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So, Process, yeah? Everybody talks about it. Post about your own process on social media sometime, and you'll likely get unsolicited advice. "Here's what you should do!"
Meh. Lemme talk to you about this for a minute, my fellow artists.
Meh. Lemme talk to you about this for a minute, my fellow artists.
First, there is no "should". Unsolicited yammering from even well-meaning internet denizens notwithstanding, chart your own course.
Your process only needs to work for you.
That's it.
Your process only needs to work for you.
That's it.
You don't need it to be flashy in a viral video.
You don't need some internet stranger to admire you.
You don't need someone to interview you for an article talking about how fast / impressive / groundbreaking your process is.
Nice, any of it. But you don't NEED it.
You don't need some internet stranger to admire you.
You don't need someone to interview you for an article talking about how fast / impressive / groundbreaking your process is.
Nice, any of it. But you don't NEED it.
The litmus test: Does it work for you without causing you pain (physically or emotionally)?
If so... guess what? Your Process Works.
For you.
NOTE: It needs to be comfortable for you, or you won't want to do it.
But if it works, you can ignore the *Should-ers.*
If so... guess what? Your Process Works.
For you.
NOTE: It needs to be comfortable for you, or you won't want to do it.
But if it works, you can ignore the *Should-ers.*
Now. You can improve your process, sure. But only if *you* want to.
Want to get faster? That seems to be most artists' lament, because there's NEVER enough time.
Efficiency matters. There may be steps you can skip or combine. You might benefit from a new tool or program.
Want to get faster? That seems to be most artists' lament, because there's NEVER enough time.
Efficiency matters. There may be steps you can skip or combine. You might benefit from a new tool or program.
Lemme give you an example. My process on Moon Town (c. 2009) was:
1. Pencil layouts on paper.
2. Scan.
3. Clean up. Polish composition, fix anatomy etc.
4. Print out
5. Ink on a separate page on top of the print, on a light table
6. Scan
7. Letter, Color, Finalize.
8. Done.
1. Pencil layouts on paper.
2. Scan.
3. Clean up. Polish composition, fix anatomy etc.
4. Print out
5. Ink on a separate page on top of the print, on a light table
6. Scan
7. Letter, Color, Finalize.
8. Done.
I should point out that printing the pencils and scanning the inks involved multiple steps. I had a cheap printer (all I could afford) that could only do 8.5x11", but I was working at 11x17".
Lots of doubling up, taping pages, registering the two halves in Photoshop, etc.
Lots of doubling up, taping pages, registering the two halves in Photoshop, etc.
I described that process to someone one time and they told me it was "ridiculous".
Well, that is the process that was working for me. And it resulted in stuff like this two-page spread from Moon Town.
I was happy with it.
Well, that is the process that was working for me. And it resulted in stuff like this two-page spread from Moon Town.
I was happy with it.
BUT. I also was disappointed with how long these pages took me. And looking at that process objectively, while I still wouldn't call it "ridiculous", I can see several places I could improve. And over the past ten years, I have.
Here's what I did, a few steps at a time:
Here's what I did, a few steps at a time:
First, penciling, then scanning, then tweaking the pencils, is a lot to go through. The Tweaking phase took me a while and was definitely something I was doing because I lacked confidence in my first pass. I just knew there was nothing I couldn't digitally fix in my second pass.
The trick, for me, was to get better at - or have more confidence in - my straight pencils so I wasn't drawing, scanning, cleaning up and drawing a second time BEFORE I inked.
That second pass was a potentially duplicate step, so it was the first step I looked to remove.
That second pass was a potentially duplicate step, so it was the first step I looked to remove.
Here's the thing, though. If your process works for you, every step of it is there for a reason. Now, it could be a good reason. Or it could be a bad reason. Habit, for instance. Or insecurity.
We might also call this a crutch.
We might also call this a crutch.
If you have duplicate or inefficient steps in your process, you may be using them as crutches. But crutches are supposed to support you while you get better. Once your leg - or your process - is better, you don't need the crutch.
But you need to get better first.
But you need to get better first.
We might do well to view these process quirks not as crutches you depend on, but as training wheels you can outgrow. So to improve your efficiency, you work on outgrowing them.
Believe it. You *can* train yourself out of depending on those steps.
In my case, it was spending a little more time on the raw pencils. Slow down, learn to fix my draftsmanship in the first pass rather than relying on digital tricks to fix it in a second pass later.
In my case, it was spending a little more time on the raw pencils. Slow down, learn to fix my draftsmanship in the first pass rather than relying on digital tricks to fix it in a second pass later.
If you want to do it, but it sounds hard, my advice: Start with one panel. Sure, the rest of the piece will be your normal, crutch-or-training-wheels-assisted tweak-fest, but one of the panels on the page, you will focus on getting right WITHOUT that second pass.
Next time, two panels. And so on. Train yourself out of it.
Paradoxically, by slowing down in the first pass, you will learn to avoid the second pass, and your overall speed will have improved. It's simply more efficient.
Paradoxically, by slowing down in the first pass, you will learn to avoid the second pass, and your overall speed will have improved. It's simply more efficient.
My next stage of improvement may not be for everybody, but I'm glad I did it. I saved up for 5 years and in 2013 finally bought myself a Cintiq. So now, I "pencil" and "ink" digitally, so I don't have those wasted scanning and re-scanning sessions.
Plus, working digitally has liberated me quite a bit. I'm free to take chances. If I make a mistake on pencils or inks, it's CTL+Z, and try again. Iteration is the key to improvement. Working digitally & getting to redo things as I go, has ramped up the frequency of my iteration.
So now my process is:
1. Layouts in Photoshop. Rough in text at this stage.
2. Pencils in Photoshop.
3. Inks in Clip Studio Pro. (I like the brushes better, but don't like the text generator there)
4. Color in Photoshop.
5. Final lettering. Done.
1. Layouts in Photoshop. Rough in text at this stage.
2. Pencils in Photoshop.
3. Inks in Clip Studio Pro. (I like the brushes better, but don't like the text generator there)
4. Color in Photoshop.
5. Final lettering. Done.
Not everyone can go digital. Certainly not everyone can afford a Cintiq. But an iPad with ProCreate or ClipStudio will get you there for a fraction of the price. If you want.
CTL+Z is really the best training wheels I've ever used.
CTL+Z is really the best training wheels I've ever used.
Of course, not everyone WANTS to work digitally. I am not here to change your mind, only to tell you that it has changed my life.
My process works for me.
I hope you find the process that works for you, and that if there is an area you can improve it, that you will.
/THREAD
My process works for me.
I hope you find the process that works for you, and that if there is an area you can improve it, that you will.
/THREAD
