#artist tips

[bugofmanynames]

DEAR ARTISTS, PLEASE READ THIS POST I STUMBLED ACROSS

IF YOU ARE NOT DOING THIS ALREADY, YOU SHOULD TRY IT

I even tested it out myself, it works great

[drachenmagier]

I have decided. Not only will I pirate any product that uses Gen A/I (you use mine for free, I use yours for free), I will also put it on my Resume under "Concept Designs and Illustrations".

You DID use my art.

It's only fair.

No worries, you will get a LOOOT of exposure! <3

Cheers! dra

[buzzkillchainsaw]

Ironic of me to make this after not posting for almost a month ... I'm still alive btw, I just don't really wanna post the stuff I've made

There's also a huge ask sitting in my askbox which I don't want to get into right now, but I'll answer it whenever I have the energy (sorry dear asker, it might take a while)

[genericpuff]

idk who needs to hear this but if you're a writer looking for a webcomic artist and the best offer you can come up with is a 50/50 split "after gaining revenue", then that's literally asking for free work just with extra steps.

like first of all (and i'm sure people are gonna fight me on this) writing a webcomic and drawing a webcomic is not a 50/50 split, a scene that took you a half hour to write will take them hours to draw so it's literally more like 30/70

but also even IF your comic gains revenue, it's still not gonna pay for that labor, there are comic projects out there that have been going on for upwards of 10 years and beyond who are still maybe only making like $30/month on their patreon... and you only wanna pay them $15 of that?

please just consider writing a novel or short stories, or doing tabletop campaigns, or pitching scripts to comic publishers, or learning to draw yourself (even if you're bad at it! webcomics are allowed to grow and evolve in their art!), or doing RP, or doing anything that will get your ideas and stories out there without being at the expense of a whole ass other human being doing the brunt of the labor for free

no matter how dedicated you are to an idea or how convinced you are that it's truly a unique one that's worth working on, none of that will pay for the labor and time and efforts of people who you're asking to work for free to make your dream a reality. They have their own dreams that they're working on too.

[luvtonique]

Character Design Tip

After drawing your character for the first time, take a break, set the drawing aside, don't look at it

Next time you draw that character, do not look at your original drawing, do not use any reference for the character (aside from pose if you use pose refs)

Try to remember stand-out features that you drew the first time, and just make shit up for anywhere that you forgot

This is what I do with ALL my characters

Why? Here's a quote from a smart guy

"If there's a feature I very clearly remember without needing to look at reference, it's a feature that stood out, and that makes it a good feature. If there's a feature I can't remember off the top of my head, it's not a stand-out identifier of the character!"

-Me I said that

Do this repeated times until you are consistently drawing the same character every time and don't ever need to look at reference. The reason why is because this helps you visualize the character without needing to look at reference of them. You become completely aware of what they look like and how to draw them, and that means you have given them visual features that define them and separate them from your other OCs.

If you're drawing them and you go "I remember purple hair, I remember the bangs, I remember the eye circles, I remember the freckle placement, I remember the woodle stickin' up on the top of the head, I remember the long ears, I remember the gray skin" then those are what stuck out when you drew them the first time.

If you don't remember the little bow in their hair, goodbye little bow, you are no longer necessary.

You're welcome for this, please do this when you design your OCs for the first time.

[wberry-foodfight]

I don't know who needs to hear this, but as a painting student I suggest:

Dish soap and boiling water is WAY better than terpentine or paint solvent to fix dried out brushes.

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Put the brushes in a cup.

Pour a dish soap.

Pour a boiling water to the level it doesn't reach the wooden part.

Leave them to soak and soften

Try to separate the hair on two parts, then on smaller and smaller parts.

At the end, carefully try to scratch off the paint and "break" the hair by carefully pushing it over a surface and moving (like over your palm). If you can't, repeat the previous steps.

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Works even with dried out oil paints. Stronger fluid doesn't mean better.

Tho in harder cases you'd have to repeat the steps a few times to restore the brush fully.

So if you can't afford new brushes, don't throw the old away. Even if they seem helpless, there is a hope for them to be like new.

[kelsochronicles]

I heard it’s sexy when artists share tips and tricks so uh….here ya go 🫴😏

But fr I know trying to draw Talanah’s headpiece/armor is a pain lol. I lean more detailed on how I draw everything so feel free to use these building blocks to make your own spin on it!

[8pxl]

Hello! Nice to meet you. Been following this blog for a while and I've become a big fan of your work~♡

So, about this question here, could you elaborate a bit more about using references and "editing" the colour palettes? Also, what is colour dropping?

As a (not digital) painter I also often struggle a lot with finding the right colour scheme to make what I want. I think that's partly why I have trouble finding inspiration too.

color dropping is using the eyedropping tool on an image and taking the colors from it directly!

so basically i find a picture i like the vibes of/think it could be pretty and just edit the color. I draw with photoshop so I edit the colors with it as well! i use the curves tool usually and just mess with it until im happy! above is an axample.

first image is the original then i color edited it, then i used the color dropping tool on photoshop (pictured in the top right corner) to create the palette then i usually edit the colors a bit more!

generally when i color pick i start w the lightest then go darker! this isnt what i do every time, this has gotten me to the point of being intuitive enough with colors that I can pick my own now, but I think its a great way to learn abt colors digitally!

[lilybug-02]

(Keep in mind you have to duplicate and merge down this layer a good amount of times)

And that’s how I do it!

