Last week I finished the artwork for a post-apocalyptic four page short story written by Steff Murschetz. The story is made for the relaunch of the U-Comix Magazine, which will be released at the German free comic book day in May this year.
It was the
first time I did the artwork for a story I haven't written by my self. It felt
so much easier because the only thing I had to worry about was the art. Usually
I still think a lot about the story during the drawing process and do changes
here and there or try to bring completely new ideas in. How you can imagine
this way to work hast its benefits and I like it, but at the same time it slows
you down and sometimes your head feels like it could explode any moment. To
much distraction...
I think I should work with writers more often.
Like I said
it's a four pager so I can't show to much without spoiling the whole story.
Here is a coloured
version of a panel I have already shown on Twitter. It's the main character.
And here is
a new one in some making process steps:
Step 1:
Digital "pencils"
I always
start digitally. I'm working in photoshop with a wacom intous tablet. I like to
do it digitally because it's very easy to make changes, move things around and
resize the drawings. That helps a lot and saves time especially in the layout
phase.
Step 2:
Traditional inks
After
printing out my digital "pencils" I use a light-box and start to ink
and define the pencils on a new sheet illustration paper.
I could do
this step digitally too but I wouldn't have an original page at the end, and I
don't like inking digitally. Not with a tablet at least. Maybe it would work
better with a cintiq, but I haven't tried one yet, so I can't tell.
Step 3:
Flats
After
scanning the inked page I start to divide the page in flat colours and save
them on a separate layer. At the end the single objects on a page are separated
and can be easily picked with the "Magic Wand Tool" any time. So I
can paint on a separate layer without the need to be careful at the edges of
the chosen field. Of course the line art is on a separate layer too.
Step 4:
Final colours
I start
with the final colours on a new layer. I keep it simple and don't render to
much. I want the line art to be dominant.
Maybe you
have noticed that I changed the hair of the left guy a little bit. I tried to
let it look more like in step 1. It felt more fluid, not so stiff.
At this
point the original page and the printed page will look a little bit different.
