Pixelation
General => General Discussion => Topic started by: dead_pool on May 19, 2009, 03:33:31 am
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I've come to the realization that I suck at painting. I have been really trying here lately to work up some paintings and learn to work with digital painting in Painter X. After failing several times, I now see the problem. It's not so much as I need an art class, but when it comes to painting, I don't know where to begin. I've been fiddling about with sketches, and blank screens for some time, and have no clue as to a good start on painting. I see lots of people say, to paint successfully digitally, you must know how to paint traditionally, with real mediums. Is that true? And I can't afford art mediums and canvases and such. Basically what I want to ask is, if anyone knows of any art instructors over the internet, or someone who is really experienced in painting that I could talk to. I want to be a successful concept artist some day, but that won't come without knowing how to paint, and I simply have no idea where to begin.
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It is not necessary to be good at traditional painting, but it certainly helps. If you have any bit of money at all, Im sure I could give you a list of things you could get that would be much less expensive than you might think. Also, before you can PAINT you must be able to DRAW. Im certainly not a master of painting- and Im much more so a traditional one than a digital one but Id gladly give any advice I can. Sorry to name call and put them on the spot but Arne, ndchristie, and helm are some members here that I believe have an advanced grasp of artistry beyond pixels on this forum- im sure there are many others that I just haven't noticed.
edit: oh and ptoing as well :]
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You can't afford canvas, paints and brushes, but you CAN afford a legitimate three-hundred dollar copy of Painter X? Well I'll be damned! Either way painting is pretty easy on a technical level, it's the rest of the stuff (anatomy, volumes, light, perspective, etc) that's tricky.
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I don't remember saying anything about a legitimate copy of Painter X? Anyways, you're right about the lighting and all that. When it comes to painting on the computer, should I paint directly over my sketch, or on an above layer set to multiply? Should my sketch be visible at all in the finished painting? Should I even bother sketching it at all? These are questions I wanted to ask.
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In my very limited knowledge I'm aware of a few things:
- Painter X comes with a trial and/or educational version. There are several other good free painting programs. Art classes can be far more expensive than that if you don't know where to look or depending where you live. Perhaps the would be painter lives on an Antarctic research station. No further mention of software prices need be mentioned. XD
- Sketching is always helpful. Being better able to draw seems to translate into being better at everything else in art, or seems to be helping me anyway. :/
- I doub't you'd want to paint directly over your sketch. You can put the sketch in another window, or work on a dozen layers or more. Generally I don't think sketches are visible in finished paintings.
- Check out ScribD.com for numerous free manuals/teaching guides on how to do just about everything in life, including painting and software. Google otherwise provides many tutorials on how to paint in Painter X, Adobe, etc. Mostly it lacks pixel art guides beyond "this is how you do grass, anti-alias and dither" I find.
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I recommend you sign up for an illustration coarse at a nearby art school.
Personally I took only one art class in my whole life ( one simester in high school ) but now that I look back on it, it was an immense help.