Thursday, June 2, 2016

CIVIL WAR II #1 Variant Cover Step by Step Part 2 Color

And now the colors ....


FLAT COLOR

The first stage of color is called flats - flatting allows me to choose an area to color at any point throughout the coloring process.

Generally, I hire someone to do this for me - a "flatter".

At this stage I go and adjust the colors to their medium value or imprimatura - I use this as the starting point for the piece. - the first part of coloring. 


INITIAL COLORS

I colored this on my Cintiq 13 HD using Photoshop CS3 after I scanned the original line art.

Used Paint Bucket to readjust the colors.

Used a big Pencil tool to rough in at 100% of color then used lower % to work to add lighter and darker values.


BACKGROUND

Used a Custom "Cloud" brush to rough in the background. 


COLORING LINEART

Converting Lineart to Color.

Adding Reflective color.

General cleanup especially all those big brushstrokes...


Revised Final Colors
That background really bugged me - pretty simple compositional rule - repeat angles and opposites - that background echoed the foreground characters so I slanted the background the opposite way.
Plus some additional clean up on the characters.


Detail of coloring...


The printed cover.

Out Now


TD




4 comments:

  1. Thanks for this.Great information.

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  2. I really like your coloring style, not too shiny and overly rendered. Would it be safe to call it a more painterly style? Do you ever use cut and grad or is it all pencil tool and brush? Thanks in advance.

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    Replies
    1. I learned to paint with oil and watercolors and then I learned PS - so painterly is only way I know. However - I use fairly simple tools - the one's you describe - though I'm slowly developing my "tool box" and do whatever it takes to make the art the best it can be! Thanks for your note!

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