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EmmyPax
Jun '20

Hey guys! I would love to find more artists working traditionally on this platform to talk techniques/process with! The last thread on traditional media seemed pretty old, so I thought I would start a new one :slight_smile:

Post your comic below and share a little about your process!

Here's mine: I work in watercolor and ink, which has been a lot of fun. I love the depth watercolor can give to a piece with just some simple washes. It's been an interesting journey working on this comic already (only five episodes in :stuck_out_tongue:), especially since I needed to learn how to use hot press paper. My hands shake too much to do the ink work on cold press. The nib just skittered everywhere.

I use a big ol' sheet of paper and divide it up into columns so that I can get an idea of what the panels will look like in the vertical format. It would probably be better if I worked a little bigger (the desktop version of my comic is blown up beyond it's actual physical size and seeing it gives me hives) but watercolor paper is expensive, darn it! I designed this series to be seen on a phone! Oh well.

Here's my comic, both on Tapas and Webtoon! Hope to see some more of you out there!

https://tapas.io/episode/17934172

  • created

    Jun '20

  • last reply

    Aug '20
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DukeOfOool
Jun '20

Although my comic is currently digital, I painted the first few original concepts on glued pizza cardboard. It's a good and cheap material, especially if each cardboard piece is rotated 90 degrees to the previous one; it barely bends.

phoenixrenaissance
Jun '20

Heyo. Another traditional comic artist here.
I do one of my comics in india ink washes and the other in watercolor. I like Dr Martins Radiant Watercolor. I also ink my comics with a brush. :smug_01:
The cost of paper is definitely one of the downsides. I do my page layouts on regular computer paper and cut my watercolor panels to size and paste them together once their completed. Gotta save some cash where you can. :sweat_02:

(I have a couple more comics, but these most regularly update. These are BL comics just fyi)

EmmyPax
Jun '20
DukeOfOool

I've heard good things about working on pizza boxes! They're supposed to be great for craft/paint pens!

EmmyPax
Jun '20
phoenixrenaissance

Love your brushwork! I have NOT been able to figure out inking with a brush. I can't decide if i want to try or not :grimacing:

Your colors are so bright and vivid too! What type of paper do you use? I definitely have been doing everything I can to cut corners cost wise, but I'm curious if I should be shelling out more for paper. I haven't bothered working on 100% cotton yet due to price.

phoenixrenaissance
Jun '20

I had an "art party" of sorts where a friend introduced some fellow art friends to brush inking. (I was using ballpoint pen before :grimacing: oh, the wrist pain) He shelled out for the brushes and we all did practice drawings. It was fun and I was hooked. It took some practice though to get less wavering lines though
I think if you're comfortable with a nib then you don't have to switch. They're both good for getting that nice line variation.

I use Strathmore cold press watercolor, 300 series. I used strathmore papers through high school and college so I never really tried anything else. I usually use whatever side has less texture (even when it's technically the back side :sweat_02:)

EmmyPax
Jun '20

I have legit started using both sides of my paper. They're both smooth, both spotless white and scan well, so WHY NOT??????

I support you in finding the smoothest side possible :wink:

UrMom
Jun '20

Yay for more traditional comic creators!

My comic is drawn on smooth bristol paper and is colored with color pencil, although I do also blend it in with copic markers for larger spaces, and I use white Dr. Ph. Martin's ink for outlines and shines. The process is sketching, inking in panels and bubbles with black 05 ink, then inking the panel contents with 005 blue ink. Coloring, which is the longest process since it involves a lot of layering. Then I reink in black, brown and sometimes green, purple and orange ink.

I usually scan at 600 dpi so I can just size down the pages, and the high dpi scan keeps the images at a pretty good quality.

(Just to warn you if you actually read the comic, the story contains upsetting topics revolving around trauma and mental health. It also is rated R/17+ for nudity and substance abuse, so read at your own discretion.)

phoenixrenaissance
Jun '20

@UrMom Props to you for having the patience to do a comic in colored pencil. You're blending and layering is really fantastic.

EmmyPax
Jun '20

agreed! @UrMom, your colored pencil work is so good! I love the textures you're able to get in your work!

thecrystalrook
Jun '20

I do all my work with a mechanical pencil, pigma micron pens and copic markers. The only digital aspect is the logo and speech bubbles/text. I draw on deleter paper and scan at 600 dpi. Everything was pretty sloppy at first, but it got the job done and now I'm slowly improving the art and style

UrMom
Jun '20

Thank you, @phoenixrenaissance and @EmmyPax! Color pencils, despite being one of the most time consuming media, is the easiest and cheapest to work with so I figured they would be the best option for a full-color comic. At least for when I was getting the hang of full color, previously I worked in only B&W, keeping the color to chapter covers so it was a new process. Lol

artofkj
Jun '20

I am also a traditional artist here! I usually do printed comic books in more of a western comic book style, on 11 by 17 inch paper. Let me show an example of my typical traditional work.

Sample2.PNG709x1080 316 KB

But for my webcomic series on Webtoon and Tapas, I did a mix of medium. I drew the lineart and panels traditionally, before doing the colours digitally.


gmaximin
Jun '20
1

I’m doing my comics on classic A4 printed scrap paper. It saddens me having to throw so many papers. I work in finance, so a lot of wrong invoices or contracts on thick company paper, so the unprinted side is white, and thick enough.
I came across brush pen early, and loved it since, smooth lines. But depending on the mood I want for a given episode, I also use classic black gel pen (Mitsubishi being the best far above any other), thick whiteboard marker, Chinese ink (with stone, ink block, brush and all), cheap thin pen (first Effy épisode for example, to convey that angry mood), cigarettes butt (problem is that the brownish traces doesn’t age well on paper), dry coffee powder (like in episode 5 of Effy, about coffee)... I like experimenting. My only attempts at digital are using old paint software when I want neat unnaturally straight mood (using a ruler is too consuming).
I only do B&W, but in all fairness, if I had to color, I’d strongly consider learning and switching to digital.
But I’m probably too amateur or old school.
(Ironically, I spent last year deploying RPAs...)

Edit - a quick summary of my tools:

Effy_23 - Effy = ambitious output per basic input.jpg989x1509 434 KB

EmmyPax
Jun '20
artofkj

aaaaahhhhhhhhhh absolutely LOVE your traditional ink work! Your digital style is cute too :slight_smile:

R.n.P
Jun '20


All my lineart is done traditionally with pencil for sketches and inking with a black pen, the panels and dialogue lettering are done using photoshop

1 month later
drcharlotterodricks
Aug '20

Pen and paper traditionalist here

Will be updating stuff this week, as in whatever was done digitally