How do you guys make so good characters?

[Legge]

I suck at drawing characters :'(...and i need some help..anyone knows how to start?

[Migs]

http://www.sylpher.com/kafka/tutorials.htm

[Minimi]

use the tutorial of Eric, at : http://www.sylpher.com/kafka/

there are some pretty nice tutorials. Als you could simply study the anatomy of a human being, and look up some pictures of people on photo's with google. Then try to draw over the photo, and when your happy, take your drawing as an example for a better improvement. Then try adding shades, and detail, and post it here, so we can give you help, and learn you to improve your drawings.

Try using the program GraphicsGale. It allows you to make drawings with simple tools, and zooming at more than 4000% !!
This is the character I drawed with Graphics Gale :

You can use it if you want, for guidelines.
Download GraphicsGale at : http://www.tempest-j.com/e/gale/
Then save this picture, by right click/ save as...
... and open it with GraphicsGale.
Then make a new layer, this means, like a drawing over a drawing, so you won't erase the original, just going over it. Now zoom in till the image fills your whole screen, and pixel by pixel, you change the character, to your own feeling.

Hope this helps...!

[ravenfusion]

My advice is to practice and to learn from other people. Also, it's important to study proporsions and body positioning to make sure the sprites look right.

I learnt from playing other games, coming here to get critz and learn from others, as well as practicing constantly.

It's also nice to keep a portfolio/gallery of all your spriting and pixelling work.

[Legge]

thanks for the advice...ok i made a char(a very ugly one)



minimi: thanks for helping me a lot..

Edit: I made another... still ugly

[stuh505]

Legge,

are you sure the followed that Kafka tutuorial?

[Minimi]

Great first work, Legge! Just take some more time for detail. I did a quick edit for you, and I'll show you step by step, what I did! I hope this is helpful!



1
This is the character as you drawed it. The head is like a block, and the shoulders are above the head. He got no room for is "weewee" in his pants, and his shoes are clumbs. Now don't take this the wrong way. It's just for lesson. When you take some more time for it, you get much better and better. I'm also a newbie bytheway :p
2
First thing I did, was opening your picture in GraphicsGale, and zooming to 500%! Then I took the pencil, and pixel by pixel, I removed some of the hair, to make it less of a block. Then I removed some pixel of the underhead, near the shoulders, because it was to wide. I edited the mouth, by placing it in the center, and removing a few pixels. Then I added a nose to the head, with alittle darker colour than the skincolour.
3
The shoulders were too high, and I removed some of the pixel there, until they were at same height as the chin. (they should be even alittle lower!) Then I made the arms more clearly, by removing a few pixels between the belly and the arm, as you can see. To clarify the arm width, I drawed with a dark colour the arm lines. I also made a 2pixel thig line, for the belt.
4
I added some blue pixels, of the jeans, for space for his "weewee". Then I added a few pixels, on the legs to clarify the knees, and in the inner lines of the leg, i removed some, to make it look like he is bending the knee alittle.
5
Finally I cleared op the shoes, by removing a few pixels, and adding 2 pixels, on the top of the shoe, over the jeans. (you could also add more detail to the shoes!)

Well, that was my short tutorial! It's not perfect, but I hope you get to a better result now! Keep in mind, that drawing takes up some time! That example character, took me 10 hours to animate! :o (first time for me!). So don't be affraid of making mistakes. You can just do ctrl+z, to undo, and press the right mouse button, on a colour on your picture to change to that colour, within GraphicsGale!

I'm looking forward to your next drawing! Keep up the good work!

[Mr Flibble]

I use MS Paint, but zoom in all the way, then draw my chars pixel by pixel.

The only example I have (already on the internet) is this.
http://www.freewebs.com/flibblestudios/Lister%20(%20uploadable).bmp

Since the time of uploading this, I have doubled the res and added twice as any colours, so the final result will be much better.

Anyway. I started by drawing the outline of the head and nose, then the arms. VERY IMPORTANT - Don't go flat out trying to do perfect graphics. Find a level you could mantain - It'll make the game look better.

PS- If you haven't already guessed, the guy in the picture is Lister, from a Red Dwarf game I'm making.

[Blackthorne]

I suck at drawing characters :'(...and i need some help..anyone knows how to start?

We practice.  A LOT.

First look carefully at the characters in games you love.  Study them.  Analyze them. Figure out why the arm looks a certain way, why the color and light work the way they do.  Then try and copy that character.  Do it over and over and over until you gain talent from practicing.  Then try making your own.  There is no quick and easy with this stuff.  You just have to practice a little harder.

Bt

[Czar]

somewhere on ilb.notrix.net you have tutorials from a great unknown (who the fuch is 2m a2) artist that made Permanent Daylight. If you havent dl-ed that game, do it now, i think its under the short or middle games.


And I cant believe nobody gave you links to the insta game. Well, it's on the same page as kafka's koffee. but Ron is also a good way to start.

[Happyhelmet]

Although no one has seen my characters yet, if you are interested in spending about 10 bucks, you can get this book : The Cartoonist's Workbook. It's a very good book that helps anyone who can't draw, learn basic techniques that will help them develop characters that will look great!

[veryweirdguy]

I take your Cartoonist's Workbook & I raise you a great book by Andrew Loomis (which is 10 bucks cheaper):

Figure Drawing For All It's Worth

WARNING: The book contains many pics of (pencil-drawn) naked ladies. Do not click link if at school or work.

It's completely free (not sure if this is legal or not) & it's really great for learning basically how to draw your basic people - it covers all parts of the body, & then once you can sketch well, all you need to do is implement your new-found knowledge into Paint or something & budaboom budabing, you're done!

Good luck!

[Mr Jake]

wait for a few days and vwg's walk cycle tutorial will, erm, hit the shelfs  :

[Moox]

well in paint i use the oval tool to make a head, then I modify it pixel by pixel to make a nice shape, i then use a bigger brush or curve tool to make shoulders and arm, then i duplicate half, flip it, and paste it to make a semmetrical body, then use the line tool to make legs. Duplicate the leg to make the finished body. Next comes hair/hands/face. this just takes time to learn, practice it. Clothing isnt to complicated, it looks like you have a partial grasp of clothing, just practice!