colouring help
Author
Currently I am working on a game as both the programmer and the artist. But my art sucks and I think the problem is coloring and texturing. Can anyone with artistic talent share your views on coloring and texturing?
Thanks.
I can. I''m color blind but people still like my art. First off, I always use PhotoShop or PhotoDelux. It''s my preferance but I use the layering effects for shading.
When I start off, I scan in my drawing and keep it on one layer with it''s property set to "multiply" or "darken". I then have a layer under this one where I add the flat colors. By drawing on this layer while showing the "outline" layer, I give the whole character a base coat of color. I always either use primary/secondary colors, or if I need good skin tones, I pull the colors off of a high quality image of a person. I''ve actualy created a picture with samples of colors to use on my drawings. I included colors for skin, eyes, lips, and hair from different ethnic backgrounds. If you can''t find pictures of human skin on the internet, you''re just not trying.
I then add 2 layers above the base color. One layer is set to lighten, the other to darken. I use these for hightlights and shadows. By using the layers, you can give your drawing the 3D look and still be able to erase your mistakes without having to erase your work.
For texture, I''d add a layer ontop of your base color or apply an effect directly to the base color, depending on the effect you want.
You don''t need to use PhotoShop/PhotoDelux of course. But you should find some program that uses layers and layer mixing (lighten/darken). You''ll be glad you did, it makes life a lot easier.
E:cb woof!
When I start off, I scan in my drawing and keep it on one layer with it''s property set to "multiply" or "darken". I then have a layer under this one where I add the flat colors. By drawing on this layer while showing the "outline" layer, I give the whole character a base coat of color. I always either use primary/secondary colors, or if I need good skin tones, I pull the colors off of a high quality image of a person. I''ve actualy created a picture with samples of colors to use on my drawings. I included colors for skin, eyes, lips, and hair from different ethnic backgrounds. If you can''t find pictures of human skin on the internet, you''re just not trying.
I then add 2 layers above the base color. One layer is set to lighten, the other to darken. I use these for hightlights and shadows. By using the layers, you can give your drawing the 3D look and still be able to erase your mistakes without having to erase your work.
For texture, I''d add a layer ontop of your base color or apply an effect directly to the base color, depending on the effect you want.
You don''t need to use PhotoShop/PhotoDelux of course. But you should find some program that uses layers and layer mixing (lighten/darken). You''ll be glad you did, it makes life a lot easier.
E:cb woof!
Check out this site:
http://www.sijun.com/dhabih/mainscreen.html
For a really cool tutorial on colouring B&W images using photoshop or photodeluxe.
http://www.sijun.com/dhabih/mainscreen.html
For a really cool tutorial on colouring B&W images using photoshop or photodeluxe.
Find a professional artist in your area and start taking lessons from him.
certain colors go together, others look horrid. Stay away from browns if it''s not something like wood or other obviously brown things.
SHADING
if the object is blue, mix orange into the blue for shading
red-mix green in
yellow-purple
and vice versa
Try to have smooth transitions for all shading. Shade across the width of objects, not along or diagonal.
ARRANGING
Keep patterns in your pictures. Not textures, rather, all the objects should be aranged in a pattern. I suggest a triangle, as it is traditionally the most pleasing. Transitioning is good in arrangement also, big to large, ugly to beutiful.
STUDY
Pick up some books about painting and the history of paintings. Study the terms and techniques. Look at how other artists achieve their look.
STYLE
Style should be subtle, the world doesn''t need a million Van Gohs. Style could be your way of arranging things, your choice for background/subject pairs, or your technique. Remember KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid).
There you go! Use professional devices. Don''t use No.2 pencils on lined paper, instead use drawing pencils on drawing paper. Don''t use MSPaint, you''ll just give yourself a cramp and a whopper headache. Use something like PhotoShop or PhotoDelux. I don''t know, I use MSPaint (and lots of Aspirin). The artist guy might be a little hard to find, especially one that is willing to teach you.
certain colors go together, others look horrid. Stay away from browns if it''s not something like wood or other obviously brown things.
SHADING
if the object is blue, mix orange into the blue for shading
red-mix green in
yellow-purple
and vice versa
Try to have smooth transitions for all shading. Shade across the width of objects, not along or diagonal.
ARRANGING
Keep patterns in your pictures. Not textures, rather, all the objects should be aranged in a pattern. I suggest a triangle, as it is traditionally the most pleasing. Transitioning is good in arrangement also, big to large, ugly to beutiful.
STUDY
Pick up some books about painting and the history of paintings. Study the terms and techniques. Look at how other artists achieve their look.
STYLE
Style should be subtle, the world doesn''t need a million Van Gohs. Style could be your way of arranging things, your choice for background/subject pairs, or your technique. Remember KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid).
There you go! Use professional devices. Don''t use No.2 pencils on lined paper, instead use drawing pencils on drawing paper. Don''t use MSPaint, you''ll just give yourself a cramp and a whopper headache. Use something like PhotoShop or PhotoDelux. I don''t know, I use MSPaint (and lots of Aspirin). The artist guy might be a little hard to find, especially one that is willing to teach you.
Those color combinations only work with solid colors. I just tried to darken yellow with purple on different layers on the computer and it turned it red. (The absence of green in the purple removed the green in the yellow which is 255,255,0 and made it 255,0,0)
E:cb woof!
E:cb woof!
As I was a 2D artist before I kicked into 3D, I have some techniques I''ve developed over the years (from Deluxe Paint to PhotoShop5.5):
1 - Use the mulitply method (for the line art) in PS that someone else mentioned. Make sure you touch up any blemishes using the painbrush tool rather than the erase if you use this method:
2 - Select areas in the lineart (make sure all lines are CLOSED)and create a new layer, then fill in the selected area a solid color. Do this for all areas. If areas are to be the same color, you can put all of the same-colored(?) areas on the same layer.
3a - Select all areas, create a layer, and fill them in solid black. Set the transparency of the layer to around 30-40%, and delete the areas you do NOT want to be in shadow.
3b - Another way is to duplicate all of the layers and play with the hue/saturation to get a "shadow" color that is darker than the unshadowed area colors. Then, delete away from these areas. I find that in complicated images this method is more effective.
For examples of this(these) methods, check out:
http://www.digital-soapbox.com/html/2dstills.html
All of the character images were created with this method. This works great for a cartoony style of coloring, for a more realistic method, you''re on your own for now
.
-Nick Robalik
http://www.digital-soapbox.com
1 - Use the mulitply method (for the line art) in PS that someone else mentioned. Make sure you touch up any blemishes using the painbrush tool rather than the erase if you use this method:
2 - Select areas in the lineart (make sure all lines are CLOSED)and create a new layer, then fill in the selected area a solid color. Do this for all areas. If areas are to be the same color, you can put all of the same-colored(?) areas on the same layer.
3a - Select all areas, create a layer, and fill them in solid black. Set the transparency of the layer to around 30-40%, and delete the areas you do NOT want to be in shadow.
3b - Another way is to duplicate all of the layers and play with the hue/saturation to get a "shadow" color that is darker than the unshadowed area colors. Then, delete away from these areas. I find that in complicated images this method is more effective.
For examples of this(these) methods, check out:
http://www.digital-soapbox.com/html/2dstills.html
All of the character images were created with this method. This works great for a cartoony style of coloring, for a more realistic method, you''re on your own for now
.-Nick Robalik
http://www.digital-soapbox.com
Another neat trick you can do with Photoshop is to paint a base color for your character on a new layer. After you''ve done that, set the "Preserve transparancy" to true. Now you can''t color outside the lines!
E:cb woof!
E:cb woof!
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