ok so i lovee drawing manga but now im so sick of just black and white. so what is there to use for colouring other than like markers or pencil crayons, paints etc? i know pros use that copic what ever ink thing but those cost O.o so does anyone have any alternatives? oh btw i dun have photoshop or even a colour printer.

You're screwed, as you wrote off the easiest and most common solution. Manga artists nowadays use Photoshop, Gimp, or PainttoolSAI with a penmouse rather than physical inking and then photocopying.

Use magic markers. I find that's the best way to colour my manga.

You're screwed, as you wrote off the easiest and most common solution. Manga artists nowadays use Photoshop, Gimp, or PainttoolSAI with a penmouse rather than physical inking and then photocopying.

Which means there was a way before photoshop and penmouse.

Do it exactly how you think people colored things before, with pencils, paints, markers. I don't think the most important thing is to do it the way everyone else does it, or the way it's always been done. If it looks good and the outcomes make you happy, then go for it.

*edited for clarification.

You forgot Open Canvas, M. God damnit. =P
For a tablet, make sure you get a wacom!


Manga artists nowadays use Photoshop, Gimp, or PainttoolSAI with a penmouse rather than physical inking and then photocopying.
Do you have any source on this? I was under the notion that inking was still more popular than digital work when it came to manga. I still see a lot of artists talking about which pens and tones are the best and such, and I'd imagine that inking on paper is still as fast and easy as working on a computer, if not more so for the older artists. I know I'd much rather draw on paper than on my tablet. XP

Inking especially would be a bitch on the computer I'd imagine, especially for people already good at inking on paper (read: all manga artists). Trying to draw fast unbroken strokes is something that's much easier to do on paper than it is on a tablet, and inking using paths and such on the computer takes *forever.*

Anyway, Eternal Melody, feel free to either go the digital or traditional route. Both have their pros and cons, as far as I'm concerned. I personally do everything digitally, but that's more of a cost issue than anything; I make so many mistakes, using real ink would cost me a fortune. XD

Colored Pencils work nicely. Get prismacolor though because it actually blends unlike crayola. If you can't afford the prisma then just get a white and attempt to blend it with crayola...it should work but it just takes more effort. I've seen manga characters colored this way that look like a snapshot of an anime.

You forgot Open Canvas, M. God damnit. =P

I've still yet to hear anyone talk about this in the manga world, at least not as much as the other three I listed above. Maybe I should look around a bit.



Do you have any source on this? I was under the notion that inking was still more popular than digital work when it came to manga. I still see a lot of artists talking about which pens and tones are the best and such, and I'd imagine that inking on paper is still as fast and easy as working on a computer, if not more so for the older artists. I know I'd much rather draw on paper than on my tablet. XP

No. Just from my personal experience and from the number of people I've met that do Dojinshi (all two of them) prefer the digital method due to its speed and forgiveness to error, and I superimposed that to all manga artists. Also, majority of images that make it to the internet is put through a CG process at some point or another.


Inking especially would be a bitch on the computer I'd imagine, especially for people already good at inking on paper (read: all manga artists). Trying to draw fast unbroken strokes is something that's much easier to do on paper than it is on a tablet, and inking using paths and such on the computer takes *forever.*

Actually, it's not that bad, but I'm a filter and brushing artist, where precise strokes are not quintessential.


Anyway, Eternal Melody, feel free to either go the digital or traditional route. Both have their pros and cons, as far as I'm concerned. I personally do everything digitally, but that's more of a cost issue than anything; I make so many mistakes, using real ink would cost me a fortune. XD

Which goes back to the "easiest" part of what I was saying (cheaper in the long run, and quicker to do corrections). Short of producing your own ink, color ink is usually around 5-6 USD for 180 c.c. (EEP!).