Creating better backgrounds: Your advice?

[mariusthered]

I make my back grounds and have started building a library of them to use this page might help you see better how i do that. backgrounds

you could consider getting google sketchup for backgrounds

[Masterman]

Lots of people are giving good advice about your example, so I'm going to talk about the question more generally: how do you draw good interesting backgrounds, which is both difficult and time-consuming. Specifically, I'd like to share a "trick" that has helped me a lot. This came as advice from indy creator Jeremy Dale, but originally the idea came from the great Will Eisner. And his idea was simple: if you draw one rich, detailed background to open your scene, then in subsequent panels you can maintain that sense of setting just by adding simple little hints of that original image.

It makes sense in terms of how we read scenes: when we are someplace new, we explore the environment to learn where that is; hence the importance of the "establishing shot" in both comics and film. However, as the narrative moves forward, we focus on the character drama, and the background fades into... well, the background.

It's an approach that saves time and energy by letting you pour your effort into the places it will count. Personally, I tend to add background detail when the characters interact with the environment as well, and often to close a scene. But I also like to let it recede when I can, relying on the high impact shots I've already drawn. In this chapter: Swords, I do a fairly detailed backgrounds (for me) to open and close the scene, and some moderately detailed shots throughout as well. However, I also have a bunch that are really minimal; just a brown background with a gradient. And I also re-use sections of my detailed backgrounds for places where I just need a hint of the environment. And, when the shot stays the same, I just literally use the same cut-and-pasted background behind different figures.

That's my personal balance of variety and economy, but what's helpful is knowing when it matters most to have a detailed environment; first and foremost when a scene opens. And also that you can maintain that sense of presence by adding just one detail of that environment into following panels. Here's a quick example from Eisner; just three panels, but each of the latter two make reference to the super-detailed original, while themselves being far simpler:

Anyway, that's my $.02, hope it helps,

Adam

[Shanny8]

Study pictures, look at the outside scenery, how your neighborhood looks. Look at architecture/design- buildings, the inside of rooms, how door/window paneling looks. How furniture looks placed in a room. The stuff you draw doesnt have to be technically flawless & exact, but it needs to sell the scene- as well as the characters actions in relation to the scene.

[CaptainHoers]

That technique with the establishing shot is not one I'd thought of! That might save me quite a bit of time. But yes. Lots of interesting tips and techniques here about perspective and composition and effects. You mentioned looking for how to make perspective grids, I rather like a utility called Carapace, made by someone working at Epic Games. They don't have it for download on their website anymore (it was pulled down when they released UE4) so it might be kinda tricky to find, but it's free, lightweight, versatile and easy to use. If you'd like to give it a go and you can't find it, give me a PM and I'll see what I can do about sending you a copy of mine.

[mintycanoodles]

the bare bones of it -

when drawing backgrounds, keep in mind where the focus is, where the action's happening. you can tell where that's gonna be in this pic right?

basically just like, shine a spotlight where important things are happening.

and also, google sketchup is your friend. use it like a ruler. sure u can try to eyeball a straight line but you're allowed to use a tool to make it easier. and reference mi amigo, reference! find comics whose background art look you're going for and study them! trace them to get a feel of perspective and proportions.

[YangKoete]

As others have said above; Studying heavily from references, perspective, lighting, etc is where it comes in for a great foundation, but what you build it off of is another story.

What I've learned mostly is that routine persistance to practice off of said references is the only way to get better. I may not be as insightful or verbose right now (as it is 3 AM right now), but that's not going to stop me from saying that you can't get anywhere even if you're given the fuel - You need to use it.

[J.Z.Castillo]

1. I cry a lot about the many backgrounds I have to create
2. I go out and take pictures of everything, from architecture to nature
3. If I don't find real life references I go on the internet. If you have Adobe's Creative Cloud you can search their online database and find all sorts of references. Also, if you use Manga Studio/Clip Studio they also have a huge library of tools and reference materials you can search and use
4. Then I start merging and collagimg references together to create my backgrounds
5. Sometimes I cheat when I'm really lazy and trace all my backgrounds from actual photos
6. I also study A LOT of the backgrounds in comics by professional artists. You can learn SO much by just buying a comic and just seeing how the creators made those backgrounds! It also helps if you start to replicate those backgrounds in your sketchbook and learn their technique

[Pik]

TONS of good advice in this thread already. I just wanted to chip in to say that in addition to photos, Sketchup, etc, already mentioned, that Google Maps/Streets is a good reference too. Recently I discovered they've added a 3D feature to maps in some areas. (Click the 3D button in the lower right controls, hold shift and drag) And for street-level views, you can hit the Street View, too (drag the yellow person into a street)

I used this trick on this page with a shot of Tokyo, keeping focus on the street, with the rest fading in detail out to each side.

And for buildings that occur repeatedly and are shown from different angles, it's helpful to have a reference sheet drawn for it, just like a character. (Some buildings are a character ) Sometimes I've been bad at keeping consistency, though. ^^;;

[OgonoArtFamily]

Backgrounds are easy once you learn the mechanics behind one-point and two-point perspective. Art is very simplistic, it just gives the illusion of complexity. The page below is from my comic Osca

In addition, I made a YouTube tutorial on teaching backgrounds (it's my first time somewhat teaching this) haha. If you have advice on how i can improve my teaching, that'll be helpful! But, here's my in depth tutorial and in the link below I linked another short video on backgrounds.