Adventures of a comic book newbie is the place where youll find a discussion of the fundamental elements of comics and comic culture. Heres an explanation of what a comic book penciller is for beginners. Inking was necessary in the traditional printing process as presses could not reproduce pencilled drawings. Comic pencil sketching for beginners creative comic art. The dc comics guide to writing comics the dc comics guide to pencilling comics dc comics guide to coloring and lettering comics the dc comics guide to inking comics. For the aspiring artist who wants to become an expert comic book inker, the dc comics guide to inking comics is the definitive, onestop resource. The most common inking utensils are the crowquill pen and brushes. The art of comicbook inking 2nd edition 9781593074050. A description of what a comic book inker is for beginners, with quotes from. Some books focus on specific characters, including action heroes and disney. Dont be afraid of redoing the pencilling of the page, it will be much faster and cleaner the second time around. Self publishing a book of any kind is a complicated process, and a graphic novel is no different.
Inking is a refining process that builds on the sketch that you made. Inking, i think, is one of the most underappreciated art in comics because it really is the one of the most defining characteristics of the medium, as the book will explain. About inking comic books inking is a refining process that builds on the sketch that you made. In some cases, a single creator will handle all aspects of art by themselves. Comic books have been around since the 1930s, each story taking shape as it moves from its writer to its artists usually a penciler and an inker and then to its letterer and colorist. Today i share a few techniques for inking with a brush. Published on may 1, 2015 in this tutorial richard bennett shows you his methods on how to ink comic books. I had the pleasure of inking this work, you can see more of that posted here on my site.
You will not find a more indepth course on creating graphic novels and comic books anywhere else. The dc comics guide to pencilling comics is packed with a wealth of tested techniques, practical advice, and professional secrets for the aspiring artist. Thankfully, there are options for the discerning artist. Comic book artist nick bertozzi describes the penciling part of his production process. The inker usually works directly over the pencillers pencil marks, though occasionally pages are inked on translucent paper, such as drafting vellum, preserving the original pencils. Much of the look and feel of comics is transmitted directly through the inking.
It is the most practical book for comics writers that wish to transition from doing things traditionally and manually to digitizing the comics creation process. In this video i finish the penciling for a huge cityscape and explain my thought process and techniques on rendering for comic books. The main point of penciling is to create a clean, preparatory drawing to ink over. It fills the gap between books on how to draw comics and how to use photoshop books. I purchased the dc comics guide to pencilling along with the dc comics guide to inking thinking that i was getting a one two combo, and i did, to a certain degree. The dc comics guide to inking comics by klaus janson. The customary size of comic book pages in the mainstream american comics industry is 11 by 17 inches. Pencilling happens first, followed by inking and finally coloring of the comic. Pencilling, inking and colouring your graphic novel. Sketching and drawing first step series by cathy johnson comic sketching or comic penciling is drawing cartoon characters to create a comic strip, or a series of related drawings that tell a story. Williams helps the reader through the steps of penciling, inking and coloring a page and all the necessary details to make the comics print ready.
Now, if your page is too messy it might be worth starting over. A quick guide to the best comic book paper for drawing comics. Frank lee this book focuses on the essential skills of comic book creation. Comic book pencilling with stephen platt the gnomon workshop. I was reading klaus jansens book, the dc guide to pencilling comics and the dc guide to inking comics, and really found them to be must have books, full of extremely useful information, on setting up art pages for comic books. To learn more about specific topics on creating comics, or get more handson, you can also check out other books from the dc comics guide series, such as. His comic clients include marvel comics, dc comics and image comics.
The penciller creates a drawing, the inker outlines, interprets, finalizes, retraces this drawing by using a pencil, pen or a brush. But the default brushes in adobe photoshop are far from adequate it comes to penciling or inking illustrations or comics. A comic penciling career may start with a simple hobby of drawing cartoon characters that can develop into a fine work of art. He has been working in the field of comics for thirteen years. Adventures of a comic book newbie is the place where youll find a. Comics, manga, and animation books blick art materials. This is the gold standard, rolls royce of inking tools. I basically started inking because my pencilling wasnt quite ready. The best penciling and inking brushes for photoshop.
