Colouring? Can we REALLY be bothered?

[Vanzish]

I like coloring, but i obsess over little details and it can be pretty time consuming. I can't leave it with flat colors, it eats at me if i do. Usually i alternate the processes, i line a character, then i color, so i won't have to line everything and then color everything, which can get a little too repetitive i suppose.

Monochrome is fine too, but i feel colors really help transmit certain emotions or states. The lack of color will have a greater impact at a certain point, if the rest is colored.

[igneriss]

My series is black and white, but I love colouring bonus pages or first page for each chapter. It gives more life to the characters, I guess c:
(but I might like it because I'm doing it only from time to time CX)

[UrMom]

Nah, I love colouring. Used to be a pro at it back when it didn't practically require a loan to buy copic markers.

While it can be repetitive, there are a few differences depending on what kind of comic you have. Story comics for example can have different moods, locations, and time frames, which prompts you to change your pallet to fit those new things. It's a great way to experiment with shading techniques, and colour choices that you wouldn't work with otherwise. You can even experiment with new mediums, such as mixing markers with colour paper, using combinations of different tools to get interesting results.
I feel that some comics also require colour in them to get the proper feel for the scene. Normally I prefer working with b&w and have a colourless comic off-site, but I decided to make 'Void'(Warning: Blood, violence, nudity) fullcolour because there will be some scenes in the comic that won't translate well without it. Sure, the process can be a pain, especially when you have a bunch of little things to colour. But the results are great!... sometimes.

[shaneoid77]

I love colouring, I am pretty new to rendering and can't believe some of the effects I've achieved by just experimenting. I've also worked on omitting heavy shadowing from my inks and filling them in with colours, so I think if you do things that way you're winning time on heavy inks and losing it back with the colours. Well, that's my experience anyway.

[J.MORK]

by the time i get to coloring i am happy to do it, because that means the hardest parts (drawing and lineart) are already over :]

one thing i do hate is coloring in digital flats. it is so repetitive and draining that i got completely fed up with it and switched to watercolor paints, which at least requires me to be intuitive

[Marton]

I quit coloring my comic because I felt that way. Did it hurt my comic? Not really. Sure, I haven't gotten as much attention as I did when I uploaded nearly 50 colored pages in one go. But nobody complained, nor even commented when I moved from colors to greytones.

Without colors I can focus on other things, like character design. I'm forced to make each character different in shape and form, since now I can't just give everyone different hair colors and call them unique.

[aspiderjonny]

Sometimes I go back an forth if I should just stop coloring, but I actually like coloring now. It was a huge hassle in the beginning but now I think my coloring has gotten much better and improves my comic. I've done some black and white stuff before, but the my main comics just feel incomplete without color. I don't blame anyone for quitting colors, though. It is a long process for a basically free webcomic.

Honestly if there's one thing I wish someone else would do, it's the inking. Coloring takes longer, but ink feels longer to me. And I don't think my inking is up to par with my pencils or colors.

[Lani]

i dont mind if comics are in color or not (honestly i think if u color your entire comic you deserve a medal) and i think it comes from growing up on manga instead of western comics? grayscale doesnt really take anything away from it for me as a reader, but it does make seeing everything in color more special. it feels like a treat when you get an insert or a page in color!!

as for drawing i hate coloring no matter what. i even hate coloring in grayscale. im just impatient

[shauniredfearn]

I actually like adding colors because I can use them to convey different emotions in the story. For example if my subject matter is really dark and negative I like making the majority of the page grayscale with hints of bold colors like deep reds On the other hand, when my page is more positive I tend to go full blown color. It makes it more fun thinking about how I can symbolize different emotions behind the colors and tie them in. It becomes a compliment to the meaning of the story I'm telling and less like a chore.

[scythe]

I love colouring. It's when the page comes to life.

[carloswebcomic]

Colouring sucks balls. That's why I use flat colours and old paper texture.

Frankly, I'd rather do my comic in black and white, but you know, readers and stuff.

[Airgita]

I like colouring when there's time to experiment and figure things out. Or if there's already a very clear direction that the page needs to look. Inking though... shakes fist and screams into the sky

Black and white is great but I find it simultaneously harder and easier to figure out than colours. Grayscale is easier but nowhere as beautiful as the other 2 options--in my personal experience of my own work at least.

[Mharz]

I actually like coloring despite the fact that I do my webcomic in grayscale. It's fun to study color and light theories. I don't mind coloring comics as paid work. The reason why I don't do it on my own webcomic on the other hand, is because I like to save for the printing cost (since it's mass production) plus it takes me longer to do and I don't have that kind of patience. I DO like doing colored illustrations and digital paintings and since my webcomics are grayscale, my illustration has an extra weight of special into them.

[KSlinger]

Same for me. I hate colouring. It's the biggest thing that slows me down and I had no idea what I was doing when I started so it's been a serious uphill struggle.

I was also a total idiot and chose a village on fire AT NIGHT as my second plot location. Whyyyy.

[zaksimmondshurn]

I hate doing the flatting (it's so slow and a real chore) but once that's out of the way I find the rest of the colouring process pretty fun! Working with a colourist can be nice though, it's a real pleasure just steaming through pages of inks without having to worry about going back to them afterwards.

[aFistFull]

Ha! I like that. 'Remove as many excuses for people not to like my comic'. The limited colour pallet is a good idea. It makes me think of early Tank Girl stuff. The coloured ones anyway. Full of colour BUT not full of shading and blending colour if you get my meaning.

[DeadAccount]

I do hate flatting and I did contemplate doing a B&W/grayscale comic, but colour is crucial for me. I like playing around with the lighting and mood in my pages, and since I don't do many black shadows in my inking, all of it falls onto colouring. I change my colour pallettes pretty much every time a scene changes to keep myself from getting bored

[aFistFull]

Very much agree. Sin City pops into my mind straight away. The stark black and white can create very powerful imagery.

[aFistFull]

Funny, I'm the opposite. I LOVE the sketching part. At times it's frustrating but I do love it. I suppose that's why the comic industry is so divided up with, artist, colourist, inker, etc.

[aFistFull]

@vincentprendick That is a good idea. I like the Mom Jokes one (don't see a lot of pink in comics).

@kurapikasuki Well, damn. That sucks. I have slight joint pain too in my wrist and elbow at times from a stupid self-inflicted injury. I find the LINE is a site with people that are a lot more critical without the helpful feedback.

@Shanny8 I will admit that it's quite fun messing around with different brushes.

@christinaeliz Ha! You've gotta put that idea forward. 'Make This Pretty' button would be amazing. Your black and white/screentone work very well with the style of your comic (great art btw).

@elixiadragmire Holy shit you went full on with the colour didn't you? Not THAT is the stuff I love yet find so difficult to do.

@VermillionWorks VERY accurate.

@Hot_Coffee I agree. If it's 80's I personally feel that the bright pastel/neon colours are very important.

@Bloomer I feel your pain. The comics are great but DAMN expensive. I agree. One comic of bombastic colour could be needed whilst another slightly bleak feel would be better. Gotta say, your comic colours has an 80'sish vibe too it. Very nice.

@carloswebcomic Damn those shallow reader.

SOMETIMES I almost find myself rewriting a scene because I think about the colours involved.