[MoleculeMan]

I'm kinda amatuerish at this whole digital art stuff, and i was wondering how you people start a picture. Do you start with a background, a certain color, or just blank white? Any special preperation? I'm just curious as to how different people start the creative process.

[Svanur]

You could start the comic way, by creating a very rough outline in pencil. Then when you begin the piece itself you already have the composition. I think most traditional artist begin with a background and then block in the shapes.

But what do I know I am an amateur myself.

[Collosimo]

Digital art, indeed digital painting is founded on artistic principles that have been in use for 100's of years. Digital art is really just another 'medium' for artwork. When preparing a painting there aren't really any set founded 'rules'. There are however 'principles' that we can use. Such as values, perspective, light & shadow.... etc.

When you start a traditional painting you usually have a sketch, then you add some basic colours, maybe a background wash (optional)... to get rid of any white space or 'void', so that you can develop the rest of your painting, based on that background, it's colour scheme, mood, atmosphere. Slowly develop the colours, values, and eventually detail...

It is much the same for digital art, we are merely painting on the computer instead. It is up to you how you want to do it.

Personally I start with a sketch on paper. Simply because it is the easiest and most accurate way I know of, to develop the intial artwork. I refine the sketch in terms of composition, content, line, texture, and tone. This process then establishes my direction for the next step.

I then scan the image into photoshop, or alternatively slip it under the plastic overlay and use it to sketch over...

In photoshop I will then decide what I want to do with the image. Having already established my direction for the artwork, I will then do whatever I think appropriate for what I want the final image to look like.

So that could be anything from keeping the linework for 'multiplying', or simply painting over the linework with areas of colour.

I just do what I want to.