Comic book lettering tutorials

I like the fact that can be used in all kind of designs from vintage retro design to lets say cartoon kids design because it is so versatile. Comics text photoshop tutorial photoshop tutorial psddude. My comics are scripted out well in advance of putting pencil. Here are even more comics comic strips drawing tutorials. Follow along with todays tutorial to reproduce a superhero comic book style text effect, similar to the original superman title logo. The blended text outline can be great for urban style logos, while halftone patterns are simply awesome for creating retro effects.

If you take extra care planning the story and the structure of the comic, you will avoid drawing yourself into a. The course features a bevy of resources for new comic makers including tutorials, models, comic industry guest speakers, and exercises. The course walks participants through the full process of. Comic book lettering has some grammatical and aesthetic traditions that are unique. Of course the easiest way to create cool cartoon and comic book text effects is to use these 3d comic book and cartoon photoshop styles that way you can save.

These two techniques are definitely worth remembering for your future projects. Dec 16, 2010 this lesson will show you all about lettering for making comic strips. Jim campbell is an eisnernominated comic book letterer, onetime writer perhaps again in the future. To use it you have to download it from the site and install font in photoshop. Jim zubs blog is a muchdiscussed source of articles and tutorials about comic book writing, art, production, and economics. In this first tutorial in a series on making comics with gimp, well use gimp book to set up a template page for our comic. G imp is a great tool for making comics, especially when combined with my little gimp book plugin, which provides a simple tool for managing multiple pages. Since 1992, we have provided our brand of unique design and fine lettering throughout the entertainment world. The section on comic book lettering is also very precise and gives advice on both the old method hand lettering and also invaluable info on designing your own computer fonts. But along the way you find detours, roadblocks, unexpected surprises both good and bad. Every comic book miniseries is a journey for both the reader and the writer. Be amazed at how simple steps can make a huge difference in the lettering of your comic. Comic book style has always been one of my favorite photoshop styles.

All of comics experiences writing, art and production courses are taught by industry professionals with proven track records for excellence and great interest and aptitude for teaching. In todays tutorial i will show you how to create an interesting comics text effect using some simple layer styles. Balloon tales articles collection of tutorials on drawing different types of balloons in illustrator. Comic book lettering tips and strategies charles j. The dc comics guide to coloring and lettering comics kindle. This image was created to mimic the comic book fonts but in 3d. The beat is also a great place to follow comic book industry news. While my handwriting for my comic is, well, comicky, i feel the opposite of you about speed hand lettering vs. If you hand draw your comics, learning how to make cool looking comic strip letters is important. Manga drawing drawing tips drawing reference drawing ideas drawing tutorials art tutorials comic book layout comic books comic font. Well lay out the text in photoshop and generate a 3d. Personally i havent tried designing my own computer fonts yet but the advice on colouring techniques has proven to be essential for my brickman strip for image comics.

Making comics with gimp page setup ragnars corner of. Learn the basics of creating balloons and tails with adobe illustrator. From the awardwinning comicraft studio, this fullcolor, stepbystep guide of comic book lettering tips and tricks is illustrated with two hip flask strips one by kurt busiek and stuart immonen, and the other by jeph loeb and ian churchill. The course features a bevy of resources for new comicmakers including tutorials, models, comic industry guest speakers, and exercises. May 23, 2019 a failure to do basic research into lettering cost us sales as comic book readers scoffed at the rookie mistakes. Comicraft and blambot, which sell a variety of handlettered fonts, also post articles and tutorials on comic book lettering and production. While handdrawing his characters he sprinkles in tips like how to draw hair without rendering every strand, smudging ink for background shading, tips for drawing hands, and other suggestions for drawing in a classic superhero style.

Blam comic book lettering school fonts, tutorials, tips. Step by step, comic book lettering the comicraft way guides readers through the process of lettering a comic strip digitally. The letterers use of typefaces, calligraphy, letter size, and layout all contribute to the impact of the. Type and lettering with images lettering, comic tutorial. Time to add the comics text effect using this cool comic book font. The final comic book style text effect looks great with the basic 3d effect and those cool halftone patterns. He knows more about print production than mortal man was meant to know and has also scanned more images than youve had hot dinners. Oct 11, 2010 jim campbell is an eisnernominated comic book letterer, onetime writer perhaps again in the future. Our clients include large comic publishers like marvel, dc and dark horse, independent comic artists and small publishers, and the movie, tv and video game.

A letterer is a member of a team of comic book creators responsible for drawing the comic books text. Jan 27, 2017 step by step, comic book lettering the comicraft way guides readers through the process of lettering a comic strip digitally. It has uppercase and lowercase letters and over 100 different characters and glyphs, supporting almost all latin languages. It can emphasize the spirit of the cartoon and give tone to the drawing. Dec 16, 2010 if you hand draw your comics, learning how to make cool looking comic strip letters is important and an essential part of being a comic book or comic strip artist. See more ideas about lettering, comic font and comic book font. From the awardwinning comicraft studio, this fullcolor, stepbystep guide of comic book lettering tips and. A guide to handlettering your strips webcomic alliance. Type crimes that will get you sent to the weekend hobbyist jail. May 27, 2014 being the old guy that i am, im tempted to state that digital lettering is not as good as hand lettering, which is the typical response to change.

