, and just start making stuff. I'll do it too. I'll start with the pencil tool. I'll create a 300x300 window and zoom into all the way (1600%), which is not nearly as close as I'd like to get. I'll try to make 10 things or more that I like. I'm going into this without any desire to make anything in particular. I'd recommend you try this, but if you want some direction, choose an object, or an animal or something simple you'd like to see in pixel form. Things in profile are usually easy to get started with. Or just draw messes of pixels. That's also a great way to get started.

[time passes]

Alright, here's what I spent the last half hour doing:

I made a bit of a mess down there when I was starting out but it helped loosen me up, and enjoy the shapes. Sometimes they spark ideas. The cat started happening, then the girl & then the Owl. I began playing with some isometric shapes. I love Isometric pixel art and video games but have only minimal experience making it myself. It would be cool to make a game in that style, so maybe I'll get into it at some point.

In the above example, I didn't have any direction to start with, just to see what might happen. In this case I've got some stuff I can work with, the Owl, the little birds could become the inspiration for a mini-game, the woman's head is something different and I like it. It started with a mess of pixels that looked somewhat like female hair profile, and I went from there. It was a little tough getting started, but I relaxed about the outcomes and a good time was had. There are even some nice things that came of it that I can use later if I like in a game or some other art.

Other times I may go into drawing with specific ideas or intents, like designing characters and objects for a game. I like to make a "brainstorming" sort of file, in which I just explore and experiment on themes. For example, this is the file I worked with when creating much of the style and graphics for our game Gamma Bros. If you are a Gamma Bros fan, this may contain a few things that may make it into Gamma Bros 2. Spoilers, if you don't want to look. Click it to see it double size:

Exercise #13: Pixels and Colors