It is far less of a how to draw book as it is a how to create book. I was reading klaus jansens book, the dc guide to pencilling comics and the dc guide to inking comics, and really found them to be must have books. A passionate comic artist myself, ive penciled comics for dc comics, one of the biggest comic publishers in the world. A descriptive listing and ranking of the 20 greatest american comic book inkers. Its the brush bill watterson drew calvin and hobbes with. You will discover how to use professional techniques to set the right mood. If you already used hb or darker instead of 2h or lighter, you will need to erase a bit to give a chance to your ink. The dc comics guide to pencilling comics by klaus janson. While there are many approaches i hope that this adds some insight for. So ive really had to pay attention to the changes i need to make in my comic art method through the transition from pencilling to inking.
After a long stint pencilling, inking and editing comics with charlton where he helped create the characters that would eventually inspire watchmen he moved to dc in 1967 as a staff editor while still producing freelance inks over the likes of neal adams and irv novick. Comic book pencilling with stephen platt from thumbnails to finished pencils. Janson made a professional debut for marvel in 1973, inking the artwork of rich buckler for the series called the black panther, that were published in jungle action. The size of the art team on a comic can vary greatly. In addition to finding collaborators, this is a great place for feedback and advice. At first, you might consider this as tracing since you are making the penciled edges more visible but this inking comic process involves so much more. As to his style, simons own description says it all. During years he continued inking the diverse marvel titles, like the defenders. Ink this, not that inking mistakes to avoid traditional inking tools for making a graphic novel. In this class ill take you through my process for penciling a onepage comic of your own.
This course will lay out all the different steps from idea to print. It is a valuable resource for comic book, graphic novel, and storyboard artists everywhere. A penciller or penciler is a collaboration artist who works in creation of comic books, graphic. The book demystifies what drawing digitally is about for comics writers. The inker sometimes credited as the finisher or embellisher is one of the two line artists in traditional comic book production. Youll learn all the skills youd need to create your very own comic collection or level up the skills you already have. This is used primarily in the inking of comic books.
If youre new to comics or perhaps a seasoned vet eager to get back to the basics, this column will serve as a guide on where to start and what you need to know to get the most out of your comics experience. One of the most difficult things to do in comics is abstract the world we live in to a twodimensional, linear representation. Next are pages of pencils from my last book dream life, in. Youll learn all the traditional tools of inking comic art as well as penciling methods to help create a final, polished and professional look to your art. By applying black ink to the page using brush, quill, marker and even sponge, the penciled. Pencilling, inking and colouring your graphic novel book. The first, and probably greatest piece advice i could give you when it comes to inking comics digitally, is to avoid lightly sketching in. I started using this stuff in the late 90s and the pencilling quality of these boards was stupendous. These steps are sometimes done digitally, in whole or in part. Log in or sign up to leave a comment log in sign up. The dc comics guide to pencilling comics by klaus janson introduces wannabee comic book artists and fans of the art form to a more detailed appreciation of what goes into drawing pages for batman than they will have picked up through osmosis or imitation to date. Comic book penciller job description and career path liveabout. The book shows, through example inked comic pages, the different effects mood, weight, shadow, color, texture, etc.
Penciling and inking tools 101 for comics pro insight duration. The guide to pencilling is actually more of a guide to putting together an entire comic book and covers many of the process is in a very general light as the book is only 144 pages. How to ink comics the traditional way is the perfect onestop resource for the aspiring comic book inker, and stan bendis kutcher demonstrates different inking techniques. This ink is a black carbonbased ink that is used because it retains its color when put to the page. The inker usually works directly over the pencillers pencil marks, though occasionally pages are inked on translucent paper, such as drafting. You might even want to erase lightly before inking. Americas leading comic book publisher brings its superstar creators and classic characters to the third in an authoritative series of books on how to create comics. Kirby pencilling, and simon more often than not providing inks and finishes. Some of the finest examples of clear clean refined pencil art for inking in the classic western comics style are the first two pages in this gallery, by goran parlov. Comic book inker job description, skills and tools liveabout. The book helps people new to the digital process avoid many of the pitfalls that come with having to learn a program from scratch. The art of comic book inking rewrite anina bennett p. Learn a variety of drawing techniques with comics, manga, and animation books.
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