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Questions for Getting Started

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maxcavsm:
I've got a few months left in my self-imposed "learning" period before I start work on my comic.

Here's where it all started, if you're interested:
http://www.applegeeks.com/sm/index.php/topic,9131.msg164985.html#msg164985

I don't think I'm actually going to make it to six months before I get started, so I figured that I'd better start looking into what I'm going to need to get started.  And I've got a few questions I've come up with.

1) I'm aware I'm going to need some kind of Photoshop product, but which one can I get without seriously putting a crimp on my bank account.  I looked at the CS2 product page for Adobe and nearly fell over.  How do they expect someone to shell out thousands of dollars for it?  Of course, I'm looking around as best I can to "find" a copy from someone, or get one for cheap on Ebay, etc.  Is there a bottom basement version that I could get to get started?  I mean, I figure that CS2 or 3 has more bells and whistles that I can use, and I'm just looking for basic photoshop.  SHould I look for a downgraded version?

2) I'm planning on inking via photoshop, but don't have either a Wacom tablet or pad to do the inking with.  Yes, I know, I'm a beginner.  I don't think I'm going to plop down the $$$ required for the Cintiq, but I think I will splurge for the pad and pen.  Is there a specific version that balances cost with utility?  Again, don't need all the bells and whistles...

3) Comic panels.  I PRESUME that the borders for a comic can be "created" via photoshop, saved, and then reused over and over, much like a template.  I presume, anyway.  Wasn't planning on using the same 4-panel format over and over, but it would make a nice option if I'm being lazy or don't need any major dramatic shots.  But my question is this...when fitting a sketched comic into a photoshop template like that...I mean, I don't know.   Do you have to shrink/enlarge to get it to fit properly?  Do you only work one panel at a time, or do the whole comic and then try cramming it into the format?

4) Photoshop tutorials.  I've seen...some.  Any good ones out there I should start boning up on?

Thanks!

maxcavsm:
Anyone? Hello?

Anyway, back to my third question.

I have plenty of story line to cover, but while I was at work today, I came up with a boffo idea for a prologue comic.  So I zipped home from work, and sat down after dinner and sketched it out very roughly, just to get an idea of what I was thinking.  Of course, not nearly as easy as getting the idea itself, but I digress...

Now, it is a four panel comic, think two on top and two on the bottom; a standard box cut into four equal parts, a la "Sam and Fuzzy" or "CTRLALTDEL" Or hell, it doesn't matter, I can add/subtract for dramatic effect.  My question is this- I've got a 9" x 12" drawing tablet that I was going to transpose this idea onto.  Now seeing that it's going to be scanned into the computer, then sized to fit smaller/larger into a premade webcomic bordering I come up with:

a) Do I draw each panel to a full piece of 9x12 paper and then adjust the size after I scan it into Photoshop? or
b) Draw the comic on the tablet as if I were going to ink it directly onto the pad and then post it? 

I'm THINKING that it's the latter of the two, but then again, with the magic of Photoshop, I have the luxury to draw bigger for detail and then shrink into the boxes later.  How is it recommended done?

tomselleck69:
first post

1) i have heard that most people just steal it. you didn't hear that from me. people who do not want to pay and also do not want to be thieves use the gimp.

2) I don't know anything about tablets. I would encourage you to try traditional inking, but your mind is probably made up.

3) you can pretty much draw at any size, and then crop or resize it to fit into a template (so long as the drawing is in roughly the same proportions.)

4) check deviantart. although many are poorly done, there are a fair amount of useful ones.


second post:

i would venture a guess and say that 9x12 is WAY TOO BIG for each single panel. You COULD do it, but unless you  are already accustomed to drawing huge, I would try to keep the whole thing on a single sheet of paper  (for comparison: I draw my strips at 12x5, scan at 300dpi/edit/add dialogue and then reduce them to 25% of their original size before putting them on the internet.)

maxcavsm:
Now that's what I'm talking about.  Thanks for the help!

HFrankenstein:
In terms of making your sketches fit into your panels easily, what I do is, I render my panels at some resolution (600 dpi in my case), and then when I scan my pencils in, I scan them at the same resolution.  Now I don't have to resize when I import them into Photoshop.

Another thing I like to do is, I print my panels out and put a blank sheet of paper on top of them so I have a guide while I'm penciling.

I don't know of any good Photoshop tutorials, but that's probably because I've never looked.  Almost everything I know about the program is self taught, which you may as well take to mean that you should be all right without any tutorials.  Just don't be afraid to check the help file or Google around to figure out how to do something you want to do.  Moment of Zen: Focus not on how to use Photoshop; Focus on how to do what you need to do using Photoshop.

Your process over the first few months is going to change almost every time you make a strip.  Eventually, though, you'll settle in on an efficient routine that you like.  Best advice I can give you is just go for it, do the work whatever way you can think of, and wait for the comfort of a set process to emerge.  Too much planning before you start will lead to you getting stuck in limbo.

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