I hate coloring I hate coloring I hate coloring (advice/tips/suggestions lol?)

[DokiDokiTsuna]

TBH I just wanted to draw my OCs in skater boi-esque outfits which tend to be kinda dark and muted

Ohhhh...yeah, I don't think I picked up on that at all. Oop. ^^;

Well, a lot of what I said still works in that case, but I feel like I could add a few more general tips:

So it helps to get reference pics for fashion subcultures if you want to use them; so you can understand their general look. The construction of those outfits works for a 'skater boi', but the colors are a little too loud to give off the correct impression. Tbh, the neon details in particular feel more like a 'punk' element-- not that you can't mix styles, but I'm focusing on one thing at a time here. ^^;

So Google Images is giving me this:

Which is about what I expected. Casual boys' clothes (hoodies, T-shirts, denim jackets, jeans, sneakers, etc. etc.) in muted colors, yes...but muted in a specific way. This is getting into fashion/character design more than color theory alone, but hear me out:

So contemporary casual clothes usually have a color scheme with a focus on neutrals-- the biggest portions of color (i.e. most of the pants and/or most of the shirts...like, at least half the body) will be browns, blacks, greys, whites, and navies (jeans), with brighter colors used as accents/accessories.
You kinda need those proportions in order for an outfit to read as 'casual', especially in the gritty/urban way evoked by the 'skater boy'.

So really the biggest issue with the outfits you designed isn't the colors themselves; it's the proportions. ^^; Swap them around in a more casual direction, and you could easily kill two birds with one stone.
However, the colors themselves could still use some work-- they are muted, but they could be a lot more muted, especially in a 'boyish' direction that puts extra emphasis on strong-yet-desaturated hues.
The original color scheme is in the center, with two potential 'casual corrections' on the top and bottom.

[vapidink]

There's way too much good art for my hamster brain so now I wanna do it all even though I can't, so I totally get you there.

We'll get there!

[Krysteena]

Realistically I use bucket feel and lasso tool a lot. On my Autodesk sketchpad it called magic selector but the same thing lol.

[Lensing]

Why don´t you shade in black and white then and use gradient
maps when the shading is done?

For the people who hate flat coloring:
use the lasso tool, customise the lasso tool when you work
in clip studio

[suyeong512]

Ahhh, I totalllyyy relate. It is so time consuming and a pain. I love your art btw. I honestly feel like color sometimes just ruins my work and it's pain, but I'm still trying to do it to improve. I just fill in with paint bucket tool basic colors sometimes when I miss a spot, has to manually fill it in. than for shades and shadows, I use multiply layer and use grayish blue color, and then add in some lighter color

[Lensing]

Sometimes it helps to collect references and copy the coloring or to
find out how they colored their work

[delladz]

I also usually use the multiply layer and do a cell style of shading but I'm also trying to expand my horizons and try different shading/rendering styles!

Maybe the question posed would have been better if it was about rendering lol but I still feel like the color question is still totally valid

It's probably a mix of my art style and process (and lack of technique/knowledge lol(, but my art has been feeling incredibly flat lately so I'm trying to pick apart different aspects that have been bugging me and I feel like coloring/rendering is at the top of the list

[delladz]

See the problem shows up when I am in "look at art" mode and "I am making art" mode cause there's usually lots of gaps between those modes and when it comes time to sit down and Do Art, I look for references that inspire me but can't ever find the right example (lesson learned: save art you like)

Also, I still haven't really wrapped my head around gradient maps? I use Krita so I'm sure they have gradient maps but I haven't really had the opportunity (or quite frankly the desire lol) to learn them, but maybe I'm just completely missing an essential tool for the art process

[Oriflamme]

If you work in krita, The colorize mask is a tool that helps to quickly create an un-aliased flat color layer. I used it, and it reduced my workload by like 2/3?

[Lensing]

It´s a very long process and you are getting better at it gradually.
Don´t be too hard on yourself.

There are some steps to better shading / coloring.

Learning basic perspective, shapes, shapes in perspective, planes
of objects etc.

You can start with cell shading. It´s easy to find cell shading references
and copy them.

Gradient maps are super simple, it´s like a filter.
You shade black and white with cell shading, put a gradient map
on it. You can also shade in black and white and then put a multiple
layer on top.

IMO it´s better to understand planes and how light interacts with objects
before you start to color as a first step.

[suyeong512]

Ooh, that's cool that you're experimenting with different coloring style . I am new to the coloring so I can't give you any advice but I honestly liked your art and coloring style(simple but gorgeous) so I'm gonna try something similar. Please update us on your color journey later on!

[ArtGremlin]

I’d like to think I’m pretty good at coloring, but the only decent advice I have that hasn’t been said already is that you could try putting a mostly transparent layer of color on top of the others to mesh them together and make them look more united. Try experimenting with different opacities and blend modes.

[BoomerZ]

I agree with this other than you should use dark blue, otherwise you will lose the color of the shaded part.

[delladz]

update for anyone who was wondering what the end product was lol

[Krysteena]

I got a lot better doing my art.

1. Don't use art brush in less you really have to!.

2. Solid lines for shading with a darker shade to the area.

3. Try not to use black and white. I know it sound weird but it gives a bit more pop if you get close but no other shades like warm gray so on...

4. Layers have became my friend for like 3 years I hated layers and didn't get it. Trust me it looks cleaner!

5. On clothing it was a (B**** I wont say bad word) I still struggle with shading but you will get better keep going—triangles and XYZ of fabric makes things easier.

6. You don't need that many wrinkles in the clothing or lines in the hair!

- That is all I can think of for now.

This is before and after improvements. Almost 2 years different and I got a better feel of my own style as well!

[drewdoniger]

One thing I do to help me do the flat coloring at least is on the coloring layer, use the magic wand tool to select all of the sections that are gonna be the same base color, expand the selection by three pixels, fill with the bucket tool, and deselect.

And to make that go by easier, I made an action script to do the expansion, filling, deselection, and then create the layers with the blending filters I like to use for shading and highlights.

And then for the shading and highlights, I do still have to find the right colors to use with trial and error, but eventually, usually, after only about 20 seconds, I find them

[Shanny8]

For the people who hate flat coloring: use the lasso tool, customise the lasso tool when you workin clip studio

Pretty much THIS when I'm flatting...since my style [of coloring] tends to be more of a cel-type shading, I continue to use the lasso/bucket process to cover large areas of color & shading(as well as carving out the spots where light effects).

[BoomerZ]

@drewdoniger I'm asking a real question. Why the lasso tool. You can adjust the bucket fill tool to overlap the lines and use a color layer under the line art. Then just fill as fast as you can. Selecting seems an extra step.

[drewdoniger]

(post withdrawn by author, will be automatically deleted in 24 hours unless flagged)

[drewdoniger]

Not with Photoshop, if you just use the bucket fell tool, you still get that bad looking one pixel border regardless on what layer you're using. And you can't adjust the bucket fill tool to bypass it