You will learn how to create this 3d effect by duplicating layers and by adding halftones to give it that comic feel. Suitable lettering can add much to the effectiveness of a cartoon. Helped me tie the idea together that storytelling is king no matter if youre doing comics, tv, or writing a book. I began making comics in 1984, when i was in the fifth grade. Nov 20, 2017 follow along with todays tutorial to reproduce a superhero comic book style text effect, similar to the original superman title logo. When you have a character and an idea of what you want to tell, it might. Balloon tales comicrafts guide to digital comic book lettering. This is the 101814 and 101914 workshops on comic book lettering and production i did as part of the digital artistry track at san diego comic fest 2014. Six part series on lettering with adobe illustrator. Step by step, comic book lettering the comicraft way guides you through the process of lettering a comic strip digitally. Ames settings are the combination of ratio and scale. Back then, there were no personal computers capable of comic book lettering. As nice and as helpful as the ames lettering guide is, when it comes to producing a multiday comic strip, it can be very time consuming setting up your tsquare, pulling out the ames guide, carefully and consistently figuring out your guides and then going back and forth with your lead drawing those guide for each panel of your strip.

Woodchuck is a free and modern sansserif font that would work well in any comic book. Jun 05, 20 while my handwriting for my comic is, well, comicky, i feel the opposite of you about speed hand lettering vs. So likewise, it is possible to ruin a fine comic strip with poor lettering. I had to letter by hand, and i quickly realized how. Lettering with speedball pens art of the comic book. Manga drawing drawing tips drawing reference drawing ideas drawing tutorials art tutorials comic book layout comic books comic font nate piekos on that prolly should have been a new better letterer, so here you go.

Step by step, comic book lettering the comicraft way guides you through the. You can use any comics font, any color theme you want and you will. Comic book lettering and production with sean glumace. Comic book font comic book layout comic books drawing tips drawing reference advanced higher art lettering guide create a comic book letters lettering tips better letterer. Lettering resources for lettering your comic, whether by hand or digitally. Hand lettering a digital comic part 1, part 2, part 3. It has uppercase and lowercase letters and over 100 different.

Copy alphabets over and over until the technique is mastered. How nate letters a comic read about nate piekos lettering. From font design to balloon placement, sound effects, signage, title page and. Jim campbell is an eisnernominated comicbook letterer, onetime writer perhaps again in the future. This lesson will show you all about lettering for making comic strips. You set out with a goal, a destination, and maybe even a map. Balloon tales comicrafts guide to digital comic book. I provide lettering, logo design, and production for independent comics. See more ideas about comic tutorial, drawings and drawing tips. My comics are scripted out well in advance of putting pencil to paper in the sketchbook, and the dialogue is revised during the penciling process to tighten up and longwinded speeches. The course walks participants through the full process of comic creation, starting at brainstorming and covering scripting, thumbnailing, penciling, lettering by hand, inking, and final assembly. I relettered the comic using anime ace and we were off to the races.

Lastly, we will finish it off by adding a bevel effect with a stroke. If you hand draw your comics, learning how to make cool looking comic strip letters is important and an essential part of being a comic book or comic strip artist. How to create a comic style text effect in illustrator. Welcome to the 50th episode of comic book artist tutorials podcast. I enjoy giving a professional polish while keeping the attention on the art and story. Convert the text layer into smart object and add the following layer styles.

Get indepth insight into the anatomy of a comic book illustration with stepbystep breakdowns that walk you through the entire process. Set up your paper, tsquare or mainline and guide as shown. When you have a character and an idea of what you want to tell, it might be tempting to just dive in and start drawing. The majority of these points are established tradition, sprinkled with modern trends and a bit of my own opinion having lettered professionally for a few years now. Comic lettering tips these infographics were originally posted on nate piekoss social media accounts,and are collected here for your reference. What follows is a list that every letterer eventually commits to hisher own mental reference file. From font design to balloon placement, sound effects, signage, title. The dc comics guide to coloring and lettering comics. Making comics with gimp page setup g imp is a great tool for making comics, especially when combined with my little gimp book plugin, which provides a simple tool for managing multiple pages. Watch pro comic book veteran jim lee give this incredible tutorial at comic con 2015. See how a professional letters and learn time saving techniques that make a difference. Creator resource has tons of useful info aimed at working comic book freelancersincluding page rate surveys, which used to be very hard to come by.

Art of the comic book required materials lettering. How to create a superhero comic text effect in photoshop. Comicraft is the comic book industrys leading lettering and design company. The artform of comic book lettering emerges as you begin controlling the way a reader reads and interprets the story through the way you manipulate bubbles. Bram letters comic book lettering, logo design, and. Even if you plan to work mostly with computer lettering, id still recommend learning to handletter, as it will teach you many things that will be useful with computer lettering as well. The second issue, gay zombies attack, was a massive improvement and remains one of the top five sellers in the history of literati press. From font design to balloon placement, sound effects, signage, title page and publication design, the creators of the worlds greatest comic book fonts cover every conceivable aspect of comic book lettering. Making comics with gimp page setup ragnars corner of the web.

Well lay out the text in photoshop and generate a 3d appearance with some clever layering techniques, then bring the effect to life with bold colours and a halftone print effect. Most independent comics and even some mainstream books are handlettered. Dec 23, 20 the final comic book style text effect looks great with the basic 3d effect and those cool halftone patterns. This full color stepbystep guide is filled to the brim with the wisdom and wit. The tools are definitely different, however, i believe the sensibility has actually greatly improved. Longtime comics writer mark evanier wrote a thorough. Really helped me understand the process of creation. Find more incredible comic book resources on envato market and envato elements. Over the last few years we have covered comic book and manga drawing, inking, coloring, lettering in various art programs such as. Comic book lettering the comicraft way by richard starkings and john roshell is a book you must read if you are interested in comic book lettering.