[Demented]

Have fun. Let us know if you get stuck again.

[Griatch]

@Rab Smith

(I'm moving this to the General help forum, where it belongs.)


I like your comic art, very friendly and nice line work there.

A common way for artists who like to use tradiational paper&pen to pencil, is to scan the image and do the inking in GIMP, it's ink tools are very powerful. A Graphics tablet is recommended for this direct approach (I do all parts of a page - for a comic or a painting -in the computer these days actually, no scanning involved at all). It does work to do line art with a mouse too though - it's just another tool to master, just like learning brush or pencil techniques (using zoom and slow movements will help too) Just work on a new layer above your scan.

If you have black ink lines, I personally would "paint" the flat colour on thus using a Multiply-mode layer above the ink. The reason is that Multiply-mode will preserve your black lines. For flat colour, a mouse works fine for this, just zoom in and learn the keyboard shortcuts for a fast and efficient workflow.
.
Griatch

[Rab Smith]

Thank you for your very useful advice, Griatch.....I am halfway through another work just now, and doubtless I will need some advice before I finish on untried aspects!

Thanks for your comments on my cartoons...I have been doing this for years.


Many thanks. I notice that some of my colors are corrupting if I spend a long stretch on a work.......and I have to retouch the painting.

Any ideas what causes colors to 'corrupt' [it's more of a nuisance than a crisis].?

[Kasami]

 Rab Smith, on 05 May 2011 - 09:28 PM, said:

Thank you for your very useful advice, Griatch.....I am halfway through another work just now, and doubtless I will need some advice before I finish on untried aspects!

Thanks for your comments on my cartoons...I have been doing this for years.


Many thanks. I notice that some of my colors are corrupting if I spend a long stretch on a work.......and I have to retouch the painting.

Any ideas what causes colors to 'corrupt' [it's more of a nuisance than a crisis].?

Do you mean you are saving and then revisiting them later? If so, what file format?

[Rab Smith]

No, Kasami, I notice there is slight but noticable degradation of colors [running into each other, etc] the longer I stay working on a piece on the same level......perhaps if I simply save the work in progress more regularly, this can be avoided? It's not a massive problem, as I can redo the degraded elements, although it would be better to avoid it altogether......maybe I should use layers more, to avoid degradation of color on the same level.

When I return to the artwork,it's just as I left it the previous day, it's not ongoing decline, just temporary as I'm working [over a long stretch on the same level, which can of course be easily avoided]. In fact, once the artwork is viewed scaled-down after completion, it's difficult to see the 'corruption': it's only really noticable when working via the zoom facility.......again, it's not permanent damage, as the degraded bits can easily be retouched later. As I say, maybe I just need to SAVE work more regularly, which is quite simple, and I will try that next. Overall results are great, though.

The file format I am using is JPG;I've just looked at last night's coloring in the cold light of day [always the 'acid test'!] and it's fine...just needs some minor retouching.

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 06 May 2011 - 07:30 AM

[Rab Smith]

OK, guys...I need some assistance with this next one!


The foreground character artwork needs some tweaking, but it's on the right lines........what I need here is an effective background of GRADIATED cartoon flames, to suggest the scene is set in cartoon Hell.

It's probably easier for me to draw the flames seperately, and drop them into the background: [I done a test of gradiated tonal background--it was not precise, but it gave an impression of the potential-------and I'm sure this work can be quite effective if handled properly].

I reckon that something designed simply and not over-dramatic is perhaps the best approach.......I can attempt more dramatic flames later on.



I've never dropped in a complete background image before, so can someone please tell me the steps needed, or guide me to existing data on this subject?

Many thanks in advance.

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 07 May 2011 - 07:57 AM

[Kasami]

There are some very realistic looking tutorials out there but this will probably fit in with your cartoony style.
Tutorial

I would suggest you try out using the "incandescent" gradient rather than the German one.

[Rab Smith]

Here's my first attempt at flames...a bit patchy-looking, but I've saved the character foreground elements.....

[Rab Smith]

It is with some satisfaction I report that I have finally 'cracked' layers! It took some persistence, but here's the early unfinished test to prove I can in fact combine layers:




The Eureka! moment came courtesy of steps outlined in this tutorial:

http://photography-o...ad.php?t=682977


Up until now, I have been working on one level, which was too limiting.......from here on, the results should be more controllable and polished.

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 11 May 2011 - 05:50 AM

[Kasami]

 Rab Smith, on 11 May 2011 - 05:47 AM, said:

It is with some satisfaction I report that I have finally 'cracked' layers! It took some persistence, but here's the early unfinished test to prove I can in fact combine layers:




The Eureka! moment came courtesy of steps outlined in this tutorial:

http://photography-o...ad.php?t=682977


Up until now, I have been working on one level, which was too limiting.......from here on, the results should be more controllable and polished.

Awesome news, when I colour I like to put my line art on the top layer and place my main colour toward the bottom then shading between. You can adjust layer blending methods by using the "transparency" slider in the layers dialogue as well as the drop down menu (Check out Overlay for shading and highlighting). Structuring it this way will give you more control.

[Rab Smith]

Thank you for that tip, Kasami-----up until now I was doing everything on one layer, which results in everything looking like a 'patchwork'. From here on, things should look more polished. More stuff coming up soon.....glad I stuck with it though.

[Rab Smith]

I need some assistance with this one, guys! This half-finished cartoon is shaping up nicely, but there's two elements I need advice on: how do I get a hazy, indistinct-looking, muted sun in the background sky? [behind the T-REX?] I know how to create and position a circle,, though I assume I need to do the sun on another layer.

Also, inside the time-machine, how do I insert tiny squares onto the top of the machinery, so they look like tiny flashing lights?

Your advice, please!

