Some advice about the value of colouring comics please!

[simonjfletcher]

Hey Tapastic community,

I am creating a webcomic, I am about 5 completed pages in, but I haven't started posting yet.
I have the whole story planned out, and sketches for the first 16 pages, Inks for the first 8
- but COLOURING!! It takes so long!

Granted Colouring does add such a punch to the visual feel of the comic, but I was wondering:
- I should do part of it in colour, part of it in three colour (Blue, black and white) so I can get to telling the story?
(I really like spacemullet and Jillian Tamaki's This One Summer)

• or should I persevere and tell the whole story all in colour?
  I am afraid of burning out! And the burn to tell the story is strong. And I do like coloured comics.

So I was wondering if anyone had some good advice for me or experiences they could share?

Thanks so much. Below is a picture of a coloured piece (the avatar for the comic, which is going to be called Real Dreams)

http://dropthedrawing.tumblr.com/image/158685451120

[shazzbaa]

I hate to just throw the question right back at you, but honestly the only real determining factor is, is it worth it to you? Colouring is a lot of work, so is it worth it to you to see your work in full-colour? Or does the work look just as nice and work well in partial-colour to you? How much time does doing it in partial colour actually save you?

That question's gonna have different answers for different folks, and for different comics. It's important to me for my current fantasy comic to be in full colour, because colour is a big part of the magic and the feeling of the world. Doing it in black-and-white would feel like I wasn't really making the thing I wanted to make. But when I was doing an autobio comic, some people asked me if I had ever thought about colouring it, and I was basically like, "no, it might look cool but it wouldn't make the comic BETTER really, it would just mean it'd take more time to finish," so for that comic it wasn't worth it.

So I think that's the question, ultimately -- how important is colour for this comic, to you?

[aszabla]

I've been working on a fantasy comic for the last, gosh, seven years? It's in color and I hate coloring it! Coloring is the worst part gaaah!
So for my second comic Banquet, I'm trying black and white because like you said, the coloring can take ages and I really want to tell the whole story. I sometimes worry that a black and white comic isn't "finished" enough to draw folks into my story, but all I have to do to remind myself that isn't true is to look around at the thousands of beautiful manga thats out there that I know is captivating.
I do have rules for myself when working in black and white: the panels need to look completed, composition is more important than realistic lighting, and everything has to serve the story. I actually think it's helping my storytelling, but that's me.

I think in your case you have to decide what kind of story is it going to be? I think a more character focused, longer tale can do well in monochrome or simplified palette, while a comic that is much more about dreamlike, amazing visuals and fantastic scenes would be great in color. This of course isn't always the case either. No rules that say you can't do both, either! Monochrome for most of the pages, then color for when something really intense happens!

[simonjfletcher]

Hey @shazzbaa, I hear you. I really appreciate your thoughts on this. I have had a look at your comic Runewriters, and I like the way you are using cool and light colours... Awesome job! I am going to go back and read from the beginning.
For me I think the colour is enhancing the pages, giving it a kind of dreamlike feel, but maybe doubling the time it takes to tell the story. But perhaps in this case it is worth it.

@aszabla dude, I love your comic Banquet, the subtle way you are using the grey tones is inspiring, and your inks are wicked. Wow, what a find. I see what you mean about the colour / b/w choice really being dependant on the comic... Banquet really does suit the BW style. Manga seems to be able to do ANYTHING with black and white, but certainly you are right, a good colour choice can move something from the mundane to dramatic.

[sparky1505]

I use colors in my comic called food coloring because i mean like itd be weird having characters from different kingdoms being based on colors be in black and white lol. Also I am going for that dreamlike feel. I am most comfortable with digital art when it is more painting and not line art. Id say if you want like a painting effect and illustrationy type deal, go for color. If you want like a simple and almost softer feel, go with black and white. Reading black and white stuff makes me feel more calm, unless like the majority of the screen is dark grey or black. B/Ws got a soothing tone. With a comic where the art has line art, you should show off what you know better, colors? or line work? if youre good at color theory maybe you want to color it. But if you feel meh about choosing colors and arent that adamant on seeing it colors and you feel good about your linework, then keep it in black and white. If all else fails just put both side by side and ask yourself and others.
From your avatar, I do like the colors, if you want my opinion. I also like the way you colored the lines. maybe you could try a new style where you color the lines and maybe use a limited palette as well? I mean it all comes down to whether you feel like youre up to coloring it as well, but i can tell you, that I enjoy your use of colors from what ive seen and i dont think your coloring would be any less than positively received hope this helped!

