Help and Advice on future project of mine

[Rooster]

Sorry, no actual "arts" to show, just want people's opinions.

Ok, so I'm planning a graphic novel of sorts. My plan is that in the long run, I can print them off and sell them as complete works.

However, I'm sort of stuck on a style to persue. The story itself is set squarely within the Science-fiction genre, therefor I was going to try and draw it like the X-files is filmed...with lighting effects.

Any advice on how to do this properly, with links or whatever would be apreciated.

Cheers, ta.

[osprey]

Dodge and burn are your friend. Also, rendering lighting effects can be surprisingly effective.

I will make some demos today.

[Rooster]

I already know how to use the burn and dodge tools, and the lighting effects, as this pic shows:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y94/Wh ... Eleven.jpg

But what I'm asking is less about "how to colour" it, and more "how to make it look good without taking three hours on one frame" (that pic alone took about an hour to sketch, ink, colour, and shade...and it's pretty basic.)

Anyone that knows anything about drawing comic books or graphic novels....I haven't read a comicbook since Tankgirl, so I'm not really well versed on how to make them look good. What techniques work, what don't, how do I plan the pages? That sort of thing.

[Steve the Pocket]

The best way to achieve a "comic book style" that I know of is to do a combination of solid block shading and airbrushed shading. The best way to do that is to create two new layers, both with roughly 25% opacity, and do solid shading on one and airbrushed shading on the other, both with black. And then another layer for the occasional highlights. The closest thing to a real example of this in my own work is here, but VG Cats does a better job of the same thing.

[The Donmeister]

Awesome pic, Roo.

[Fritz]

It's all about the crazy camera angles.

[FerretParade]

You need to get into Doug TenNapel books. Those are graphic novels! Don't even go digital for them. Digital graphic novels plain suck

[Rooster]

I'm planning on putting it online, page by page, but not in the same standard that I'd sell them at (eg, no colour or shading/lighting effects unless nessisary)

[FerretParade]

You need to practice the basics take black and white and find different ways to use them to attract the eye and where you want!


Contrast is fun = 0

[Rooster]

All the shading and contrast stuff I'm gonna do in post-production...sorry, I mean after I sketch them. Also, to speed up the process I might get a tablet as inking is what takes me the longest.

Also, I had an idea to colour it a little like the Sin City books, which were my favourite graphic novels until I read Tankgirl for the first time.

Also, is that Jess?

[Richard K Niner]

Also, is that Jess?

I was thinking Bosco...

[Rooster]

Actually, the spliff should give it away.

But then, I am pretty stoned right neow.

[Bocaj Claw]

I volunteer to be a beta tester. Whatever that means in terms of comicry anyway

[Rooster]

I volunteer to be a beta tester. Whatever that means in terms of comicry anyway

I think that's sort of a "sneaky-peeker". Jent's got that job at the mo, but you're welcome too dude. I trust yer.

[Bocaj Claw]

Cue the ominous music and ambient lighting.