Inking in Illustrator - The old method

[schwarszendeust]

this method gives a "real pen pressure"results. but it takes so long to do a illustration with it. (about 2, 3 or 4 hours, depends of the illust final quality) I used to do this on PS before i met A.I XD

[lockianhound]

@schwarszendeust I know. For my new method see "Inking in Illustrator - The custom brush method "

[PaulZevgolisgr]

VERY WELL DONE

[andrewsLG]

ok, this works but...a drawing that could be inked in less than an hour with a traditional pen or similar may take lots of hours doing this! :S sounds terrible for me

[lockianhound]

@andrewsLG That's why it's called "The old method" for my new method see "Inking in Illustrator - The custom brush method "

[eddyartisticism]

check out my first speed inking video =]

[chazduran]

the obsolete way has more control of the number of editing points and seems to be cleaner, both are good in their own style,what i like in the custom brush is it's more loose and spontaneous. Thanks for the info.

[Febeleh]

What is the new easier way? I thought this was the only way.

[lockianhound]

@Febeleh Good question, I wondering when someone would ask me that. That video is coming really soon I promise

[lockianhound]

@Febeleh The video I promised you is now up. Title is Comic style Inking in Adobe Illustrator - The custom brush method

[anthonyontherocks]

Was this picture originally pencil drawn and then scanned? or touch pad drawn from scratch in photoshop?

[lockianhound]

@anthonyontherocks Originally done in pencil and scanned, I'm just old fashioned that way

[TheOceanarium]

This may be obsolete, but the lines are gorgeous and precise.

[PromisesLies]

OMG I LOVE IT! :DD

[littlebigplanetgame2]

I like your style it reminds me of like crime comics and things

[Xytos]

that's so dumb, no one ever traced that way, only you cause you're a dumb ass.

[lockianhound]

@Xytos And you of course are an artistic genius. That animated letter x you did in Maya really blew me away. LOL

[lilrara11804]

@Xytos actually , dumb ass, that is how it was done not that long ago. Back when I was doing tee shirt design, if a customer wanted an exact copy of something, the cleanest way to do it was the pen tool... things have obviously changed and that's why the title says the obsolete hard way.... dumbass

[DevilShroom]

Whoa this is awesome, but yeah next time could you slow it down and explain what you are doing; thanks.

[lockianhound]

@DevilShroom Hi thanks for the comment. This was my first attempt at making a You Tube video so it's not great. if you look at my most recent ones I actually do speak and try and explain what I'm doing. The last one I made pretty much explains what I'm doing here with the pen tool but as several people have pointed out now this method is far from the best way to do it anymore. Hence the title.

[Ataradesu]

Important information : This method is now completely useless and horribly time consuming. Illustrator CS 5 has created an incredible tool (that should have always been there but hey ;o), which is the width tool. With it, any line you draw (mouse or tablet) can be changed the way you want it. Much better.

[lockianhound]

@Ataradesu I have been saying for some time that there are better methods of doing this now and probably were then but some people may still find it interesting, so rather than remove the vdeo all together I'll change the title from "Inking in Illustrator without a Wacom tablet " to "Inking in Illustrator - the obsolete hard way" :-)

[Sumpfdotterschnalle]

It does look good, definately. But I don't like how it's done. Not very artistic. More of some technical drawing. I always ink on paper and I don't need an "undo" function. I mean, you have the pencil lines - what could go wrong? And even if something goes wrong, you are still able to fix it digital. (when you're gonna color it digital)

[lockianhound]

@Sumpfdotterschnalle What could go wrong? smudges, drips, spilled ink , shaky hands. If you're inking over pencil then you will lose the pencil lines surely?

Adobe Illustrator is very much like technical drawing software, so maybe Photoshop or Painter would be a better choice for you. Although I should say that I prefer to make custom brushes now rather than do it this way which is admittedly laborious.

[Sumpfdotterschnalle]

@lockianhound I'm sorry but this never happens to me. Just be careful? Or use a fineliner. And I just use a rubber to erase the pencil lines after... Where's the problem? I don't understand you. But yeah, whatever.

[HenryQuienne]

... Huuum... Well, I'm not saying that you're not skilled, but, seriously. For these kind of situations it's easier to ink in paper, then scan.

[lockianhound]

@HenryQuienne Give me an inkbrush that comes with an undo button, doesn't get ink all over your hands and allows you to adjust the inkline after and I might agree with you

[HenryQuienne]

@lockianhound There's a lot of tools for "Erasing" your mistakes in paper when inking, plus, the practice is really good for anyone. So when you get to a Wacom or a genius tablet, your work will be better than those who practice only in digital formats.

The tool doesn't make the artist.

[lockianhound]

@HenryQuienne I agree, I inked stuff with real ink and paper for years but it definitely isn't "easier" which was what you were saying originally

[pauljs75]

I'm surprised you don't use CTRL-Y when laying down the outlines and have the reference layer in template mode. It seems to work for ya though.

[lockianhound]

@pauljs75 I never thought of using ctrl-y, thanks for the tip. What's the advantage of template mode?

[pauljs75]

@lockianhound

Putting the reference pic in template mode means it stays up when using outlines with ctrl-Y. Otherwise I only see the box for the picture. I usually disable the transparency check, lock it, and have it at the bottom. Or at least that's the case in the old version (plain ol' CS) that I'm using.

The funny thing is that even though I have a tablet, for a lot of vector stuff I actually prefer the mouse. Stylus is great for drawing, yet doesn't seem natural for dragging stuff.

[royalconcrete1]

you made the eye using the ellipse tool then I saw you click scissors and waayla! the eye magically took the right shape. I have to find a video that shows how to do that...or maybe just experiment, or just ask you! thanks for these videos.

[lockianhound]

@royalconcrete1 all I did there was cut the ellipse on two points delete the half I didn't want and then join the open section together with the pen tool. or you can just use ctrl-J to join it up with a straight line

[royalconcrete1]

@lockianhound wow, thanks for responding to my question,  oh talented one

[iia33ii]

kool i love the finished result but i just cannot for the life of me be bothered to click all them damn pen points lol

[lockianhound]

@iia33ii Neither can I anymore, I didn't know how to make custom brushes then

[Qwaybabii]

iight so like now can you jus explain as you do cuz i cant keep up wit it

[lockianhound]

@Qwaybabii Have a look my most recent video where I explain it properly

[BitFrost]

Nice, love your drawing style :)

[TonyZucco]

what pencils do u use

[lockianhound]

Blue Chromacolour animator's pencils and Faber Castell 2B graphite pencils

[FlegDesigns]

I know you're saying this is old. But just curious, how do you find doing this way compared to making your own set of brush's?

[lockianhound]

First it took me ages to realise that you could make your own brushes, illustrators library brushes were no use for this style, and then there were issues with the brush tool settings. Then it's best to convert all the brush strokes to fills and close all the paths for print and that caused other issues. But I have it sorted now, and it is quicker but not that much quicker. Like I said it's time I did a new video.

[maddetox]

this is great, but i would buy a wacom. this seems to take way too long.

[trence5]

@maddetox yeah, you can do this without a tablet - it can be verrrry tideous....

[backaround]

nice.

[micheas1000]

ive been trying to do the same thing with the pen tool but the problem i have is every time i come to a point only some of the time dose it make the anchor point sharp or pointed, you know what i mean? how do i get it to have sharp anchor points all of the ime?

[lockianhound]

I'm going to put a much better tutorial about this up really soon but if u can't wait send me a personal email from my website contact page. just google zengrenade to find site cos this won't let me put in the url

[M0man]

Are you dragging the point when you make it? If you don't click and drag the point when making it, The point will be a harsh, Pointed corner, But if you drag the line will flow through the point making a curve.

[miracomovuelo3000]

Thanks for not draw anime

Sorry my english :D

[lockianhound]

I know what you mean it was boring 10 years ago

[soacker25]

excellent

[clagccs]

hey please make a tutorial where We can see all the process, I Know how to use the pen and how draw a curve but I don't know what did u make later...I draw my curve and It's very slim (if I don't use a style pen) but what do u make later?...thx!!

[lockianhound]

Yeah, I know this is fast and I am making more, if you look at my other vids there is one done at normal speed, which might help

[kirttrik]

Thanks a lot! I love the final look you get with this technique.

[lockianhound]

Basically it's click, then move the pen tool, click again, holding mouse button down and then drag to make a curve between the 2 points, then mouse up and click back on to your last endpoint and repeat the process . Use the scissors tool to cut shapes, then back to pen tool to rejoin the points in a new way, one of my other vids Colouring in Adobe Illustrator - Wolf Cartoon Pt3 is in real time so have a look at that it may help.