(Imma post a quick vid of me doing it in case this makes no sense :))

OMG.OMG.OMG!!!!! LETSS GOOO! Thank you so much purple :DDD this is wonderful! I know there’s a few different ways to do it but yours sounds easygoing ❤️💖🦇 thank you so much 😊 🥰💕🌸

[bugcowboyart]

Drew this to facilitate class discussion on ergonomics for digital illustration, but y’all can have it too.

Honestly this is mostly a note to self.

[drachenmagier]

Don't get discouraged if you see pretty sketchbooks online.

My sketchbooks are pages and pages of me having no idea what I'm doing and doing EXACTLY that as badly as possible, in ballpoint pen, caffeine, and neon markers.

If your sketchbook looks like you chewed on it, you did it right. <3

[starful-emporium]

btw if you're wanting to draw characters using a wheelchair in combat/action (for dnd purposes or otherwise)

find reference photos by searching for wheelchair dancing!

most of it is ballroom, but seriously, it's the best dynamic posing I can find in wheelchairs

like just look at some of these

(ID: A series of images of wheelchair users mid-dance. Two are solo, one has a partner also in a wheelchair, and one has a partner with no mobiility aid.)

wheelchair basketball is great, but I find dance makes for references that fit my art style better.

[positivelyqueer]

sharing some creativity advice that’s really helped me recently.

Taking breaks from a specific type of creating or creating in general is as important to creating as engaging in it. It’s helped me so much to avoid burnout and maintain joy.

When I want to paint, I paint. And when I stop wanting to paint, I don’t pressure myself. Maybe what I need instead is coloured pencils. Maybe it’s zine making. Maybe it’s entirely different and I need to get back into knitting, or researching Bronze Age textiles, or poetry. Maybe you want to paint for an entire year and that’s what fuels you. And that’s brilliant. Or maybe you’re only drawn to paint for an afternoon and that’s also wonderful.

and when those things call to me again (which they always do) I’m so happy and excited and motivated to be involved again. I feel that tug behind my sternum and that bouncing in my fingers and the thoughts stacking on top of and blending into one another. I fall asleep thinking of projects and I wake up to work on them.

and when I’m unsure, I try to learn or try a new skill. Whatever tickles me. Maybe I combine my sewing knowledge with thrifted toys to create creepy cute bears. Maybe I get inspired by someone online and research how to crochet. Maybe I visit a friend and return home with their favourite recipe, ready to try out.

There is so much joy to be found in chasing your creative wishes and allowing less traditionally successful or shorter lived passions to be mulch for future endeavours.

[evil-robot-cat]

Heard a little rumor about Adobe. Now's as good a time as any to share with everyone the apps I draw/paint in. 😉

Infinite Painter (Android) - This is my default. I did exclusively traditional mediums for a long, long time, and this app feels the most like using the "real thing". It has vectors, filters, and a robust editing menu. It autosaves. New files open with a menu of commonly used dimensions/dpis so you don't have to memorize them. It has an extensive online manual that teaches you how to use everything. It can export to just about anything - it'll even save all your layers as transparent PNGs if you don't see the filetype you need. (Cons: the larger your canvas, the more likely it is to glitch, and the fewer layers it can comfortably support.) It's cheap, and a one-time purchase.

Medibang Paint Pro (Android/Mac/PC) - This is where I make comics. It has built in tools for manga: frames, fonts, screentones. It autosaves temporary backups. It has online storage so you can bounce back and forth between editing on your tablet or your computer, and group access for multi-person projects. It has a basic online tutorial, regular user-written tutorial articles, an active online community, and sponsored contests with cash prizes. (Cons: It doesn't have a basic rotate tool, or many editing/filter options.) It's cheap, and while I did a one-time purchase, I think they've either switched to or offer an optional subscription model.

That's... about it, really. For me everything else is pencil and paper. Or epoxy putty and model paint... Once or twice a year I break out the watercolors. I dabbled in Clip Studio Paint, but the menus are way too tiny on my small tablet. I recently downloaded IbisPaint (Android/Apple), but I haven't tried it out yet.

[creation-help]

My tiny go-to drawing tips I use personally

- Ears are as long as the BOTTOM OF THE NOSE and THE EYEBROWS. The ears come BETWEEN THOSE. Give or take facial proportions.

- Fat and skin folds. It folds over bones, it piles over itself. All positions affect this. Huge huge benefit to all your anatomy is to learn to draw fat according to gravity. The human body has way more folds than you might initially think, adds just a touch of realness to put a few here and there

- There's different eyelid shapes and they can easily be drawn on by just a few lines above or next to the eye.

- Soft parts you might not think about but do squish: noses, cheeks, anything around the eyes (The appearance of eyes is affected by squish!), ears, necks, the fat under the jawline (even on thin people there's a layer that can and will double chin-ify itself), LIPS and MOUTHS, arms, back of the neck, WRISTS

- Hands are probably bigger than you think. The average human palm w/ the fingers spread can reach the size of the whole face. Hand is damn near as long as one's face, from chin to forehead.

- Nose! Bridge! Scrunches! Remember SCRUNCHES

- The chin can in fact come as far front as the nose. Some noses may be longer and pointier, some chins may be more protruding.

- There's usually if not always a small dent under the lower lip, right between it and the chin. Especially so for bigger lips!

- Hair isn't as heavy as you might think (Except things depending on texture such as locs!!), and will drape and stick to fabric or skin easily