Creating a Manga/Graphic Novel

BlackWolf said:
All is well ;) I may have to get Manga Studio 4 at some point, i've got some projects lined up that could make use of it.
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It's not very cheap, you can get the debut version but it's obviously not as good. I wasted money on something i never use :(
 
Basically it's like photoshop or something but only more focused on the drawing aspect then editing things, there's tons of settings for page layouts, panels, comic strip set ups, speech bubbles and all the tools are designed to be useful for the aspiring artist. All in all it's a good program, i just never use it.
 
How much would you pay for a copy? Or was it free? *shady eyes*

Would you get the just as much benefit from getting an older version for less moneys? I can't imagine there would be a huge difference or am I wrong?
 
Kirrimir said:
BlackWolf said:
All is well ;) I may have to get Manga Studio 4 at some point, i've got some projects lined up that could make use of it.
Click to expand...

It's not very cheap, you can get the debut version but it's obviously not as good. I wasted money on something i never use :(
Click to expand...
Debut's fine imo, it's £30 and does everything you'd need it to imo. The £100+ extra is for some crazy hardcore things which not many people will take full use of (importing 3D models for backgrounds? I can barely handle 2D thanks! :eek:). I also don't use some standard tools such as the panel tool (as the line/shape tools are perfectly fine), or the speech bubble function (hand-drawn ftw!).

The inking is especially good, I personally prefer it to photoshop. The toning system works really well too (you can draw it in as well as paste it). It is just black and white though, so if you're after colour illustration this isn't the one you want (Photoshop Elements is probably the next best thing). Frankly if I didn't have Debut I probably wouldn't ever have gotten round to drawing a comic. I'd die without it, lol... >_>;
 
Do you draw it by hand then scan it in Ushio? I keep looking at Debut but I need to justify the funds, and I can only really do that by getting off my butt and trial drawing an actual strip of some kind. However I'm now worried that I'm not going to be able to draw the actual fighting, when it comes down to it.
 
This would seem a reasonably appropriate place to ask - does anyone know where I might find a fairly comprehensive guide to panel layout? I'd really like to try making a proper comic again, but it rather occurs to me that I know bugger all about making good use of the page.
 
BlackWolf said:
However I'm now worried that I'm not going to be able to draw the actual fighting, when it comes down to it.
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Digital camera + yourself and/or friends = instant reference material! Any artists who don't use reference for that sort of thing have likely built up a strong visual memory of it through a lot of practice.

Professor Irony said:
[...] does anyone know where I might find a fairly comprehensive guide to panel layout? I'd really like to try making a proper comic again, but it rather occurs to me that I know bugger all about making good use of the page.
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The cheapest way (assuming you own or can borrow some) is going to be skimming through any comics or manga that you like and just noting what they do. I know that a good framework for analysis of that sort does help though.

Man, I need to start drawing again.
 
BlackWolf said:
Do you draw it by hand then scan it in Ushio? I keep looking at Debut but I need to justify the funds, and I can only really do that by getting off my butt and trial drawing an actual strip of some kind. However I'm now worried that I'm not going to be able to draw the actual fighting, when it comes down to it.
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Kind of. I pencil on paper, but then scan it and draw over it again on computer instead of inking on paper. It's give a very clean line, but still looks natural. I do a webcomic that's done entirely through Manga Studio however, so it's pretty flexible for black and white drawing. You can ink on paper and scan it in as the import/export functions are pretty good so adding final tweaks/tones/fonts is pretty easy.

I'm not especially good at the technical side of these things, but I think it's jpeg files only (some people prefer TIF, which you can get through Photoshop and others, but I've never had a problem with it).

In terms of justifying the price you save money on not having to buy materials such as tones/paper/ink/etc. Tones especially. Letraset has them at over £1 per sheet:
http://www.letraset.com/manga/shopdispl ... Tone+MT38+

They're not reusable if you mess it up or anything, so for that alone it works out cheaper if you use the program to any extent.

You can't save your work, but there's a trial version if you wanted a play:
http://manga.smithmicro.com/d_trial_offers.html

(for fight scene inspiration - watch lots of martial arts films! XD)

Professor Irony said:
This would seem a reasonably appropriate place to ask - does anyone know where I might find a fairly comprehensive guide to panel layout? I'd really like to try making a proper comic again, but it rather occurs to me that I know bugger all about making good use of the page.
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There's a bunch of books ot there, but I'd assume they mainly go for American formats (although that might be what you want). Might be worth a search on Deviantart?

I've got no real idea how it works really, it's an art as opposed to a science so I fake it, lol. Big pictures for important/cool things, otherwise small. And use establishing shots to set the scene. So long as it's clear for the reader which way they're supposed to be going there's little you can do wrong imo. It's surprising just how significant the placement of dialogue is. (sorry, I didn't answer your question at all ^^; )

Long post it long! :eek: I'll shut up now as I'm no real authority, lol. >_>;
 
Thanks Ushio :) I'll be looking into that program then, on my previous attempts to scan in just pencil drawings with no ink, the image always comes out dark and fuzzy with the lines just visible.

The tone is quite dear for what it is, especially if you make a mistake, i was thinking the price would of been more like 20-30p a sheet, a bit more forgiving.
 
BlackWolf said:
Thanks Ushio :) I'll be looking into that program then, on my previous attempts to scan in just pencil drawings with no ink, the image always comes out dark and fuzzy with the lines just visible.

The tone is quite dear for what it is, especially if you make a mistake, i was thinking the price would of been more like 20-30p a sheet, a bit more forgiving.
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Cool stuff. Talking about techniques and stuff kind of gets me going. ^^; Yeah you can import pencils as a draft layer, otherwise it'll filter out only the darkest lines and you can't see it. Like everything else it's got its quirks and takes getting used to, but it's good stuff! Let us know what you think of it if you give it a go!

(I'm assuming you'll be using a drawing tablet btw - essential for inking. Basic fonts and tones could be handled with a mouse though)
 
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