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 05 June 2011 - 08:20 PM

[Rab Smith]

OK, guys: I've learned how to use the Gausian Blur facility, which is excellent for making characters look like they are behind glass!

The rest of the cartoon will remain sharp and in-focus: I know how to do that!

However, the window: is there a technique where I can add translucent thin white lines [transparent strokes] to finish off the 'glass effect'?



I seem to remember trying out an application that produced the desired effect, but I can't seem to find it.....

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 05 June 2011 - 08:21 PM

[Kasami]

 Rab Smith, on 05 June 2011 - 08:19 PM, said:

OK, guys: I've learned how to use the Gausian Blur facility, which is excellent for making characters look like they are behind glass!

The rest of the cartoon will remain sharp and in-focus: I know how to do that!

However, the window: is there a technique where I can add translucent thin white lines [transparent strokes] to finish off the 'glass effect'?



I seem to remember trying out an application that produced the desired effect, but I can't seem to find it.....

Open up the image with Gimp, create a new layer and grab the brush tool, choose the desired sized brush. Set your foreground colour to white then create a new layer. Click at the start of the glass shine stroke and hold shift and click on the end point. This will give you a nice straight line, go to the layer window and grab the opacity slider and bring it down until you like how it blends in.

Hope that helps,
Kasami.

[Rab Smith]

OK, I'll try that, Kasami...many thanks!

just tried it--it worked fine!

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 06 June 2011 - 07:42 AM

[Rab Smith]

I would like to add colored lines around some of my characters, to take off some of the 'hard edge' of black-only linework.

[To date, I ink the cartoons in traditionally].

Is there a method of changing the color from black to any other color [even white] on SOME of the lines, leaving others still black, in GIMP?

It can be done in Photoshop: I saw evidence of this on youtube.


Here's the sort of thing I have in mind: the statue of Liberty could be enhanced by converting the colors of her head 'tiara' including spikes and robes from black to light blue: can this be done in GIMP?




Hopefully someone can help!

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 25 July 2011 - 07:11 PM

[ragtag]

Just a few pointers. Always save your original files as GIMP .xcf files, and never as JPG. You can convert them to JPG as a last step for uploading them to the web. The problem with JPG files is that they are lossy, and if you resave the same JPG file over and over again, it will gradually degrade until it's unusable. .xcf files are non-lossy, and can store all your layers. They take a bit more space, but disk space is cheap, and your time isn't.

I don't know if you've been using selection and masking so far, but you should definitely look into it. There are several ways to do this. One is to create a separate layer with completely flat colored areas for each area you want to mask off. Don't use any variation in color, just paint it completely flat (see attached screenshot). You then use the Fuzzy Select Tool (looks like a Magic Wand), set NOT to Sample Merged and a low threshold, and select an area on that layer. You then go back to your color layer, and paint there. You'll notice that only the selected area gets color. This let's you easily do shading for that area, as you don't need to worry about painting over the lines. Actually, if you consistently draw closed outlines, you could try this plug-in, which automatically creates a layer with unique colors for each enclosed area.

In addition you can use the Lasso tool, to manually select areas by tracing a line around it. You can use quick masks. Simply go into the menu Select>Toggle Quick Mask. You'll notice a red overlay over your picture, that you can paint on using the normal brushes and black to white colors. Areas that you paint in black (shows up as red) are fully opaque, so you won't be able to paint there. Areas you paint in white are selected, and paintable. You can also paint in gray, which means that area will be partially transparent. When you're happy with the mask, Simply choose Select>Toggle Quick Mask again, and it will be turned into a selection which shows up as a dotted line. Now only areas within that line can be painted. If the line annoys you, you can hide it by unchechecking View>Show Selection from the menu. You can store these selections as paths if you want to use them later. Oh, and use Select>None to remove a selection and make the whole canvas paintable again.

A quick trick to color your ink is to use the Ligthen Only mode in your brush settings. These work like the layer modes, but on the brush you're painting with. So, for instance, if you have a black line on a white background, that you want to make blue. You choose the color and brush, and then set the Paintbrush Mode to Lighten Only. Now when you paint, color will only be applied to areas that are darker than the blue color, i.e. you ink lines.

Attached File(s)

•  Screenshot.png (22.66K)
  Number of downloads: 8
•  the-raft.jpg (22.05K)
  Number of downloads: 7

[Rab Smith]

Thanks very much for your totally comprehensive advice, ragtag.....I will try out the 'Lighten only' option you mention in your last paragraph first.

It looks like coloured outlines can be achieved in any range of palette, which is exactly what I'm looking for....I also have the Wacom Bamboo option of course to do this, which I haven't looked into yet.....but I think I'd rather change the actual outlines from black to other color.



Thanks very much for your very helpful advice, and I hope to screen some results along these lines on here if I can lick this.


Nice illustrations, by the way!

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 30 July 2011 - 07:20 PM

[Rab Smith]

postscript: I just tried out your advice, ragtag: it works a TREAT! [the 'lighten only' system]


I'm Delighted!


Many thanks! I've also taken notes on the fact that xcf files do not lose clarity or break up......a problem I definitely experienced with JPG. I can convert xcf-JPG at the end of the coloring, as stated.....I'll try this next time.


also thanks to Rich Skipworth of CCGB for pointing out to me the feasibility of this system.

This post has been edited by Rab Smith: 30 July 2011 - 07:16 PM

[Rab Smith]

The altering of colored lines [from black] works nicely: slowly I am getting to grips with GIMP 2.


This cartoon looks fine at this scale, but there are annoying white specks if I zoom in.

As I have used gradiated tone here, I can't really use the airbrush tool to cover up impurities: however, if I can CLONE surrounding pixels, this could concievably fix it. Any advice on this, anyone?



In future it will be xcf files only, to avoid this sort of thing happening again in future.