A Very Different Coloring Method (than mine anyway)

Colorist Tamra Bonvillain is a friend of mine, and she has a VERY different method of coloring than I do. I thought it was pretty interesting, so I thought I'd do a video to explain the basic concepts anyway. 

Tamra paints on masked "Solid Color" adjustment layers with a different layer for each color. She also does some things grouping layers and combining them with Levels adjustments layers that I do get into yet. I'm still figuring it out too. 

This method does have some advantages, and I learned a lot trying to figure it out! I won't be changing to this method or or anything, but I do think I'll be using parts of this method for certain things. It's always good to learn new tricks.

Anyway, enjoy the video!

Coloring Critiques Video #2

The first video was so popular; I'm gonna make a series! Here's the 2nd.

In this video, I use a few sample pages to show some tips and tricks for coloring comics with Photoshop. If you are interested in getting a critique on YouTube, email me here: info@comiccolor.com I usually just do this for my coloring course students, but I'll pick a handful of good examples for future coloring tutorial videos on the YouTube channel.

I'm actually a bit ahead on videos for the first time in ages... subscribe to the channel to get them all. There are three more scheduled over the next few weeks. Stay tuned! 

I also found out today both my new Image and IDW projects will likely be announced in March 2016. Fingers crossed. Big news coming soon! :) 

New video and new (vague) project news!

Hey people! I uploaded a new video tonight. This is a time-lapse recording of a page from TRANSFERENCE #4 for Black Mask Studios. I'm filling in for my friend and fellow colorist, Tamra Bonvillain! 

The artist in this issue is Toni Fejzula (VEIL). The writer is my former HACK/SLASH collaborator, Michael Moreci (HOAX HUNTERS, CURSE, ROCHE LIMIT). 

If you are wondering what I'm doing with Photoshop in the video around 1:15, I'm using a gradient map. I made a video about them once here. I use them to shift the colors around in interesting ways on an adjustment layer, then set the layer mode to COLOR, then adjust the opacity. I then use that as a base to start adjusting my base colors. 

Anyway, this project sort of fell in my lap suddenly, but I do have three new projects coming in 2016 that I can't say anything about yet, but one will be at Image, and the other two, IDW. All are creator-owned projects, and I'm very excited about them! I expect they'll start getting announced sometime in January 2016. UGH. :) 

Talk soon!

 

New video up on YouTube! Critiques & tweaks.

There's a discussion section in my coloring course in which I provide feedback and critiques for anyone that requests it, and I feel like it makes me a better colorist too to have to explain myself! I have to figure out how to verbalize why something doesn't "look right." 

In this YouTube video, I go over a few samples to show how sometimes slight tweaks can really make a big different in how a page reads. I'm already getting requests to do another, so feel free to send in your sequential examples, and maybe I'll do yours in an upcoming video! 


A flatting tutorial!

By popular request, a flatting tutorial video!  Flatters, sometimes called coloring assistants, break up all of the elements on the page into separate colors. It's sometimes called color separations. The colors themselves are irrelevant, but they make the colorist's job easier by allowing them to just select the areas with a magic wand, as opposed to re-lassoing everything when coloring.

There are many, many wrong ways for a flatter to flat pages. I'm constantly hearing from fellow colorists that have a hard time finding new flatters that know how to do it properly.

So I made this video to try to rectify that! I'm sure there's more than one correct way to do it, but this is my way, and I know it works! 

Wacom posted my video on their Tumblr!

Wacom posted my "Which Tablet Should I Buy?" video on their Tumblr! Pretty cool! Check it out below: 

http://wacom.tumblr.com/post/127646889579/a-testament-to-legacy-hardware-and-new-hardware

Preview pages from the FIRST LAW OF MAD SCIENCE Mixtape!

Cover by Jason Copeland & Pete Toms

Hey! In the midst of all this coloring education craziness, I'm still coloring comics! :) 

Here's a few pages from a short I recently completed for the FIRST LAW OF MAD SCIENCE Kickstarter. You can see the campaign here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/819405516/first-law-of-mad-science-vol-1-work-until-your-fam

The short I colored was written by Amy Chu (WONDER WOMAN, X-O MANOWAR, POISON IVY) and drawn by Isaac Goodhart (POSTAL). 

New free lesson available at ColoringComics.com!

Hey people! I've made another free trial lesson available in my online coloring course!

The trial is free, and you can see two full tutorials now... one on flatting and one on color theory. No credit card/Paypal/blood of your first born required for the trial. :)

I'll only run this through the weekend, so click the image below to learn more: 

YouTube Q & A

Hey people, I'm going to be putting together a Q&A video for YouTube with some frequently asked questions, but I need some more questions!

If there's a question you'd like to see answered, drop a comment here, and I'll answer it in an upcoming video very soon. You can also email me at info@comiccolor.com if you like.

Also, expect a time-lapse version of the Rob Liefeld #Deadpool coloring video to drop today!