Sashiro
January 14th, 2005, 08:45 am
If you saw this on the anime academy forums, that's me as well :P I didn't steal it~
I've seen many people run into problems with their scan and various other things along that line. Also, coloring in photoshop. I've learned many things about photoshop, and though I'm not a master at it, I figured it would help to share some tips and tricks to tweaking your picture.
Section 1: My scan is all grey, what do I do?!
This is normal. It happens alot. The good news is that there is a easy way to fix it! Use Leveling. (Image>Adjustments>Levels)
The general rule it to move the black arrow (1st one) to the first peak and the white/clear one (3rd arrow) to the first indent. Sometimes you have to tweak it a bit, but that's okay. Just make sure your background it white and the black is black. This is a HUGE help with manga scans.
Section 2: Tips & Tricks for coloring
It can be tricky when you first start off. I have several tips to beginners.
1.) Burn tool and Highlight tool: usually a no-no. They can turn colors MEGA ugly. Pick out a lighter/darker shade and shade with the brush tool. There are a few colors which work well with the burn/highlight tool, but double that amount don't. Especially yellow. Never -ever- use the burn tool on yellow, it looks really ugly. Also, make sure to remember where your light source is so that the shades don't look odd. Always keep that in mind..
2.) Don't color on your original image!
What I mean is, make another layer. (Layer>New Layer) and change the mode to "Multiply". That way, it won't cover up any lines you have, like in a sketch.
3.) How to properly use the magic wand.
The magic wand tool can be very, very helpful at times. It will select all of a certain color within lines and such. It can be helpful for coloring, because you can use the fill command (Edit>Fill) after the area is selected. Often you will get a ring of white (or whatever the previous color was) around lines. That can be fixed one of two ways. 1.) Change the tolerance. The default is 32, but you can bump it up a bit to get rid of the ring. If you are coloring on another layer (recommended), select it on the original image, then switch to the other layer THEN fill.
Section: Five billion thirty two!
Looking for a background for your picture/sig/avatar/whatever? Brushes can be a big help. Some of my favorite brush sites are:
http://magicbox.ti-fi.com/
http://angelic-trust.net/
http://vanilla-dreams.net/
If you don't find what you're looking for there, google "Photoshop Brushes". Oh, and those sites should explain how you install the brushes. It's pretty simple.
I've seen many people run into problems with their scan and various other things along that line. Also, coloring in photoshop. I've learned many things about photoshop, and though I'm not a master at it, I figured it would help to share some tips and tricks to tweaking your picture.
Section 1: My scan is all grey, what do I do?!
This is normal. It happens alot. The good news is that there is a easy way to fix it! Use Leveling. (Image>Adjustments>Levels)
The general rule it to move the black arrow (1st one) to the first peak and the white/clear one (3rd arrow) to the first indent. Sometimes you have to tweak it a bit, but that's okay. Just make sure your background it white and the black is black. This is a HUGE help with manga scans.
Section 2: Tips & Tricks for coloring
It can be tricky when you first start off. I have several tips to beginners.
1.) Burn tool and Highlight tool: usually a no-no. They can turn colors MEGA ugly. Pick out a lighter/darker shade and shade with the brush tool. There are a few colors which work well with the burn/highlight tool, but double that amount don't. Especially yellow. Never -ever- use the burn tool on yellow, it looks really ugly. Also, make sure to remember where your light source is so that the shades don't look odd. Always keep that in mind..
2.) Don't color on your original image!
What I mean is, make another layer. (Layer>New Layer) and change the mode to "Multiply". That way, it won't cover up any lines you have, like in a sketch.
3.) How to properly use the magic wand.
The magic wand tool can be very, very helpful at times. It will select all of a certain color within lines and such. It can be helpful for coloring, because you can use the fill command (Edit>Fill) after the area is selected. Often you will get a ring of white (or whatever the previous color was) around lines. That can be fixed one of two ways. 1.) Change the tolerance. The default is 32, but you can bump it up a bit to get rid of the ring. If you are coloring on another layer (recommended), select it on the original image, then switch to the other layer THEN fill.
Section: Five billion thirty two!
Looking for a background for your picture/sig/avatar/whatever? Brushes can be a big help. Some of my favorite brush sites are:
http://magicbox.ti-fi.com/
http://angelic-trust.net/
http://vanilla-dreams.net/
If you don't find what you're looking for there, google "Photoshop Brushes". Oh, and those sites should explain how you install the brushes. It's pretty simple.