Cel-Shading

[Craig]

I've decided I want to draw some comics, but cel-shaded comics. Problem is I don't really know much about it. Although it looks simple enough, I was hoping if anyone could point me in the direction of something that could teach me how to draw cel-shading?

[Chris]

I've studied art & poetry and let me say this: Cel-shading is freaking hard, I tried and failed.

[Maxico]

What do you mean by cell shading? Thick outlines and bright colours or is there something else?

[redxiiii]

What do you mean by cell shading? Thick outlines and bright colours or is there something else?

I think he means cel shading as in, a bit like games, like viewtiful Joe or XIII

[Craig]

Yea, but I wanna draw it. I just need to know how.

[nik0tine]

Google it and see what you come up with.

[Craig]

All it came up with is computer stuff.

[Maxico]

I guess that would be easy in a program like flash.

[Craig]

I'm sure it is, but I was thinking more along the lines of using a Pencil.

[rubah]

pencil? cels are all about ink/cg. if you want to use traditional media, your best bet is to use markers (the bloodier the better)

usually american-style cels have little shading (I'm thinking of. . .The Simpsons here) which is easy enough, one color for skin, one for everything else, et cetera.

anime will use three tones generally, but the lightest tone is really rarely used, mostly medium color, some shadows, and you might not even use the lightest color in every panel.

What you want to do is try to *suggest* that something is there. You don't draw borders like you would just outlining something in pencil, but you want the viewer to assume that there's a line in the bits of color.

That being said, I'm pretty pathetic at cel-shading and only use it as a foundation to build other coloring on when I'm CGing stuff or drawing.

Um, practice look and practice?

[K-chan]

Mainly what Rubah said: either use a computer program like say photoshop (which can be bloody well expensive) or just stick to markers. I'd say just get some markers. They'll work in a pinch if you know what youre doing