Art & Story – Your Comic From The Ground Up, Pt 5
December 3, 2009 by Jerzy
Filed under Art & Story, Podcast
We’re back with another installment of the Your Comic From The Ground Up series, and this time it’s a full-on discussion on deciding what lettering tools to choose, followed by some talk about penciling.
As with previous episodes, we begin with a theoretical discussion on this stage of the process, followed by some practical strategies to make your comic a reality.
Theory
Determining Analog or Digital Lettering
Considerations when Determining Lettering Style:
Aesthetic Cohesion
Regardless of method, the lettering should look like it belongs in the work:
- Balloons and letters should match your line style
- A freehand line style may call for a freehand balloon
- A cleaner, draftsman-like line style will allow more “computerized” balloons
Clarity
Word balloons are the first narrative guide in your story:
- Use word ballon placement to guide the reader’s eye
- Choose a lettering style that is easy to read
Expression
It’s a fine line when using text effects to achieve sound:
- Bold and italicized words lend to a rhythm in your word balloons, but can easily be overdone
- Avoid using different fonts for different character “voices” unless using it for effect
- A little difference in size goes a long way–avoid changing font sizes too often
Hand-drawn vs Computer
Pros for hand-drawn:
- Easier to match to your artistic style
- Irregularity of letters lends a more personal touch
- Fully integrated into the final art for resale
- “Easier” to plan on the page how much room you have for balloons
- Easier to create irregular effects like “singsong” dialogue
- Don’t have to know programs like Photoshop or Illustrator to hand letter
Cons for hand-drawn:
- Takes a lot more time
- More effort to create bold and italicized effects
- Difficult to fix errors
Pros for computer:
- Easy to edit spelling errors and balloon placement
- Easier to create bold and italicized effects
- Many fonts to choose from – Don’t need neat lettering
- Clearer lettering than hand-drawn (most of the time)
Cons for computer:
- Easy to pick a crummy font or aesthetically mismatched balloons
- Some technical knowledge needed to create irregular effects
- Need programs like Photoshop or Illustrator
- Somewhat tedious to edit balloons to match them aesthetically
- Easier to miscalculate space for word balloons
Penciling
3 Concerns of Penciling: Form, Fluidity, & Line = PLAUSIBILITY
Form and structure
Anatomy
Regardless of cartooning style, you want your characters and props to stay relatively “on model”. Consistency is key to developing a plausible world and story.
Draftsmanship
Does your story depend on a lot of visual information about a location? Are you intentionally avoiding drawing difficult 3-point perspective shots, or are they unnecessary to your narrative? Either way, a knowledge of perspective goes a long way.
Fluidity
Gesture
Do your characters’ poses effectively communicate the emotion/action of the moments?
Acting
Are you getting the acting moment you need for the emotional content of the story?
Movement
Are you using a through-line to effectively convey the movement of your characters?
Line
Loose vs tight pencils
Are you pencilling for the inks, or are you inking the pencils?
Type of line
How are the types of lines you use contributing to the story’s aesthetics? Do they contribute to the mood, tone, or overall feeling of the moments?
Practical
Penciling
This assumes you’re looking to achieve somewhat of a “classic” comics style. You can use any illustration tools to make a comic, but these are the ones we like to use.
Tools
- Blue line
- Graphite
- Digital process
- Lightbox process
- Bristol vs. “plain” paper
Tightness
- Penciling for yourself
- Penciling for others
- Line/production values
Procedure
- 1st stage blocking
- 2nd stage blocking
- Final pencils
- Using a lightbox vs doing all the art on one page
Assignment for this episode:
- One to two pages of pencils with an ink test, to see how tightly you need to pencil
- If lettering by hand, pencil word balloons and sfx as well
- If lettering digitally, begin importing your pencils and creating word balloons and SFX
For a lot more on the subjects covered in this episode, check out these past Art & Story podcasts:
And here are some recommended reads mentioned in this episode:
The Art & Story Theme is written and performed by
Mike Gilmore & Mike Johnston of The Northwoods Improvisors.
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