User blog:Bigrika/How I create my OCs

So...many people around here are arguing that using bases is theft and plagiarism and that you won't improve your own drawing skills by using them.

I have to say: I use bases as well! But I do it my style.

Im attending a school of arts here in Germany. The most thing we do is drawing still lifes because it is one of the BEST ways do simply draw what you are seeing to improve skills. And that is what I am doing.

So, I'm taking pen and paper and start drawing a base. It might be by reference or out of my mind. Mostly it combines.

Then, I will add details on the base so it becomes a personality. This sill happens on the traditional way: with Pen and Paper.

After that I digitize my result. As I don't have any scanner yet, I'm taking a photo of the picture. This is a fresh digitized picture of mine showing my OCs Demise Grim and Ian Van Cubus.



Now what I do is open it with GIMP and add a new transparent layer above and start to reconstruct the lower layer. Because I'm not using a GT although I have one, I usually use the PenTool and create paths with it. Then I simply give the order to draw along path and delete the lower layer. Now I have clean outlines that can be colored.

When I first did a coloration that wasn't related to pixelart, I used this Tutorialto get started. And when im done with that I scal down the size that much, that it can be looked at without the need of scrolling on my monitor or simply to fit in a bios page or a background like that is what I did with the example:



So when you use the bases the way I do you WILL improve your skills. And you probably won't get any problems with those anti-base-ppl anymore :)