Artists who work with multiple layers: why is it hard to use just one?

[rajillustration]

I think it depends on the person and your background. I was originally a traditional painter so I used to only paint in one layer basically all the time. I don't do that digitally anymore, mostly for speed reasons and certain techniques (I can actually get really layer heavy if I'm just trying stuff out and messing around) but like...you can easily paint on one layer. Especially if you are going for a painterly look. In fact I'll often just straight up flatten my image when I'm painting if I feel like I have too many layers going.

For stuff like comics where you need font and bubbles I use a billion layers, but that's another story and that's more to preserve them so I can edit better.

[MeltingCORE]

Like others, I personally use multiple layers to help differentiate things. So for a typical painting I'll have: skin layer, hair layer, clothes layer, background layer, particle effect layer, etc. I usually end up condensing them near the end though!

[Kaydreamer]

I could make a landscape painting on one layer easily enough - it wouldn't look anywhere close to my best work, but if I planned out the steps I was going to take, it'd be possible.

But there's no way I could recreate my usual style with a single layer. I have so many glowy lights, and stars, and gradiating colours... I need my layer modes, and I need to be able to segregate and alpha-lock colours in order to shade the way I like to.

I do tend to work with way fewer layers than a lot of artists, especially given mine is a sci-fi comic which requires fancy layer modes for glow effects. That stems from using Procreate with large canvas sizes, since that app limits layers relative to canvas size, DPI and RAM. I have more wiggle room now, since I upgraded to a new iPad, but I still have to watch my layer use carefully.

[Legendofgenii]

Layers are just a tool to make your life easier. I use 70+ in a finished panel sometimes - especially if it has a painted background.

I like being able to delete a layer if something isn’t working, or just nudge things around. I use multiply and Liner Dodge a lot too.

[ellendallanora]

Don't have any comics out there yet, but felt compelled to show up on this thread nevertheless. I am primarily a traditional artist, which is the epitome of someone who only works in one layer. Even so, when I make art digitally, I end up with lots and lots of drawing layers. I believe a project I am currently working on has about 60 of them. It is not a problem if you name each one of them, though. It all comes down to me not liking to erase things but also not being a fan of the transform tool either. If I did a scene with three characters and one background, I would probably do:

1. Three layers for the background sketch (rough, kinda nice and I think I can ink over this now).

2. Four for each character (rough poses, anatomy, clothes and I think I can ink over this now), which amounts to twelve layers in total.

3. One for inking the background.

4. Four to ink each character (body, clothes, props, stuff I didn't get right ), which amounts to twelve layers in total.

5. Since I do a layer for each color I put on the backgrounds or the characters, the flat layers can go anywhere from thirteen to twenty. Since we are talking about four characters and one background, let's say I would settle down for seventeen.

6. Then there are five colonizing layers: one for each character and two for the background.

7. Then there's one layer for shading and another layer for applying light.

8. I also do a layer mask where I put a noise filter.

That would be about 53 layers. And that is for a drawing I already sketched on paper. I don't know if I have a problem, but that's what works for me.

[surenlicious]

Why are people so obsessed with the number of layers we use in digital art... Traditional art uses layers too, or do y'all think those watercolours gonna look pretty with just one splash of paint. Copics look horrid with just one layer omg! XD

But as for digital, I like being organized and be able to quickly make changes. And whether I use one or 50, I don't see why it should matter to people, you're just gonna enjoy my finished work so enjoy it.

[rachurch95]

because it's easy with all the lineart and sketches tbh.

everything can have it's own layer, and we can go fix it without having to worry.

[gabriellabalagna]

Because digital art doesn't work the same as traditional. My top reason is that the lineart isn't permanently stuck as black pixels on the canvas.

If you tried to use one layer, you'd erase the lineart along with the sketch. You'd also mess up the lineart when you try to color it in.

[ghostmaya]

I want everything organize plus it's good to have multiple layers incase i want to recycle a scene or panel~

[steffiemusings]

I prefer using a few layers since it's easier to fix something and make touch-ups.

[iHateFridays]

Some people use like 400 layers which is crazy XD I usually don't go above ten tho. It's just easier to keep everything on separate layers haha

[thispersonishuman]

For me it's pretty much what everybody else said. It also makes it a lot easier to do a background, even if it's all one colour, because then, you can just fill the layer to your heart's content without having to worry about accidentally drawing over one of the things in your foreground. If I'm drawing something simple, like, idk, a very simple dog, and don't feel like colouring it or making it lineart, then yeah, I might only use one layer, but the more complicated and/or detailed my art is, the more layers I use because I like to make it easier on myself.