Need tips to get me started

[pandionknight]

Hi Guys.
I love looking at pixelart and am confident that I can do it, after trying a couple of tutorials.  There are some questions I have not seen answered, perhaps ther're too basic?

1) What is a good size canvas to begin with?
2) Should the canvas background always be white?
3) Should images always be drawn flat, or can/should layers be used?

Cheers.

[Feron]

1 - start small.  Begin to learn the power one pixel can have on an image.

2 - Not at all.  I find its best to work on a medium grey background, if not the actual color your background will be.

3 - If you have a program with layers, use them.  It saves time changing colors of different elements and allows you to try different things without redoing everything.  If you don't, the're not essential for pixel-art.

just to note, threads like this are normally frowned upon, as the forum has many threads already like it, and there is of course the search bar. 

for more information try these threads:

http://www.wayofthepixel.net/pixelation/index.php?topic=3467.0

http://www.wayofthepixel.net/pixelation/index.php?topic=4912.0

http://www.wayofthepixel.net/pixelation/index.php?topic=5965.0

[pandionknight]

Thanks Feron.  I understand the remark about this type of post, but got lost in the wealth of search results.  Sometimes it can be hard to find the really basic stepping blocks.  Pixelart will be a good reason to get to know Gimp better.

[pandionknight]

I searched forums for advice on 'scale' without success. What I would to know is...

1) is there an advisable scale to build rooms/furniture/people at?
2) if I use layers to build my set pieces, then I should use transparent backgrounds for each element, yes?

[Akira]

1) No, not really. If you're interested in isometric art (I'm assuming this because you're asking to make buildings etc.) then try here. These pieces should give you a good idea about what scale you want to work on.
2) Yes, yes you should.

[pandionknight]

Thanks for the link Akira.  Yes I thought building rooms with scaled furniture would be a good place to begin, and develop my skills.