[hushicho]

I'll just mention something here that I always try to mention when there's a question of colour: doing full colour in a comic leaves nothing to the imagination as to what those colours could be. One of the major reasons I prefer black and white with screentone is that it gives the imagination something to engage. Are you sure you want to take that next step? It is indeed a lot of work, and it can actually prevent a level of immersive participation in the comic by readers.

Don't feel like you have to fully colour any comic, especially when you don't know if you are going to have the support you ideally want for it. It's too much work for one person, in my opinion, particularly when there's no reliable support. You can often literally produce multiple comics in the time it takes to colour a single one.

[punkarsenic]

oh wow, your colours are nice.

i think a limited palette could definitely be a good compromise; a basic fill of 3 tones of one hue, maybe with extra colours added if theyre really important. it still gives you the freedom of using colour to create the mood of a scene and guide the reader. personally, id say never leave it just black and white unless youve got a lot of shading - greyscale is fine, but you need some shading to draw the eye and that.

[DMBrigman]

As others have said it really depends on what you think color brings to the story.

Like @shazzbaa comic, mine relies very much on color as part of the storytelling so I can't really do it in black and white. Secondly, I feel like color is my weakest area so I am forcing myself to color to get better at it.

I think maybe you should look into different coloring methods and even different programs to help speed up your process. For me, making the switch to Clip Studio and using the paint bucket tool really helps with flatting, and using a semi cel-shaded look with gradients really made me move faster. Then, of course it became easier as I have been at it for 50+ pages.

As @aszabla mentions about black and white, the line art and composition really needs to be of higher quality since you aren't falling back on color to give it pizzazz.

[simonjfletcher]

@sparky1505
Thanks for the thoughts and ideas, sparky. I definitely like my line art, though I have done a short comic before without lineart (just painted.) Glad you like the colours - I hope they work well throughout the comic, but i won't know until I start posting up pages. - but I may drop back to a limited palette for the non-dreamlike scenes.

[simonjfletcher]

@hushicho hmmm I hear you — I do want to 'tell the story' as much as make great art. I will put some more thought into this... I do like some screen tone comics, though I have never tried to use them myself - time to experiment?

[simonjfletcher]

@punkarsenic
Thanks So I have been thinking about the three hues option. I may go for it in the un-dreamlike sections. I think you are right, if we have no colours and tone the B/W detail really needs to be there, like @aszabla's Banquet - such a good example of black & white with a tone. Thanks!

@DMBrigman
I like your comic, your inking is really strong. You use Clip studio? I bought a copy last year, but currently use photoshop due to habit and convenience. But I must admit, many of the comics that I have seen made in clip studio are great, their inking tools seem to be very solid and clear... unlike the sometimes jitteryness of PS.
And, Yeah - I might need to boost the inking if I go to a limited palette. Thank you for the thoughts and advice!

[DMBrigman]

Clip Studio has a stabilizer for the inking tool so that helps with the jittery lines. It is really geared towards making comics and has some great built in productivity tools. I highly recommend it.

You can also look into Lazy Nezumi for Photoshop to help smooth things out. I don't use it personally but I hear good things.

[hushicho]

Definitely! Great time to experiment and learn about them, see if they suit your creative process! I find tones to be versatile and quite robust. I use Clip Studio Paint, which comes with a huge number of immediately usable tones that are print-ready, but you can also use screentones with other programs. Just look around a bit and I'm sure you'll find some instructionals. Reading back, I see you said you do have Clip Studio Paint -- maybe the perfect time to learn to use it better!

[simonjfletcher]

Hi guys,

thanks for your advice

I have started my comic Real Dreams if you wanted to check it out. The first 6 pages are going to be in full colour, then in the waking moments (the story is split between dreaming and waking scenes) it will be in three tone colour, as below: