Gray tones to halftones

Software used:
- Adobe Photoshop CS3
- NEWFS Halftone filter for Adobe Photoshop CS/CS2/CS3 download here: http://www.newfs.to/m_yuuki/html/halftone.html

Hardware:
- Dell Inspiron 1721
- Wacom Intuos3 (6"x 11")

Music by: Combichrist
Recorded with: CamStudio
Video edition: Windows Movie Maker

This video shows you another way of applying tones without using the hard-to-get Powertone3 plugin for Photoshop. This time I will be using a simpler, free plugin filter for Photoshop which I listed and linked up there for you to download. It's also from a Japanese website, but the filter comes fully in English, so it's very simple to understand and use. It has several versions there, but the newest ones are specifically for Photoshop CS2. The version that works with my Photoshop CS3 is the 1.7 version.

Basically, all you have to do in Photoshop is apply gray tones, patterns and textures, even gradations and soft edges are permitted. I recommend keeping it simple tho... too many gradations and different gray tones in one area will "blend" once converted to halftones. The halftones are meant to be inexpensive when printing. Even though there are better printers that can print gray tones in good quality nowadays, keeping the halftones in manga is a tradition.

Once you finished applying the gray tones, it's time to use the halftone filter. You need a basic understanding of how the halftones will look in the printed page. Screentones are not only supposed to look "dotty"; their purpose is to give the sensation of a plain gray tone using pure black ink. Sometimes the dots are too small and end up blurred in the printed page, sometimes they are too big and the gray tones are lost. Depending on the final size of the page, it's how you will choose how many lines per inch (LPI) to use. Usually, 60-65 LPI is the standard for most mangakas (which is the one I recommend to use). Also depending on the mood/perspective of your panels, you will use several LPI tones. Practice with different LPI tones, print them and see how they look. This will help you decide the best sizes for your pages.

This halftone plugin has the most used LPI for tones: 27.5, 30, 32.5, 42.5, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70 and 85 lines per inch. It also lets you set the angle and offset of the halftone. It even has an option for color halftones if you ever wanna try it with colored illustrations.

I always apply the gray tones in TRANSPARENT layers. Once the filter is applied, the tones will become transparent as well, this means there is no white, only black in the layer. Also it is recommended the image files are at least at 300dpi of resolution. 600dpi is much better quality for printing A4 or B5 page sizes. Smaller resolutions than 300 will affect the print quality. Another very important thing to consider is that, if you have not already done it, convert the final page to bitmap. This will guarantee the whole page is pure black and white, thus having crisp lines and dots in the printed version. Bitmaps look awful in the screen, but wonderful in paper.

If you have more questions about this method, feel free to ask :D.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• digital
• screentones
• inks
• tones
• halftones
• filter
• photoshop
• wacom
• tablet
• manga

[axelloveroxas]

Hello, I was wondering if you could help me. Okay I followed everything as best as I could (I think) , but I keep having this strange problem. The texture of the tones look different, as not in squares like yours when you zoom in, but more like...dots. Idk why, and I'm still a noob at PS and all. If it helps, I downloaded Halftone 19. Idk which version to download. ^^; Also, I have photoshop CS2. Another question, I have downloaded many screentones off the net, would it be the same?

[LaraYokoshima]

@axelloveroxas Hi there. If you are seeing dots, then it is fine. It's probably the video quality that wouldn't let you appreciate the details, but in the end, screen tones are made of dots or lines. I should really update these videos.... Anyway, I suggest you convert the grey tones to 65dpi dots, it's a good size that looks beautiful printed :)

[LaraYokoshima]

Oh, about the downloaded screentones, I suggest you only use tones that are at least at 300dpi in pure black and white. If you can find 600dpi, the better. I see there are many of them for free in Deviant Art, you are in luck!

[omigodcelebitchy]

Hi Lara! It's me again! This time I want to ask you a few questions about THIS video.Gradually.

Firstly, what exactly are gray tones? Are they just gray colours? Or tones than can be found only in filters or plugins like

Celsys Powertone3, NEWFS,Manga Studio etc...? Where can I learn more about them?

The next question I'll ask it when you'll answer this one, because the rest depents on this. Thank you.

[LaraYokoshima]

@omigodcelebitchy Well, in this particular video guide I first apply solid greys in different opacity, gradients and even grey-scale patterns, to later convert them to halftones using the free plug-in mentioned in the description. Once I have the desired grey tones I want, then I convert them to halftones (which are pure black dots/lines). In the past, manga was printed this way because it was cheap and effective, since different dot patterns create the illusion of solid grey tones.

[venchia3]

Thank you sooo much for sharing this tutorial and the wonderful free plugin! I can confirm it works flawlessly in Photoshop CS5. Just a question for you: I usually work with 300dpi documents since I use Easy Paint Tool SAI and can't figure out how to use 600dpi documents. Is there soooo much of a difference in using 300 instead of 600?

[LaraYokoshima]

@venchia3 Well, Paint Tool SAI is more of a painting program to me, but it does have a nice inking pen tool and it can ink in vectors! Very helpful I must say when rendering to higher resolutions. The difference is that Comicworks inks directly in 1-bit black, leaving only pure black in a transparent layer, thus making the file smaller. That's why I prefer to ink in CW. You can still do your inking in Sai, just remember to convert it later to 1-bit b/w picture file before applying screentones.

[LauraSeabrook]

Interesting tutorial, but I'll set volume to "Mute"

[otakuofanime]

SHES NOT A CHRISTIAN!

awesome drawing

[meanbluedevil167]

this guy reminds me of alberto del rio 's personal ring anouncer. lol. Great art btw

[noncanadian]

nice tutorial

keep coming back to this music because the music is so good xD

[jellybeanguitarist]

@mikevitsi1 lolol its a remix of the audio of some crazy lady from ''swapping wives'' or something like that. it was such a funny episode XD

[AsiLayFlyying]

sorry im kinda new to PS, how do i put the halftones in photoshop?

[singinglawnchair]

I'M A GOD WARRIOR! Awesome tutorial, this plugin will be very helpful :D