Arty Tips Thread

[SirGutsalot]

If you had to give 1 tip from your little or expansive experience in art what would that be?
I think it would be cool if we could create a bank of arty knowledge so.....

My tip:
When creating an artwork for a comic/art sake, try to make natural borders which keep the audience's eyes entertained. Without natural borders, the eyes will simply fly off the page and there will be nothing for them to bounce back into the action with. Anything really can be used for a natural border (people, cars, buildings etc.). Also, triangles are an important/effective tool for this, for example, having a tree, a dog, and a person.

I'd love to hear what you have learnt!

[Kyuu]

Hmm... I guess my tip will be:

When coloring, remember the importance of Brightness, Saturation, and Warm/Cool. I think most ppl understand brightness, so I'll mainly keep it to saturation and warm/cool. First, More saturated a color is, it pops up! Using muted color on the background or figures on the background will help focusing on the things that are important. As for warm/cool, remember that shadow is not just blacker version of the color you use. It is usually cooler, meaning make that shadow a bit bluer (in simple term.... actually it's a bit more complicated than that). And when there is sunlight shining, make it warmer.

I... am too lazy to proofread that, so lmk if that didn't make any sense.

[heraclus]

have fun, enjoy what you do , be positive , be thankfull , enjoy everymoment of insparation.

[Overlord_Thundersnow]

My tip:When creating an artwork for a comic/art sake, try to make natural borders which keep the audience's eyes entertained. Without natural borders, the eyes will simply fly off the page and their will be nothing for them to bounce back into the action with. Anything really can be used for a natural border (people, cars, buildings etc.). Also, triangles are an important/effective tool for this, for example, having a tree, a dog, and a person.

A good trick I always use is I try and angle my art inward from the border to draw the viewers eyes towards what I want them to look at.

Snow-capped mountains, swaying pine trees, flying severed limbs, etc.

My latest page really utilizes action arrows in a unique but effective and fun way.

[Evan]

My tip:
If you're looking for useful art tips, don't listen to me.

[NanettesClouds]

Sorry if this doesnt make much sense - I'm sick and I have a bad headache but I'm so tired of doing nothing all day.

My tip: Dont let whatver you think your style is hold you back from experimenting with new ways of drawing. A lot of beginners use style as an excuse to not learn things (I dont need to learn anatomy it's a cartoon!), dont do that please, your style will be so much better if you learn things. But I think a lot of more advanced artists (myself included) run into this weird state where we have some set understanding of what our style is, and we wont bother experimenting with it, and we'll lock ourselves in to drawing in a specific way rather than trying new things.

With comics especially I think a lot of us should start thinking of style as a tool for storytelling that can changed as needed rather than having it be a fixed thing that you decide on at the beginning of your project. More recently I've been changing the way I draw my characters based on how relatable I want them to be at any given moment, more cartoony = more relatable, more realistic = less relatable. Its subtle but I think it's neat.

That was sorta two related tips I guess. Hopefully they made enough sense??

[DMBrigman]

My tip would be
"Don't be afraid to use reference! It helps your art look better and can help you improve much faster than just struggling through poses. It is not cheating."

[ryoko]

Just have fun and draw....draw and draw and draw and draw.

[revisionstudios]

Hmm. My tip for comics in particular is:

It's more about communication than the quality of art. A comic that is super pretty but doesn't communicate the story well (either through visual cues, proper panel layout, or bubble placement) will make me put it down faster than a story with bad art that I can actually read. Some communication skills are intertwined with the art aspect (after all, ideally you should be able to understand what's going on without dialogue) BUT that doesn't mean you need to be a master of technical skill. Comics are a storytelling medium, and getting your story across is what's most important imo.

[JenniferBourne]

That's one reason that Hyperbole and a Half works well. The drawing style is simplified, but you can look at it and instantly "get" what's going on.

[trashcider]

Thumbnail out your ideas first! For comic pages, but also just for individual drawings. Better to figure out the best composition and lighting/coloring concept after 10 min of sketching than 2+ hours into a drawing when you realize you need to redo half of it because it just doesn't work.

[Michelle]

My tip is more of a technical one but

MIRROR YOUR DRAWINGS WHILE YOU'RE WORKING!

Like, really, your drawing might look beautiful one way but when you flip it horizontally you realize it's all skewed to one side. Flip back and forth to ensure there's no weird distortion happening. I like to sketch my comic pages one way then flip horizontal and ink it backwards. If you're working traditionally, use a mirror!