fireEyes' Tutorials  

• Introduction
• Drawing Western Dragons
• Drawing Eastern Dragons
• Drawing Dragon Heads
• Drawing Wings (Bat-like)
• Drawing Paws
• Coloring in Photoshop
• References
• HOME

By : fireEyes tailchaser

Part 1...Scanning, Levels/Curves, Modes

Start off by scanning in your sketch in gray scale mode. Scanning in color mode will only add unwanted noise, and black & white won't have enough detail. I recommend scanning in at no less than 150 dpi.

Now you have your sketch open in Photoshop. The first thing you want to do is work with the Levels and/or Curves. If you have never used either of these before, it can be a bit tricky at first. Go Image>Adjust>Levels or command+L (CTRL+L for PC users) You should see something like this:

Make sure that the preview check box is checked so you can see how the changes you make affect your image. Start off by clicking the absolute black eyedropper (I have outlined this button in red on the image above). Next, click on the darkest area of your sketch; I usually choose the pupil of the eye for this. Next, click the absolute white eyedropper (I have outlined this button in yellow on the image above). Now click on the whitest area of your sketch. To make final adjustments, use the center triangular slider (outlined in blue above). There are many ways to use the Levels tool, so experiment. This is simply the method that I find to be the most useful. Here is an example of what a sketch looks like before and after proper leveling:

Another interesting tool that I have yet to master is the curves tool. I've found this feature useful when doing art with solid outlines, in a comic book or anime style. It's a great way to clean up sketches. Basically, it gets rid of all the midtones and keeps only black and white, making the image look a bit like a page from a coloring book. Go Image>Adjust>Curves or command+M (CTRL+M for PC users) You should see something like this:

Since I really don't know how this tool actually works, the only way I can explain how to use this is to start dragging points up and down off the line graph. After a while, you know where to push and pull, and you can get the desired effect pretty quickly. It's really just something you have to practice with. Here is an example of how an image can look before and after proper use of the curves tool (sorta...I'm not very good with it):

Another important thing you need to do before you start adding color is to switch into RGB mode. Go Image>Mode>RGB Color. If you left the image in grey scale mode, you would be able to paint with nothing but greys, and that's not good...unless you want that of course.

Part 2...Layers, Painting, Blend Modes

If your layers palette isn't showing, go Window>Show Layers. Create a new layer below the layer with your sketch. Fill this layer with solid white. Next, set the sketch layer into Multiply mode. Do this by selecting the layer and choosing Multiply from the drop down menu at the top of the layers palette. This basically removes all the white from the layer so that it is transparent. Now you can color underneath the sketch!

Now to start work on the background. I always start with the background because it determines the light source. I have a very hard time with lighting and such so I need a hard, defined light source before I can start any of my shading. Start at the furthest point away from the viewer, and work your way up. Add a new layer for each step, naming each one along the way so you don't get lost. For example, I like to keep the sky and clouds in the bottom layer, then create a layer on top of that for foliage and trees, then a layer on top of that for the ground. Once the background is complete, continue working forward with the subject matter. I often create different layers for each separate color, and then create a separate layer for the highlights and shadows. All of this is up to your own artistic abilities; it's nothing that I can explain to you in a tutorial :) And be sure to save often! There's nothing worse than spending an hour in Photoshop coloring and then having it freeze up on you right as you realize you haven't saved yet.

Experiment with the different tools. I commonly use the paintbrush tool for all my coloring, and the dodge/burn tools for shading. I also use the airbrush for coloring and shading of some things for a softer effect. The rubber stamp tool is great for repeating textures. With practice, you can get some very realistic, natural looking textures. You can also get some neat effects with the smudge and blur tools, especially when working with clouds and the sky. I've found many uses for just about every one of the tools in the tool palette. Try them out and experiment.

Another thing I highly recommend experimenting with is blending modes. Multiply is only one of the many different modes as you may have seen from the drop down menu earlier. Try them all out and see what effects they have on your different layers.

Part 3...Final Touches, Saving For the Web

Once you are done with your picture, keep the layered PSD file; you may want to go back sometime and change something, or make a print. You may want to run more Levels on the image overall. Also, there are many more options under the Image>Adjust menu. One I often use is "Hue/Saturation" because I usually end up coloring things far too brightly :) Play with them all until you get you image to the point you want it.

If you are going to post this image on the web, you will want to optimize it. Go Image>Image Size. In the Resolution box, type in 72 which is screen resolution. This will greatly decrease your file size. Enter the desired dimensions, making sure that the Constrain Proportions check box is checked. I usually enter 700 as the dimension for the longest side. You are now ready to save. Go File>Save for Web. Click on the 2-up tab, which will display the original image on the left with the optimized on the right. Under the settings menu on the right, you will most likely want to choose JPG unless your picture has very hard, solid lines and colors with no gradients. Adjust the compression settings until you come up with something acceptable. Be sure to keep an eye on the file size underneath the image; I try to keep my images under 50k. Anything over 100k really isn't at all reasonable.