How do you begin Pencil or Digital?

[kencoon7]

I am wondering how you begin your comics?
Do you begin by making pencil and paper images of your characters in different positions or do you just go the digital route and begin with Clip Studio or some program like that and make everything from there.
Also, How do you maintain consistency in your character's appearance?
I have been going both ways and end up not finishing anything.

[shaneoid77]

I began using pencil sketches and scanning them in, and the rest digital. Once I got used to using my Wacom tablet enough, I went totally digital. I think it saves time and you can make instant adjustments. Nothing of note in this really, but I do think inking over your original pencil work is a good exercise in getting to grips with using a graphics tablet.

[FalseReality]

I started out 100% traditional (I drew in school a lot. And Im not talking about art class lol)

After I could afford SAI and a tablet, I went half and half. Now im 100% digital with Clip Studio Paint EX

As for character consistency AND individuality, Im not too good at it. I draw all of my characters in the same style, but I always make sure to give them something to stand out. Almost like an ID. Hairstyles are one way to do this, but you could use birthmarks, tattoos, or certain accessories that they always wear~

[shazzbaa]

I have a really back-and-forth process -- I start with small pencil scribbles of a page, adjust them digitally, print those out and do roughs on paper, scan them in, touch them up digitally, do perspective grids digitially, then print that out and do my pencils using pencil and paper, scan & print, then do my inks using pen and paper, then scan and colour digitally in photoshop!

It sounds really overcomplicated whenever I write it all out, but I sorta developed this process really slowly by trying different things and going with what made me able to work the most comfortably!

Also, How do you maintain consistency in your character's appearance?

I draw the character tons of times, from different angles and with different expressions. I kinda pay attention to what makes the character look like themselves -- when I draw them and they look "off," I try to figure out what I changed. After you've drawn a character over and over and over and over again, it's a lot easier to keep them consistent.

If I haven't drawn a character in a while and they're not coming out right, sometimes I'll take a break to do a couple quick sketches of them outside the comic, to get the hang of them again.

[Quinineer]

Do you begin by making pencil and paper images of your characters in different positions or do you just go the digital route and begin with Clip Studio or some program like that and make everything from there.

Because I have no idea what I'm doing, I always just jump in with digital lineart. If I'm working at a high resolution (e.g for art pieces rather than comics), I will make a sketch first so the lineart is smooth.

Also, How do you maintain consistency in your character's appearance?

Well, of course there are the character's physical attributes (face, eyes, hair, height, etc.), but sometimes, small differences really define a character. For example, their stance or expression. As shazzbaa said, once you've drawn a character many times over, you know how they look without really thinking about it. To add to this, as you draw a character more and more, you get the sense of which parts of their design need improvement, or change, because drawing that part of the design gets irritating to draw, or always looks "off".

[RyanScott]

I pencil and ink the old fashioned way. Ink on paper is therapeutic for me, almost like meditation. I then colour and letter in photoshop.

As for consistency in characters, just draw draw draw! In my opinion there is no substitute for just knowing how to draw your characters!

[AnnaLandin]

I use pencils to do thumbnails, but then I go full digital - using a combination of Manga Studio 4EX and Manga Studio 5 (i.e: Clip Studio).

Also, How do you maintain consistency in your character's appearance?

Well, uh, I have partial face-blindness, so I kind of don't when it comes to faces - I do my best to! I just can't always manage, because my brain works weird.

But in general, when it comes to consistent details in clothing and tattoos and scars and whatnot - I usually spend a lot of time scribbling and drawing in a sketchbook until I start getting the feel for how they should look, and then I draw a reference sheet for myself, where I draw them, in detail, from the front, back and sides, so I know what they look like from different angles. Then I keep that reference sheet on hand while I draw.

[vongcw]

Full clip studio paint for me. A layer for sketches, sometimes a second layer of sketches, inks, sometimes several layers for basis object depths, flats and shading on the same layer, often several layers of flats.

I really hate scanning things in. And i used to work between manga studio, ps and corel. Which was quite a pain. But once csp could color really well, life's been good.

[eleoza]

full clip studio here too.
I start with drawing panels, then I sketch the characters in the panels, then add speech bubbles (I add speech bubbles early so I can adjust the sketches if the bubbles don't fit) then I add the line art + color.

[Zanreo]

I do my comic 100% digital in Manga Studio 5. Though I do sometimes sketch out layout/storyboard on paper for what it's worth

[timinabox24]

I begin on my phone and finish on my computer

[LoboSong_Hitaka5Ever]

I have to draw on paper first, scan it in, and digitally trace over it. As for with my friend's and my comic, we do everything digitally

[gateofselidor]

I do the pencils traditionally, then scan and do everything else digitally. I can sketch digitally, but I like using pencil and paper, and it gives me the flexibility to work on the comic away from my computer.

For maintaining character consistency, it's just a matter of practice. The more you draw someone, the more used to their features you become. You should spend plenty of time sketching for practice before you begin drawing them in actual pages, and creating a reference sheet with them at different angles is also helpful.

[serverpanda]

I used to be able to work digitally, but have recently developed a disability that causes me to have seizures from prolonged exposure to computer screens. Which means doing art on a computer is a big no. :'D Therefore my process is entirely traditional. I pencil everything, I even do my lettering traditionally (which is still a huge learning curve for me, but I'm working on it). After that I ink with proper inking pens and a brush pen, erase my pencil later and then add my shading with Prismacolor markers.

As far as keeping characters fairly consistent? I have character sheets that I go by. That way I shouldn't forget any major details.

[Kayke]

I do my sketches and inks traditionally; colors and lettering digitally.

It's a good idea to draw character sheets and some concept art of your characters before you start so you can get a feel for them. They're probably going to change a little over time as you draw them more, I know some of my characters look different now than they did in issue 1. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just your style evolving. So long as the changes are kind of gradual and the character stays recognizable I wouldn't stress TOO much about it. It happens a lot in webcomics and in print comics and even cartoons.

[Doubtcent]

Sort of both.
If I'm doodling, I'll sketch through clip studio paint (with the multitudes of pencil tools). I also sketch a lot in a notebook, and sometimes those sketches are a lot better than anything I could ever do digitally, so if I want to ink I just take a picture and start inking over it digitally.

[Shanny8]

I started out traditional penciling/inking and scanning my stuff on a copier. But last year I invested in Clip Studio, which stimulated me to try doing comics digitally. I played around for a few months, drawing stuff to make sure I had gotten used to working with my tablet. Nowdays I pencil & ink in Clip Studio.

[CaptainUfo]

The first dozen or so pages of Captain Ufo were drawn and inked on paper, then scanned and colored digitally. Then I managed to buy a Cintq and since then I work 100% in Photoshop, from thumbnails to final colors.

[joannekwan]

I do everything digitally in photoshop, it cuts out the middleman scanner.

However when I'm bored on the couch sometimes I'll sketch in a sketchbook just character portraits mostly to keep myself in practice.

Character consistency comes with just drawing your character over and over again.

[ConradComics]

Pencils first, then scan and ink digitally.