[kirttrik]

I'm slightly unfamiliar with Illustrator. I generally use the pen tool to make shapes like word balloons and what not. I understand where the the block shape is made but I'm lost where you cut back and actually get a smooth looking line. How are you doing that? Also how did you shave the circles for the iris and pupil?

[kirttrik]

How is he doing this with the pen tool?

[lockianhound]

Please be more specific, I'll do my best to answer

[lockianhound]

Please read the previous comments

[DionLaurent1]

this is no a tutorial! this is a speed run!

[hellacezkie]

@DionLaurent1 I think the vid was never meant to be for tutorial.

[CreoleSkipster]

Is that live trace your using or just the regular pen tool? I'm running just regular cs and it doesn't have live trace.

[snw04]

i'd like to knew it, haha

[digitalmangaartist]

I wish adobe would come up with a way of combining the path tool and the vector tool.

[fudolove]

Great video, How do you ink it so fast, what exactly are u doing.?

[founder3]

the speed is because the video has a 70%-80% speed increase. This is an example of how to ink using the pen tool in illustrator. One of the easier (be it longer) prossesses that looks wonderful and clean.

[Edel99]

PhotoShop needs a vector BRUSH tool... You guys should check out 'Toon Boom Animate' Demo - it has the best vector brush on this planet. I hope Adobe improves the brush tool for Illustrator and Flash!

[lockianhound]

Sounds interesting I'll check it out

[grandmasterj5]

Using this style of doing the linework...It's much faster just to ink by hand. Scan and just do a live trace. then convert it into artwork so you can mess with the vector points too :)

[lockianhound]

Not everyone is good at inking by hand and it's a skill that takes a long time to acquire. It's only quicker if you're good at it and don't make mistakes which are a pain to fix. Then of course there's the messy ink which inevitably gets everywhere, at least it does when I do it :)

[gino454]

pros and cons for photoshop v.s illustrator?

[lockianhound]

someone once said a camel is a racehorse designed by a comittee. And that's what Photoshop has become it's trying to be all things to all men. I say, just use illustrator for vector and Photoshop for bitmaps. But if you want an App that does both then I guess it has to be Photoshop. The main advantage of Illustrator is it's relaively tiny filesizes usually under 500kb compared to photoshops massive megs. But that may not matter to you.

[lockianhound]

You're correct but the key word there is "Almost". The brush tool doesn't give the precise control that I personally like to have

[MrDefaulto]

I'd suggest using a tablet and the Brush tool, set to very thick and thin according to pressure variances. You get almost the same look in a tenth of the time. Check out CS4, they have a new BLOB tool which is basically a paint brush, and an eraser tool where you can actually erase like in photoshop, but it still remains VECTOR!!! It's awesome my friends.

[ojneb123]

are you using mouse there?

[lockianhound]

Yes

[proflolsworthy]

Damn, just watched again - you're using illustrator and I see you're doing things that photoshop wont.

*cries*

dammit I want some vector goodness :/

[lockianhound]

You can use Photoshop's pen tool but it works slightly differently

[proflolsworthy]

Nice technique! Pretty much how I do it but faster - I tend to tweak the brush angle a lot and try to achieve the line I want, then sometimes modify the inner or outer curve. I guess I just fell into a habit - when I'm next inking with the pen tool I'll be sure to try it this way. Hm, I might put inverted pencil work as a guide layer on the top as well.

[lockianhound]

Thanks I don't really do it that fast tho vid is speeded up I wish I could!

[International72521]

Is it just me but the eyes are weird looking.

[Sugandya]

This is a great tutorial. I've been experimenting with this kind of inking for illustrator, too.

It's not a newbie friendly tutorial (Not the artist's fault; vector art has a steep learning curve) so to those complaining about how to make the lines should look into learning more about vector art.

[ToolshedEd3TF]

I've never seen digital inking done this way before...

[MarkLipka]

The helpfulness of this video would be dramatically improved if the maker would first slowly demonstrate how to create the simplest line and work up to a faster demonstration instead of blasting out of the gate with lightning speed.

Frankly, this doesn't demonstrate anything.

[lockianhound]

This video is only intended to accompany a more detailed explanation on my website

See Colouring in Adobe Illustrator - Wolf Cartoon Pt3 for a slow version of the same technique

[Raegone]

ughhh didnt help at all how do u make the lines thin once u have the anchor points using the pen tool

[lockianhound]

Use the direct selection tool (The one that looks like a white arrow)click on the shape you want to adjust then drag the little handles that appear.

[Purehiphop1]

beauty