Hello! Cutie, I am Comic black rainbow.
After watching some animations, I know that many people will definitely have the urge to draw a manga by themselves.
But at this time, you may not start digital painting...
You may don’t know how to use screen tone...
It is okay, I have never used screen tone, either.
But can't we draw the short comic in our own minds?
Of course there is a way we can do it!
So today I want to share with you how do I use a mechanical pencil, a few technical pens, and a black pen to draw cute short comic.
After you read it, you can try with me and draw short comic from your mind.
And what I demonstrate today is the couple that I quite like, Iguro Obanai and Kanroji Mitsur from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba!!!
Further reading you might find interesting:
3 Draw Lines Tips, Let You Draw A Beautiful Painting With Lines
2 tips for hatching drawing, let your lines be as soft as your hair!
１.Basic storyboard
Because what I mainly want to share is how to draw a short comic with a few pens, I won't explain the arrangement on the storyboard. This part will be produced tutorial later if there is a chance. But in short, we must have some pictures in our minds before we draw the comics. At the beginning, we can draw our initial ideas in a minimalist way, without worrying about it is Good-looking or not, after all, this is just our initial storyboard idea. Generally speaking, if you are a professional cartoonist, there may be a huge gap between the initial manuscript and the final product. In the middle, adjustments and corrections will be made due to the guidance of editors and other professionals of the publishing house. However, if you are just a general painting for interest, just draw it happily first! For most people who are learning to draw, my suggestion is that completion is more important than perfection. Because I have encountered too many painters who just wanted to be perfect before becoming a professional, and could not produce works for several years. This is really a pity. After all, you have to complete many works before you know how to improve in the future!
After I have an idea, of course I want to complete it. I used comic manuscript paper to draw. In fact, I prefer to use thicker, like watercolor paper, to draw, but since I want to draw a comic, let's try it. Draw on manga paper and have a look! I thought it could be presented by shooting with a camera, but I didn't expect the pencil line to become very light after the image was placed on the computer… Anyway, at first I used such a simple pencil line to grab a rough composition.
２.Draft tips
In this step, it is actually the most time-consuming part of drawing the entire comic. Of course, in this process, I also have some tips to help me draw the picture I want to show with a pencil!
★When you draw a draft, you need to draw the details.
Because I want to reduce mistakes when I draw the line draft, and finish it more efficiently. Except for the blacked parts, the other lines are almost exactly the same as the finished draft and are drawn accurately!
★Make good use of the texture that a pencil can draw.
In fact, the texture and line changes that a pencil can draw are really too diversify. If you read various comics, you will find that the same is the line, but the way of presentation can create a picture of many styles around the world. It is really incredible. By observing the works of others, you can also try to apply their line presentation to your own works!
Further reading you might find interesting:
★You can draw different results with the sharpness of the pencil and the strength you are drawing.
Whether it is a pencil or a mechanical pencil, if you draw at the same angle for a long time, the pen core will be smooth, the line will be thick, and the sharpened one the angle can draw thinner lines. With this feature, I can use pencil to draw the line thickness I want when drawing a line draft!
★Think while drawing.
At this stage, the reason I draw is slower and longer, because I have to draw to the level of almost finished draft. I can't be too sloppy in the overall perspective, composition, and details of the characters. I need to make sure I can draw directly on the pencil draft without making mistakes or needing to be revised when I use technical pens afterwards. Therefore, in this step of painting, in addition to thinking about how to present a three-dimensional effect, you also need to think about how to draw something close to the appearance that you want to show, so keep drawing patiently!
３.Secrets of line drafting
Finally reached the stage where it can be finished! At this stage, it's actually a little easier. Just make sure that the lines drawn by the technical pens and the black pen can be based on the pencil draft, and don't become messy or the thickness is not good. Basically it's okay if all are within the controllable range. Of course there are still secrets to share with you!
★Hold the technical pens at an angle perpendicular to the pencil.
Of course, this is my own way of holding the pens, maybe it may not be suitable for you. But because I found that the lines drawn by holding the technical pen diagonally will be relatively thicker and harder to control the lines than straight. So to make sure the lines are in a state that I can control, I took the pen at a relatively straight angle.
★If you can draw the lines you want, you can put the paper at any angle.
Some people may be entangled in whether or not to transfer the paper when drawing a picture, but generally, I will transfer the paper if I don't need to practice, because the main focus is on drawing efficiency and results. If transfer the paper or not are all get the same results, why do we choose the way uncomfortable to draw?
★Architecture can add texture details to increase texture.
Architecture is not the main subject that I always paint, so relatively few figure drawing, but after referring to the manga of Demon Slayer, I found that when they painted buildings, they would draw some lines on the buildings to show the wood texture of Japanese architecture and add some shadows on the dark side, so I use it here!
★Draw the outer outline first, and then draw the inner details.
Because I am a bit of perfect obsessive-compulsive, I want the lines to be as clean and tidy as possible, so in order to ensure that there will be no accidental drawing mistakes or some situations outside the boundaries when I draw black lines, I usually draw the outline first, and then slowly draw the internal details.
★All black parts with white lines can lead to details or three-dimensionality. This part is the part that I did not draw when I drew the pencil draft, but when I was about to blacken the black clothes of the characters and Obanai's hair, I found that the feeling of drawing all black here would reduce the sense of layering, so in order to make a little overall details, I leave blank line here.
★Some suggestive designs can be added through the background.
If I didn't say anything, no one would have noticed the background of the last scene. The grass behind Obanai and Kanroji Mitsur, as well as the grass and shadows on the ground, looks like a big love. Presented with background object, it feels more natural and not too rigid. So sometimes when we are drawing, it is not necessary to draw the image we want to show in a very concrete way. A little obscure or suggestive performance will also have a good effect!
★If you make a mistake, you can use a white pen to cover it.
I suggest that if possible, it is best to prepare a white pen that is easy to draw and cover, so that if there is a mistake in the line draft, it can be easily covered and modified!
Alright! After reading this article and video, since you already know that as long as you have a pencil and a few technical pens, you can draw all kinds of comic! Then why not pick up your pens and draw your short comic now? I am happy that you read this article. I hope that the tips I shared can enlighten you a bit. It will help you who may not know how to draw or do not have traditional tools for drawing comics. You can draw your own story with simple and easily accessible tools. If you have anything questions, comment below or use social media or mail to share with me! Looking forward to seeing the short comics you created!!!