How do you show memories in your comic?

[Legendofgenii]

Hi everyone.

I have a few flashback/memories coming up and was wondering how to make it clear that's what they are. I'm not sure whether to greyscale, fade them or feather the edges (would that look pants?) or something else?

So out of interest - what does everyone else do?

[EmmyPax]

I keep it pretty simple.

My comic is done in watercolor, so I like playing around with some of the splooshes and shapes you can get with that medium, so all my scene changes are separated by dots of watercolor (color varies depending on the color of surrounding panels/mood). Then I slip in some explanatory text, as such:

Then those dots get repeated when the scene ends.

Most of my memory sequences have been variants like that.

[oshirockingham]

Depends on the situation, is it a quick flashback, or an exclusive flashback episode.
the quick one in my comic just like thoughts because yeah memories and flashback are basically thoughts.

[Legendofgenii]

I really like this! See this is your thing - I'm not sure I have a thing yet?

In the scene I'm doing two characters are chatting, so the memory panels will be shown as they narrate (and keep flipping back to the present). It will hopefully be obvious, but I'm worried about confusing anyone.

[Legendofgenii]

Yes, quick ones with some narration.

[Hazumirein]

My whole comic was in grayscale so I couldn't change the look of the art much ahaha. I pretty much just italicized the text and left it at that. If it was just one or two panels as opposed to a pages-long flashback I might have feathered the edges or something to that effect.

[Chita]

I usually use dark gutters and some kind of distinction like unusual panel shapes or a small grainy filter over the drawing.

[Legendofgenii]

Thank you Chita. I might try adding some noise to it. That could work. I just don't want to apply too many effects and possibly ruin the artwork.

Maybe I'll upload them here first and get some opinions.

[Kann]

I use limited color palette and make panel borders more blurry or just different in some way. It all depends on what kind of memory is that (good or bad). Some kind of filter is also a good idea.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I use sepia tones and add blurry lines to make it feel dreamy. I usually put the character doing the remembering in the same panel also, but in their regular color scheme.

[TheGentleArtist]

Having somewhat cloud effects for the bubble or scene helps with showing that it is a flashback or memory

[nostalgicroxas]

I recently read a comic that uses color sparingly, but that all flash-backs are strictly black and white and lean heavier on the "white" side with minimal shadows/textures and so on.

[But_a_Jape]

In this comic, I use airbrush coloring and colored lines to give the memory a dreamlike or storybook (since it's a childhood memory) kind of feel, as opposed to the solid colors and bold black lines of the present. This is a gag comic though, so I don't know if this technique would work as well in a more serious work, though I can see it being used if the memory is an innocent childhood memory.

[pilot-obvious]

I'm planning on doing a flashback scene in my next episode! I decided I'm going to do a black background and a very limited color palette with white line art! It'll be much more abstract than other scenes in my comic.

[mdchristopher]

I came up against this question for the first time on my most recent comic! After some trial and error, I wound up rounding the edges of the panels and applying a fade to it.

[ogjuic]

i try to make it be seen though the eyes of who ever is remembering something not only to show a different perspective and be different from how majority of comics/manga do memory scenes but to also help my self become a better artist/illustrator

[AmysGames]

It depends! For lengthy flashback sequences, I usually just make it clear through narration that it's a flashback. Sometimes I'll do some cool visual effect to show when the flashback is over:

For single panel flashbacks, I just round the borders:

And for single lines of dialogue, I just put the relevant character inside of a thought bubble:

[Coati]

I use a parchment like texture.

[dsptss78]

I usually transition to memories in crucial moments. For example if the character is passed out or severely injured i show flashbacks. I'll usually open up with the time frame stating when it was or what stage of life the character was in during the flashback.

[Legendofgenii]

Thank you everyone! I'm going to play around with a few of these ideas.