I hate backgrounds

[sarrowsmith10]

just ranting over having used the line tool abusively

I actually think your use of the line tool here is pretty good! It's the same pixel width as your character lineart, so it seems to fit the overall style really well. Just keep at it, you are doing great! And if you are planning on coloring it, I think its going to look very good.

[jurinova]

I used to hate drawing backgrounds when I was younger but it was mostly because I didn't know how to draw them. Then at one point I simply decided to draw them no matter how ugly they turn out and suddenly it wasn't so bad anymore. Of course they didn't look great in the beginning but I started to enjoy the process. Now, in my opinion, I do backgrounds pretty well and I really have fun doing them. I love the fact that my comic gives me the opportunity to draw all sorts of places and design different types of landscapes and architecture. (Although, drawing the same background over and over again can be a bit tiring at times, heh.)

I courage anyone who hates backgrounds to draw more of them because it can really change your view on the matter.

[Izanyan]

Me too . I hate drawing backgrounds and sometimes I don't know what kind of background I should put in my comic .

[matsuyacreative]

I'm right there with you! But I found that having one establishing shot of the environment at the beginning of a new scene is the minimum requirement. After establishing the setting in which the characters occupy, the reader's brain will fill in the gaps, so to speak.

[insomniascrawl]

I hate them too honestly. I want my characters to float in white space too... Doing comics has forced me to do backgrounds even though I rarely did before, and I have to say it helps with artistic improvement!...
That said, I still hate them.

[joannekwan]

I mean, yeah they're a chore to do, but they help so much with the cinematography of a story.
Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em. :/

[Shiori_Saku]

One of the things that I work at constantly, as an artist, is complex backgrounds. Its easy to draw a character floating in space but making sure that they can interact in a "world" is much harder. I find drawing landscapes tedious but it's good practice for me.

I make myself do the things I don't like, ie drawing landscapes, because i cant progress as an artist if I dont. Talent will only get you so far, it's hard work and hundreds of pages of trash sketches that makes you great! As long as you learn from the trash sketches that is...

[tayo_rafferty]

Backgrounds and landscapes are my biggest weakness as an illustrator. Does anyone have any advice on improving that?

[scythe]

Not any real advice apart from studying what the masters have done before you, but I will say this: it seems that when it comes to comics, mastering backgrounds is as much mastering what not to draw as it is what to draw.

I'm in awe of artists who are able to portray vast, detailed landscapes and settings without actually wasting time in drawing all that much detail. It's something I'm constantly working and probably failing on. It must be something that comes with years of experience and practise, but when it works, I actually prefer it to a background that's just detail detail detail, which can be overwhelming to the eye.

[niinasalmelin]

Fake it till you make it.
I'm grinding my way through perspective training and boxes. This will take a long time but it'll be worth it.

[NickRowler]

I don't drawing backgrounds because they usually don't look that good and I am so worried about over cluttering the BG. Most of the time, I just wing it and hope it will come out OK. I also try to avoid straight line tools due to it not fitting with the aesthetics of the drawn characters.

However, when I see good BGs in comics, I LOVE them. I also get so jealous. I also really like landscape paintings.

@Kimoisempai I think your third panels looks nice.
The BG on the first panel looks a bit high. Maybe lower it a bit.
I'm not too crazy about the composition of the 2nd panel....but whatever, that is just me.

[tayo_rafferty]

I actually prefer it to a background that's just detail detail detail, which can be overwhelming to the eye.

I know what you mean. There's a really fantastic artist on youtube called Mark Crilley, the only thing that bothers me about his style is how dense the backgrounds are,

[ratique]

Have you considered working with 3D programs like Sketchup for your basic backgrounds?

[MidZM]

Have you considered working with 3D programs like Sketchup for your basic backgrounds?

This is actually a very good idea in terms of speed and ease, doing backgrounds with a program like Blender, Sketchup, 3DS Max, Maya, etc. Would really help when trying to make pages, especially if you're trying to get them to look proportionally correct and get them done in a timely manner. My comic uses 3D modeling in Blender for both characters and backgrounds (Although the characters have to be tweaked due to my style), which allows me to correct proportions, distance, and create awesome suits of armor that are the basis of the story

[GesuGesu]

I have worked with some 3D models that come with my Clip Studio Paint program. I use the body models (especially for hands) a lot, but the 3D backgrounds are limited only to the interior of a classroom..

Is Sketchup free?

[ratique]

Yes, sketchup is completely free. You can buy a more advanced version, but for comic-ing the free version is more than enough.

You can also download free models that people share from the sketchup warehouse.

[SirGutsalot]

I've avoided them.... MY WHOLE LIFE.

[Kamikaze]

...I love backgrounds! ::ducks bricks::

But for real-- ::dodges flying tomatoes:: ...if you use programs like SketchUp--: :avoids tossed chairs:: ...-it can really help!

By using SketchUp-- ::slides under table to avoid crashing dishes:: ...you can create complex backgrounds-- ::peeks out from under the table:: ...with minimal effo--::gets beaned in the head with a well aimed text book:: OW!!--...minimal effort. x.X

It helps my team make stuff like this in very little time.

[nketchen]

And how! Although, I can't really draw anything, so obviously backgrounds are out.

[artisticcomplexities]

I can't draw backgrounds well at all right now but I'm hoping with practice that will change? It's painfully obvious in my first page how I used the line tool as this is my first digital (or public) comic. But as hard as it is, I'm determined to actually draw more of my backgrounds from this point on.