As webcomics are digital in format, screentones have generally been discarded in favour of flat greys and colour.
However, I believe there are a select few (including me) that actually quite like the aesthetic qualities screentones.
What do you think: In the age of webcomics, do you think screentones are worth it?
Dec '18
Dec '18
I quite like the aesthetic of screentones, but I also acknowledge that they are a huge nuisance to work with and can screw your work in a heartbeat. Your screentone settings need to be adjusted in such a way that it won't go moire on you in print nor on the web.... two or more completely different sizes/resolutions. It's a tricky feat and becomes quite the hassle in the long run.
I think it depends on the style, not so much that they are outdated. I havent payed so much atention if webcómics use them(i only read a couple) but as someone that reads manga i have to say its worth it , like the way they use them leaves me amazed. As an artist im trying to learn to use them so maybe thats why i find them so interesting.
I use them, even in my colored stuff. I tend to convert them to flat colors tho (as opposed to halftone) since what I use are mostly patterns for fabric or to use for a design of something.
Tho I use halftones a lot, cuz I think they look cool.
Screentones I love but they can be tricky to use. Like oh sure they look great NOW but when I have to make the page smaller is the screentone going to look terrible then?
Tho I do use screentones for stuff like backgrounds, which you can see here:
The stars are a simple screentone pattern I made up in Manga Studio 4. But as you can see I made it pretty big with the stars far apart.
Anyway, I love manga screentones, I wish I could utilize them better, and I envy those that can use them well. But I also love halftones for a kinda throwback to old school comics.
That said I learned a trick for doing everything in flat colors then faking a screentone look. Just grab a mangacap, it’ll probably have that “compressed” look like a lot of manga scans tend to have, find a good screentone texture you like, crop that tone, then make a pattern of it in Photoshop. It adds a little texture to it without having to do all the work of screentones. There’s a more detailed tutorial on it somewhere.
But basically yes I like them. I’m not sure if they’re falling out of favor or anything, but I do like them.
conversations like this always remind me of a webcomic by scott mccloud:21
mcclouds old webcomics have some... dated formats and perspectives, and i dont agree with everything hes saying, although this point is valid (even if im gonna ignore it)
screentones have a nostalgic aesthetic appeal - so while theyre outdated, thats part of their charm
(also, tangent, but i love this bit from that same comic:
it always makes me laugh, esp since the portrait ratio has come back with the phone)
I have stopped using BW screentones in my current project, because the mainstream aren't demand it.
(I assume you have read my reply, so I edited this context to be simpler.)
I like the aesthetic qualities of screentones, and I do believe they are worth it in this day an age, because as oppose to flat greys they add a layer of texture.
I had mentioned this before, since most screentones already have texture, using them makes drawings look more organic. If you just use flat greys you can end up with a flat looking pic.
BUT, I just can't get my screentones to not moire, and that's really a pain, because you end up ruining the whole pic because of some moire... It becomes a problem to finish a pic, resize it, only to find that it looks wrong because of a screentone... That's why I go with flat greys.
If you know how to use them correctly they are pretty awesome and worth it though.
I don't mind screen tones at all! ( As long as they're done correctly ).
Here is a good example of them ( though they still do theirs the old school way ) - they had a really cool episode explaining their method but I can't remember which one it is off the top of my head.
Yup,That's the one! Thanks @Rhonder 
Personally, I don't feel like screen tones are outdated, but like with any rendering technique they come with a set of pros and cons. For me the main pro (the unique aesthetic) doesn't outweigh the cons (kinda hard to work with, seem to require a good amount of skill to apply effectively) for me to want to use them xD I already have trained my coloring/value skills so I just continue to lean on those...
I drew this picture earlier this year and applied some screen tone though ^^ was fun to work with but I couldn't imagine doing a whole comic with them lmao
Sceentone are meant for printing, it bascially turn fill colors into solid dots with diffrent density to make diffrent shades and color blend, so it's easier and faster to print.
There's no need to use screentone since the purpose of webcomic is to read on digital devices. Ofcouse unless you really like the dots look, but be careful tho, when you create a webcomic using screentone, it may look nice and neat on ipad, but when you view it on a small phone, it may look all mess up.
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