How to draw comic directly with photoshop

[wangsamax]

Hi guys,

I wanna share that we can draw comic directly with photoshop without paper and scanning.
This is my comic that i made directly with photoshop.
http://m.tapastic.com/series/TheOrigins
The key point is you must master pen tool.
It's hard and confusing for the first time, but if you master it. It will help your work lot faster and easy.

I learn how to use pen tool from here

[efdvorsky]

It really depends on your preference, I think?

I personally like drawing sketchy lining since my focus is color. I do almost everything exclusively in PS minus the text which falls in Manga Studio's lap. but I tend to use a big canvas and then shrink it down from there. If I want to use a clean line, then I MIGHT move on to the pen tool, although it's easier for me to just use a vector art program for that and then apply the effects I'd want.

For what you're trying to accomplish, I think the use of the pen tool works but it shouldn't be the only alternative.

Also I first thought this would be a tutorial being under the tips and tricks section, not gonna lie. |D

[wangsamax]

Yes, i forgot to link the youtube tutorial video

[60Six]

Hm, like @efdvorsky said, I think its personal preference? I know I went through a period where I used it for all of my line art (Before working on comics) but then began to feel it gave all my art a very...inorganic feel. Line art's always been dreadful in photoshop which is why Sai is appealing to so many people, because it has a GREAT pen stabilizing tool. I personally couldn't make the switch though and now use a pencil brush that, when zoomed out, looks like just nice smooth line-art and goes far, far faster for me personally than the pen tool ever did and makes my art look far more organic and less stiff than it could with the pen tool.
That said, the pen tool has its places and uses! I use it for very geometric things with lots of straight lines like buildings or /very/ specifically curved lines, like for example, a lot of my characters masks:

Style also depends! I really feel like using nothing but the pen tool would be very, very out of place in my own comic but it works really well in other people's styles. Here's an example of where it looks pretty nice: http://www.deviantart.com/art/The-Lineart-Tutorial-32788129
I think this is a good example because looking at the results, you can't tell they used the pen tool. And generally (and I know I'm not alone on this opinion) if you can tell when something was drawn with the pen tool, there's often something that just feels very off about it. In other words, the pen tool is best used when the end results don't look like you used the pen tool.

But overall, I think it's definitely an important tool to know! It's very useful for lining certain things that have very specific shapes as well as figuring out vanishing points in perspective (which I use it for often). But is it necessary for drawing in photoshop? Nah, I don't think so, unless you find yourself fitting into a specific style that calls for it.

[demthorshie]

I've never really got the hang of the pen tool, but it would be very convenient if I could do all of my comic work using photoshop like i've done with my other comics (they were a lot more sketch based than my new stuff). But yea, it might be because i'm not the most Photoshop savvy person around but the pen tool for me has been really hard to use, which is probably why I also never got the hang of illustrator, because it reminded me a lot of that.

I think at the end of the day, ease of use for the artist is what's most important.

[UzukiCheverie]

The key point is you must master pen tool.

"Must" is a very strong word.

I despise everything that is the pen tool. Seriously. I hate it. Not because I don't know how to use it, like some people will try to convince me of, but because I just don't like it. Everything I've drawn in Photoshop, SAI, etc. has been done just fine without it, if not better, so to me, saying you "must" learn it is a bit of an overstatement (especially because in the video when they talk about whether or not it's necessary, short answer, no. It's a little contradictory).

Yes, the pen tool can work wonders, but it depends on what you're drawing, what style you're going for, etc. As someone who doesn't like to be constrained to fixed points and rulers, etc etc. the pen tool pisses me off lol

You can tell I have some strong beef to pick with it but I'll cut it here: it's not necessary. It's not a "must". Trying it out is a must, but you don't need to know how to use the pen tool or even enjoy using it to be able to create awesome work Saying it's a "must" couldn't be further from the truth.

[gateofselidor]

Yeah, the pen tool can be useful, but this is definitely a style and preference thing. Personally, I really enjoy pencilling my pages on actual paper. I feel more comfortable when there are fewer tools between the canvas and my hand. I do everything else in Photoshop, but even there I prefer to hand-draw it all, even when it's not strictly necessary. I don't even like using stabilising tools like those in Manga Studio and Sai. My lines are very smooth through practice, but they still have a hand-drawn quality to them that I like. The only part of the inking process I use a tool for is straight lines for buildings. My comics aren't fast or easy to draw at all, but they're not meant to be.

[VermillionWorks]

I tried using the pen tool for lineart once....wayyy too slow for me. Even if I got the hang of it eventually, still didn't like how slow it was. >.< Mostly just use the pen tool for word balloons now and sometimes parts of backgrounds.

I don't really even like to use Photoshop for lineart in general, I neeeedz the insta-smooth of MangaStudio's lines.

[iasucomic]

Or you could just draw it digitally in any of a million other ways.

Also, I hate the pen tool.

[Mharz]

If only photoshop brushes has auto-smoothing. My lines are always shaky if I do lineart manually there so I have to use pen tool...

[shaylafarley5]

I need paper and pencil so I can proportion every scene out correctly. I tried drawing just with photoshop and the image came out largely to huge or the opposite

[shaylafarley5]

Pen tool is easy to learn, I'm fast with it but without pen tool it will take me 2 days just to finish the background

[heterodont]

Tbh I primarily don't like the pen tool because it's not good for line weight - seeing as, unless you adjust it, the line weight will be the same throughout your picture. Having similar line weight through a drawing can make it appear lifeless/flat - unless you're going for the whole 'flat' look. For me, at least, it's too much extra effort to go through each anchor point to adjust the line weight when I can easily vary the pressure I'm putting my lines down with with a regular brush tool.

I'll admit it is handy for curves!

[scythe]

The pen tool?!

Nah, that's not for comics. Get yourself a tablet if you don't have one already and click on that little brush icon. A world of opportunity awaits!

[jacintawibowo]

Yeah as @UzukiCheverie mentioned, the pen tool isn't really a "must". I draw on photoshop from the start because I don't have a scanner and never really got into the pen tool.
I'm simiar with @gateofselidor in that I don't like stabilizing tools in Manga Studio or Sai. Through practice my lines have gotten ridiculously smooth to the point people have asked me if I vector my lines =P I'm not terribly fond of it, and really want to get the natural wibble in my inks back again. Pen tool is terrible for me in this regard and the style I want to achieve.

[kazukitakamura126]

I also use Photoshop as well. I haven't used the Pen tool much other than create a path for text. I prefer to use the Brush tool to draw. I may not be able to stretch it alot before it gets pixelated but, I can vary my lines types. You can look through my comic Seishin Patona to see what I am talking about.