Manga and where to start

[abhorsen950]

Hey guys, after watchings Howls moving castle, Princess Monoke and Spirited away im in the mood for some manga! I used to draw it a few years back but not alot and wasnt very good. Got a couple of books on drawing but any tips?

Cheers guys
Steve

[DanialGlover]

Comic/Graphic novels have basically the same process, so, for one you're going to need to learn to draw storyboards/thumbnails.

Thumbnails and storyboards are usually how comics are made before everything is done. You can either download a storyboard from

http://www.animationmeat.com/templates_downloads/tv_storyboard_template.pdf

Or create one to your own specification.

Don't think that comics are drawn differently. You still have to learn to draw the human body, you still have a lot of hard work, and studying to do. It's no different than doing concept art for a movie, or video game.

Draw however you feel comfortable. Don't think you need to force on a weirdly proportioned character, just because other people have done it.

[abhorsen950]

Thanks for that
Ill have a nosey at it now

[Kuroyue]

(Assuming you're talking about the style...)

The process of drawing manga isn't much different from how you draw a Western-style comic, I think: whatever floats your boat. When you switch from Western to Eastern, your drawing process could stay exactly the same, but the tougher part is copying the style. It's hard to switch from one to the other (at first), so the most effective way of picking up an "authentic" manga style is to completely immerse yourself in it - look up online Japanese artists, read some manga, look up their artbooks, etc. During this time, veer away from Western influences. Even copy some stuff, maybe, just to get the feel of their strokes. Most "how to draw anime/manga" books that I've heard of only teach you how to draw 'Americanized' manga--which is fine, I guess, if that's what you're looking for.

One way to look for Japanese online artists is to get into a anime/manga fandom (that you like) and look for fan art of it. Here's a start, if you want one: http://pipa.jp/tegaki/ . If you haven't heard of tegaki, it's a blogging site where everything, including the journals, comments, links, profiles, avatars, etc. is drawn. A lot of the better artists on there will have their own art sites, too, linked on the side.

[abhorsen950]

Thats ace cheers mate :)
And yes i was talking about the style

[Kuroyue]

Also, for that site: http://pipa.jp/tegaki/VRankAccessS.jsp?TMD=2&MDD=1 (the daily 'best picks', in the illustration category)

[NovocaineHeartString]

Hey guys, after watchings Howls moving castle, Princess Monoke and Spirited away im in the mood for some manga! I used to draw it a few years back but not alot and wasnt very good. Got a couple of books on drawing but any tips?

Cheers guys
Steve

Cheers on the love of Miyazaki. I suggest checking out "Lupin III:Castle of Cagliostro", you will not regret it! :rocker:

I would suggest learning a more "traditional" way of drawing before attempting to tackle something stylized. I am not saying to NOT draw japanese style illustrations, on the contrary, I love the style, I grew up with the style (my father worked for a Japanese owned company and used to buy me toys and comics on his business trips), and I have always drawn in that style. When I first went to college at 18, I was stubborn and hellbent that I was going to do it "my way", and instead of studying traditional art, I stuck with self taught methods (which work when there is guidance and critique, but once again I was too stubborn to listen to them).

At any rate, sorry about the ramble, I just suggest lots and lots of life drawing. I have been working on that quite a bit myself and I have already noticed an improvement.

Good luck!

[Arshes Nei]

Whatever you decide to draw in, the best starting point is drawing from life.

[crossmirage]

Always, always understand life before simplifying it. Stylization is, essentially, abstraction of life.

You'll want to see what's already out there like others have mentioned, but don't limit yourself to what's popular - search for more obscure titles. Despite what most think, 'manga' is no different from cartooning (in fact it is cartooning!). The styles can vary from semi-realistic to heavily stylized. Don't simply imitate, find out what works best for you.

[abhorsen950]

Cheers for that guys some stuff really explained there and thats helped!

[George Abraham]

http://www.howtodrawmanga.com/assets/campusstore/items/sets/ddbundle/ddbundle_max.jpg (http://www.howtodrawmanga.com/campusstore/ddbundle.html)

Crick Me!!