Does anyone else spam undo when inking their comic?

[SkittishSmile]

Hi folks,

Digital comic artist here! It hasn't always been so, but digital art has become my favorite medium. Despite it's many advantages, I've found I've developed some...unsavory habits. Specifically I am overdependent on the undo button!

I know inking comics is often the hardest and longest step for artists. I often find that when I'm inking a line (especially one that is particularly long) I routinely will attempt and undo lines 3-10 times for every stroke! I get results that I'm happy with, but at what cost?

When I draw traditionally, I obviously can't undo, but I don't seem to have this same problem. I'm puzzled about why my accuracy goes down the drain when I use the tablet! Has anyone else had this problem? Learning art is hard, and a constant process, but we do get better over time!

Thanks!
Skittish Smile

[darthmongoose]

What are you app and tool inking with? It might be that you need to tweak the stabilisation setting on your brush up or down? I still spam undo a lot, but having the correct amount of stabilisation helps a lot for me. I also often cheat on curves with the curve tool if I need them really smooth, or use the line tool for lines that need to be perfectly straight.

Oh and another trick is always work bigger and then scale down for the version you put online. It helps iron out small wobbles and gaps as well as looking crisper.

[crowstories]

Yes, I redraw every line like 50 times. And then I get frustrated when I'm doing traditional art because I can't undo (though as you said, my line control is much better with pen and paper). I think using traditional materials gives you a sort of tactile feedback (I swear there's a term for this, I just can't think of it) that helps you to control your lines. A big factor is that the calibration is never that great on my tablet, and while slightly textured, the surface just doesn't have the same feel... I've just learned to look at the cursor instead of the pen tip, which helps a lot.

[crowstories]

Yes, stabilization is key! Though on some apps I've used it causes a delay in the cursor movement that completely defeats the point.

[IndigoShirtProd]

Funnily enough, inking is one of my favorite parts of the process, mainly because it takes me the shortest to do. I have the stabilization pretty high for my lineart because of how angular it needs to be. I think what can keep people from constantly undoing is spending more time cleaning up their sketches. Sometimes people with looser sketches have to do a lot of make up during the lineart leading to redoing a lot of their lines.

[hjpetersonauthor]

Definitely feel personally attacked by this thread, lol. At one point, I'd gotten so used to drawing on my ipad that I was doing something on paper, and my dumb butt tried to hit the undo button after I made a mark I didn't like lol

[SkittishSmile]

@darthmongoose
I've jumped around but I'm currently using ClipStudio Paint with an iPad and apple pencil. Messing with the stabilization is a great suggestion! I've never touched that setting in most of my apps... oops haha. I'll try these things out, thank you for the tips!
I've also noticed I draw lines quicker digitally, because I tend to have my pressure sensitivity up really high and if I go too slow I get weird blobby lines. I think I need to try to slow down a little

@crowstories
Glad I'm not alone in this! The texture of the paper for sure does seem to make a big difference, I agree. Thanks for the suggestions!

@IndigoShirtProd
Haha I'm a bit jealous you can ink so quickly! I appreciate the tips, my sketches can tend to be pretty sparse

@hjpetersonauthor
Oh gosh, I do this all the time. Just yesterday I two finger tapped my sketchbook...

[hjpetersonauthor]

Glad I'm not the only one lol - my entire family makes fun of me for it

[Kura]

Yes, I just find it faster than trying to adjust the vector layers for most situations (it really depends on how many control points it's giving me to work with)

The tablet also doesn't have the drag of paper and has a more slippery surface, so it's more common for me to mess up or be a little off when the surface is so slidy compared to a surface with actual drag that give me more control over my lines. (I know there's kind of textured stickers you can put on to mimic paper drag, but a big reason I had to move to digital and can no longer draw traditionally is because the drag from he paper fucks up my arthritis a LOT faster than a smooth slidy surface)

[SkittishSmile]

Oh that's a good idea, I usually don't work in vector layers! Thanks for sharing! I hadn't considered the slippery surface being good for arthritis before, I'm glad it makes art more accessible to you!

[Koneko-chan-hai]

Doesn't everybody though? Inking is the worst part of drawing a piece

[thecrystalrook]

I can't undo, I'm working by hand I gotta get it right the first time

[rajillustration]

If you're drawing in Clip Studio I highly recommend drawing in vectors so you can just--sort of scooch the line over after you've drawn it. I don't use Clip a ton, but that's been really nice so I can keep the parts of the line that were on it, and just kinda scooch what's not. There's a hotkey (don't remember it at the moment) that makes the draw tool to scooch tool to draw tool switch really easy and quick to do.

When I'm not on Clip, it's either I either am using a brush I don't like (it's OK to blame your brush. We all have different hands, and I actually draw a little better in Photoshop than Clip, which is kind of weird) or I need a better stabilization tweaked (I actually use Lazy Nezumi for this) and I rotate my canvas and zoom in so the curve matches my hand. Not sure if that helps, but good luck with the inking!

[thomassayle]

i draw better on paper too, i think its cause i have more control and feedback on paper than a tablet.

I can rotate the paper or me to however I want, I can zoom out and zoom in better and the harshness of the screen compared to the paper.

[irresponsiblepics]

I recently moved away from digital to trad inking....my eyes are old and bent.
I loving the commit aspect to it.
Just seems more rewarding when it goes well.
Feels like I'm actually developing a skill without the temptation of a back/undo button.

[crowstories]

I rotate my canvas and zoom in so the curve matches my hand

This. SO much this. I want to draw everything in a downward motion from 12 to 9 o'clock.

....unless it's eyes and eye brows, in which case it's an upward motion from 9 to 12.... Oh, and collarlines are a downward arc from 12 to 6. Sorry, I'm done, now...

[SkittishSmile]

Haha glad I'm not alone in this! Props to you traditional artists making beautiful stuff without undo! Thanks everyone for your answers, it was super helpful!

@rajillustration thanks for the tips! I definitely don't take advantage of the vector layers and stability settings. Also l'm relieved @crowstories also rotate your canvas to match your hand haha! I do try to practice doing other strokes, but it's hard to beat the natural rotation of your wrist!

[Lady_T_Musings]

I'm trying mad crazy hard to get over doing that and just accept the lines as they are and move on XD. That undo loop is such a time devourer, so I'm trying not to feed it anymore. One thing I'm starting to do is make cleaner thumbnails so that when I ink, I don't have to second guess so much.

[jmhenry]

I do it a lot, but I try not to
Somtimes, it pays to let the small details go to get it done, at least, that's what I try to tell myself, lol