Much ado about backgrounds! Hand painted? Y/N? *Newbie Warning!*

[Ebolabunny]

You clicked it! Yaay!

I should start by saying that I'm no stranger to art or drawing, but I'm a tenderfoot when it comes to art software (photoshop, GIMP, things of that ilk). Practiced a few weeks with GIMP and Pro Motion NG, results were AWFUL. So after days and days (and days and days-) of research I learned that the developers of Monkey Island (1&2) and King's Quest (the younger ones, at least) originally hand painted their backgrounds, then scanned it into the computer as a 'bitmap' (don't know what those are).

Is this method still relevant? I would have zero problems painting out backgrounds, then touching them up for the pixel look, but what software would help me with this? Photoshop is pricey but I could invest in it if it would do the job (given my, erm, 'confusion' with other like minded software I'm gun shy, but there's WAY more tutorials for PS out there. I'd consider it). I've lurked these forums a while, and you guys have some excellent work! Dare I say there are some art graduates in these depths? Notice me Senpai! Teach me Sensei!

[Danvzare]

A bitmap is a picture on a computer composed of pixels. It's generally what you'll be working with if you use GIMP or Photoshop.

And yes, the method of hand painting your background, scanning it in, and touching it up, is still highly relevant. And usually looks really nice in my opinion as well.

Now as for what software would work best for you.
I honestly can't say. Personally, I use Paint.NET. It pales in comparison to things like Photoshop and GIMP in terms of features, but unlike those it's super quick and easy to learn (at least in my opinion). It's free as well, so you can always try it out.

Also there are a LOAD of tutorials to paint backgrounds around this forum. Take a look around, I'm sure most of them are still accessible.

Just remember, having Photoshop won't instantly turn you into a digital artist. That software is ridiculously pricey, and while it definitely is easier to use than GIMP, it's still something you need to learn how to use. I recommend you gain a bit of experience before putting any money down on that.
Although I do believe that Adobe now gives Photoshop CS2 away for free, so you can always just look that up. If you want, I can search for the link for you. It's hidden somewhere on their website I believe.

[Ebolabunny]

Aah thanks! I'm glad to hear that method is still used, as the backgrounds are proving to be the most challenging part of game-making for me! I mean, when people say a pixel background is 'hand-painted,' do they mean that every pixel, every single little dot is lovingly placed there by their talented hands?!
. . .I mean, REALLY?
That sounds so ridiculously labor intensive, when compared to a painting of the same subject, in the same size and color spectrum, SO MANY MORE hours would have to go into the pixel version. I can't possibly conceive of how the backgrounds for games like Gemini Rue and Blackwell were made in such a way.
I guess I have a lot more tutorial & forum lurking to do, before my artwork will start to turn out.

[BunnyDeFluff]

When a piece of art is hand-painted it does not necessary meant it was painted "pixel by pixel"(it is possible but very rare nowadays unless it was for an extremely low res game). Everything you see on a monitor is made of many pixels, the number of pixel available on the screen is called "Screen resolution". For example a screen resolution of 1600 x 1200 means 1600 x 1200 pixels(not to be confused with “Pixel density”).

[ThreeOhFour]

Blackwell stuff (at least the stuff I did) was painted in Photoshop Elements (the cheap version!) with a Wacom tablet. It's not much like painting with actual paint, but it's also not much like working pixel by pixel, either!

[SilverSpook]

If you say 'pixel art' sometimes that can refer to pixel-by-pixel placement, which is more necessary if you're at a super-low resolution like 120, 64, 32.  It can be difficult and time consuming at higher resolutions and with a large number of scenes.

'Hand painted' can refer to physical paintings / drawings scanned in, or painted with a digital tablet or mouse in Paint, Photoshop, Gimp or other software.  Whether digital or physical, you're painting these things using your hand.

Painting in a 'traditional medium' or 'physical medium' would be art using actual paint, pencils, pens, charcoal etc..

A 3D rendered background as found in most AAA games -- Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty, etc -- are *not* hand-painted, since the texture, lighting, and sometimes even the geometry itself is computer generated according to algorithms. 

I personally paint backgrounds in Photoshop with a Wacom tablet, which acts like a digital paint brush.  I don't go pixel-by-pixel myself.

But whatever gets the job done, really!  As long as it looks good, how you do it isn't a huge deal.

[Danvzare]

Aah thanks! I'm glad to hear that method is still used, as the backgrounds are proving to be the most challenging part of game-making for me! I mean, when people say a pixel background is 'hand-painted,' do they mean that every pixel, every single little dot is lovingly placed there by their talented hands?!
. . .I mean, REALLY?

For some backgrounds... yes. Usually for the backgrounds that are 320x200. And I wouldn't say every little dot is lovingly placed. It usually involves quickly drawing an outline for a small aspect of the backgroung, smoothing it off, filling it in, adding shading, and then copying and pasting it a few times. Then repeating the whole process several more times.
A background done like that can take anywhere from a few hours to a week, depending on how skilled the artist is and how much time is invested.

For some it's easier than drawing it any other way, because pixel art is very easy to modify. And the errors are much easier to spot and fix in pixel art. At least in my opinion.

Although I do know that a lot of pixel artists draw their backgrounds similar to how ThreeOfFour did the Blackwell games.
That's a style I still have to learn.

[Ebolabunny]

Thanks for all the replies, I'm learning a lot here! ^.^
I'm not looking to undertake any large scale backgrounds, I'm keeping around the usual 340x200 pixels (give or take) so I imagine in the end most of the details I agonize over will be lost but that's okay.
My main issue now seems to be pixelating the actual artwork, assuming the 'pixel filters' that most photo editing software comes with is more trouble than it's worth for this, would that mean that, after scanning in the paintings, the pixelated version would have to be traced over the original for the finished affects? If there are other methods (or that one turns out to be the ravings of a Photo Shop illiterate maniac, it's entirely possible! Hee hee) I'd love to learn!
Also making the switch from drawing with a mouse to drawing on the actual screen of my surface pro with my stylus makes a world of difference! It's a baby step,I suppose!

[Danvzare]

Pixel filters?
Why bother. Just shrink it down using Nearest Neighbor, then save it as 256 Colours, then boom, retro looking art akin to what you see on either Monkey Island 2 or Sam and Max.

Also it's 320x200 or 320x240. Those are the typical small resolutions, the first one being preferred due to it being better suited for widescreen monitors.

I definitely would NOT recommend using something like a pixel filter.

[Ebolabunny]

Aah thank you so much!! *virtual hug*

Yeah I panicked a bit when I tried using a pixel filter the first time, SO, SO TERRIBLE. Never again. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel!! I'm glad I can use hand painted scenes, I was going to try for a more cartoony feel and that will be much easier with paper and paint for me.
Oh man, all you guys's advice has really helped, I feel like I can get this project started and off the ground!