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Description
1 – Sketch (character design)

Start rough-drafts of the character. Pick the sketch you like the best, and refine it.

Digital – Sketch character directly in photoshop (or other digital program). Or, sketch the character by hand, and then scan that image onto your computer.

Traditional – When sketching your character, sketch VERY lightly so you don’t indent your paper.

2 – Outline details (penning process)

Digital – Create another layer over your sketch layer, and trace the details you want to keep for the character (I use Illustrator for the penning process, because it creates nice smooth lines).

Traditional – Pick your best pens, and trace over the details you want to keep for the character. Erase the pencil lines when the ink is done drying.

3 – Base colors (What color will the character be?)

Digital – Create another layer right below the line art. Stay on that layer, and color inside the line art like a coloring book.

Traditional – Use markers or colored pencils to color inside the line art. (Prisma-color colored pencils blends really well, especially for step 4 & 5.)

4 – Shading (Dark areas and shadows)

Digital – Think about where the light source will be. Use black, or a darker shade of the base color, and shade the character according to the light source. (If you have Photoshop, you can use the selection tool [magic wand tool] to just select one area. It will allow you to shade that one area without messing up other areas.)

Traditional - Think about where the light source will be. . Use black, or a darker shade of the base color, and shade the character according to the light source. Blend very softly at first, then darken the areas that are further away from the light source.

5 – Highlights (where the light source is the strongest)

Digital – As in step 4, think about where the light source is. This time, use white to blend in the areas where the light source directly touches. (If you want the white to appear less intense, use the edge of the eraser tool. Be sure the eraser hardness is set to zero, pick a relatively large size, and use the outside edge to lightly touch the outside of the white area.)

Traditional – As in step 4, think about where the light source is. This time, use white to blend in the areas where the light source directly touches. Blend very lightly at first, then press hard on the areas that are further away from the shadows.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

I decided to whip this together for you guys real quick. Think of this as a preview to what I’ll be covering in my upcoming “How to Draw Comics” tutorial.
By the way, who remembers Valdez the Chameleon? He exclusively exists in the Archie comic version of Sonic the Hedgehog, and he was Espio’s mentor. This particular design I created of him is what he would look like in Sonic and the Black Knight. Perhaps I’ll include him in my comic SatBK: Chaotix?

Valdez@Archie comics
Sonic@SEGA
Artwork & tutorial@me!

Description
1 – Sketch (character design)

Start rough-drafts of the character. Pick the sketch you like the best, and refine it.

Digital – Sketch character directly in photoshop (or other digital program). Or, sketch the character by hand, and then scan that image onto your computer.

Traditional – When sketching your character, sketch VERY lightly so you don’t indent your paper.

2 – Outline details (penning process)

Digital – Create another layer over your sketch layer, and trace the details you want to keep for the character (I use Illustrator for the penning process, because it creates nice smooth lines).

Traditional – Pick your best pens, and trace over the details you want to keep for the character. Erase the pencil lines when the ink is done drying.

3 – Base colors (What color will the character be?)

Digital – Create another layer right below the line art. Stay on that layer, and color inside the line art like a coloring book.

Traditional – Use markers or colored pencils to color inside the line art. (Prisma-color colored pencils blends really well, especially for step 4 & 5.)

4 – Shading (Dark areas and shadows)

Digital – Think about where the light source will be. Use black, or a darker shade of the base color, and shade the character according to the light source. (If you have Photoshop, you can use the selection tool [magic wand tool] to just select one area. It will allow you to shade that one area without messing up other areas.)

Traditional - Think about where the light source will be. . Use black, or a darker shade of the base color, and shade the character according to the light source. Blend very softly at first, then darken the areas that are further away from the light source.

5 – Highlights (where the light source is the strongest)

Digital – As in step 4, think about where the light source is. This time, use white to blend in the areas where the light source directly touches. (If you want the white to appear less intense, use the edge of the eraser tool. Be sure the eraser hardness is set to zero, pick a relatively large size, and use the outside edge to lightly touch the outside of the white area.)

Traditional – As in step 4, think about where the light source is. This time, use white to blend in the areas where the light source directly touches. Blend very lightly at first, then press hard on the areas that are further away from the shadows.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

I decided to whip this together for you guys real quick. Think of this as a preview to what I’ll be covering in my upcoming “How to Draw Comics” tutorial.
By the way, who remembers Valdez the Chameleon? He exclusively exists in the Archie comic version of Sonic the Hedgehog, and he was Espio’s mentor. This particular design I created of him is what he would look like in Sonic and the Black Knight. Perhaps I’ll include him in my comic SatBK: Chaotix?

Valdez@Archie comics
Sonic@SEGA
Artwork & tutorial@me!