tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post7801094086341799762..comments2024-03-04T04:08:39.755-08:00Comments on The Fies Files: A Page in the LifeBrian Fieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16347700145666751363noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-80844374768901227552017-05-27T12:43:53.305-07:002017-05-27T12:43:53.305-07:00Good luck with it, Grennpear!Good luck with it, Grennpear!Brian Fieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16347700145666751363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-11604034623136237562017-05-27T10:52:21.768-07:002017-05-27T10:52:21.768-07:00You mentioned (in the Dots entry) these posts migh...You mentioned (in the Dots entry) these posts might be read months later. Well it's years and this is what I've been researching. I've been drawing and distressing entirely in Illustrator but the lack of the halftone screening leaves my dot patterns lacking. I will be making some tries in Photoshop using your bitmap technique. Thanks for the information.greenpearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02944457811603959027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-18130769442072579532010-08-12T22:25:48.978-07:002010-08-12T22:25:48.978-07:00Thanks for coming back. My description above isn&#...Thanks for coming back. My description above isn't very clear; if we were sitting in front of the same computer, I could show you in about five minutes. I like your idea of doing it as a tutorial and might do that soon, if I can find the time. <br /><br />I really only know Photoshop and don't consider myself much of an expert on digital art. However, from what I've seen and heard, Photoshop is pretty much the standard for doing digital comics art these days (I have some friends who prefer Illustrator, which fits well with their simple line art, but isn't typical). <br /><br />I currently have Photoshop CS3, but I actually did both of my books using an old version 5.5, which was a student package. It worked great. I don't know if you could find a copy on eBay or from a friend--one of the nice features of 5.5 was that it didn't require registration to activate.Brian Fieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16347700145666751363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-57693213763252584102010-08-12T20:07:10.725-07:002010-08-12T20:07:10.725-07:00Thanks for your very detailed answer. I'm Ano...Thanks for your very detailed answer. I'm Anon from a day ago.<br /><br />I used to work on a web comic a few years ago, and I'm in the process of getting back into it again. <br /><br />I'm not sure that I understand the process as you described it exactly - but that may be because I don't have Photoshop (I'm using Corel Painter Essentials 4 and Gimp).<br /><br />It would be great if you could take your comment from yesterday and turn that into a tutorial with images to show step by step. Gimp only has a filter called Newsprint - which looks ok - but not great and it doesn't offer a lot of control.<br /><br />Which version of Photoshop are you working with (and could you recommend an older version that I could purchase used for something under $200 which would offer everything I need for drawing comics?Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05665946526253906247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-44935841868989635042010-08-11T10:07:59.455-07:002010-08-11T10:07:59.455-07:00Anon., too bad you're anonymous because this i...Anon., too bad you're anonymous because this is an old post and I'd have preferred to answer in you some detail privately. In brief, I did do it in Photoshop by converting a copy of each CMYK Channel (that is, cyan, magenta, yellow and black) to Mode--Bitmap--Halftone Screen. Set Shape to "Round" and play with the Frequency to get the dot resolution you need. Then convert back to whatever mode you want to work in (e.g., CMYK). For my four-color Ben Day (nice to see you use that term, not many do anymore) separations, I gave each color a different angle that would have been used in old comics printing. Each channel emerges from the screening process as black dots, which I then Select and Fill appropriately (e.g., if it's the magenta channel, I made all the black dots 100%M). <br /><br />So keeping it simple, let's say I wanted to screen a piece of grayscale art. I'd take the black-and-white line art and shade it with different grays, either by hand or Photoshop. Then I'd convert to Mode--Bitmap--Halftone Screen as above. If I had no color, I'd set the Angle to 45 degrees. The key to making this work is to start with a high-resolution image--otherwise, your smooth lines will get very choppy. I scan my original art at at least 900 dpi.<br /><br />Then it's just a matter of playing with it until you get the effect you want.<br /><br />You can use the same technique to create sheets of different dot patterns and densities you can use in your art. Just fill an entire image with a shade of black (e.g., 10%, 20%, etc.), convert to Halftone Screen, re-convert to Grayscale or CMYK, and save the result. Then I guess you could color them or do whatever you want.Brian Fieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16347700145666751363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-85325985878852378902010-08-10T17:20:13.042-07:002010-08-10T17:20:13.042-07:00Could you expand on the process of creating the be...Could you expand on the process of creating the benday dots? I'm not sure if you did this in Phothoshop - or if so, how. <br /><br />I began creating my own patterns in Gimp to mimic benday coloring - but I haven't worked out all the kinks - or decided on the best way to do things.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-14419729564171376202010-07-12T09:44:08.025-07:002010-07-12T09:44:08.025-07:00I have a stack of comics from the early 70s, and I...I have a stack of comics from the early 70s, and I smiled with nostalgia while reading your comics in the book. As far as I'm concerned, you got it dead-on. Great job. And thanks for explaining the process.. all the work that goes into it makes me appreciate it even more.Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12605766712521867826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-44142368500928732562010-07-09T07:32:51.661-07:002010-07-09T07:32:51.661-07:00WHTTWOT is a work of art on multiple levels. there...WHTTWOT is a work of art on multiple levels. there are more than a few of us that, when we pick up your book, think, "whoa, great ideas, really nice, complex work" about you, and, although it may only be guys like me, also realize how much your publisher -- and Charlie -- believe in the validity of your ideas.sligohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05790839337334176733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-13593987389553821102010-07-09T03:43:17.110-07:002010-07-09T03:43:17.110-07:00"Even if no one else notices, I'll always..."Even if no one else notices, I'll always know I got it as right as I could."<br /><br />That's how good stuff happens. I would add that there is a difference between consciously noticing and feeling the effects of something. Whether or not anyone ever commented on it, they certainly saw it and it changed their perception.<br /><br />(More generally, with regard to the book, if someone later encounters something they first saw in your work, you want the reaction to be "Hey, I remember that!" and not "So that's what that was supposed to be!" And I think you did a good job of accomplishing that -- whether anyone noticed or not.)Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16807727819590358834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1568334561722760329.post-7429915265739341152010-07-08T19:28:48.621-07:002010-07-08T19:28:48.621-07:00I'm glad you went through the trouble to add t...I'm glad you went through the trouble to add the discoloration, smears, drips and printing "errors" to the comics section. It made <i>WHTTWOT</i> extra charming.Namowal (Jennifer Bourne)https://www.blogger.com/profile/00384500508934864421noreply@blogger.com