Creating a Comic Page
Scripts and Layouts
Drawing a Reduced Size Layout
Assignment - Reduced size Layout
Drawing a Full Size Layout
Line Weight, Shadows, and Rendering
Assignment - Penciling
Inking
Nontraditional Page Layouts
Drawing Perspective Heavy Environments and Locations
Environment Pages: Line Weight, Shadows, and Rendering
Page 3 - Thumbnailing from Difficult Scripts
A good comic always starts with good composition. Let's take a look at my process for cinematic storytelling and how to avoid some of the common mistakes you might run into.
Newest
Account deleted
Awesome! Nice to hear about the 180 degree rule being applied. Basic cinematography theory that will level up the storytelling for sure. Always keep track of where you put that camera is key if you want to retain the visual flow of things and avoiding confusing the audience by flopping the characters from one side of the screen to the other. There's also the 180 degree rule being applied to three characters and more worth checking that one out as well.
Devon D. Yeider
1yr
Creating a one page comic based off the previous two lessons:
- rule of thirds
-compositional shape
-lighting
Shot selection:
P1- establishing shot
P2- medium shot
P3- medium shot
P4 - close up
P5- POV- downshot
P6- wideshot
P7- close up
P8- long shot
P9- wideshot
P10 POV upshot
Ely
2yr
The hockey metaphor helped cement the 180 rule
@colemancreates
3yr
I decided to make a page that includes all six basic panel types to better understand the lesson. All the while doing my best to avoid the pitfalls. I based my scene on the video game Nier Automata. How did I do? I recommend this optional challenge!
Panel 1: Close-up
Panel 2: Profile
Panel 3: Medium close-up
Panel 4: Establishing/wide shot
Panel 5: Down-shot
Panel 6: Up-shot
@salmansufi
4yr
I'm gonna need to watch this a couple of times
Charlie Roberts
4yr
Here's a comic book page I made a while back before ever watching these lessons. At the time, I thought I was being clever using a tangent between the lower jaw in the smaller panel and the side of the horn/petal/nose thing in the larger one.
I wanted to ask two questions.
1. Do you think the tangent worked in this instance or not?
2. Are there examples of where tangents can be used to bolster the impact of the page or should it always be avoided?
Robertryan Cory
4yr
I don't want to speak for David Finch, but here is a pretty popular example of Neal Adams using tangents to create a face of Deadman.
I think it's important to understand rules are not there as hard never break things, they are there to help people self-correct their own work. In this case how do you avoid making your page look flat.
As far as your page, yes and no. The tangent doesn't bother the flow but the first panel doesn't establish a solid environment so it looks a bit like a floating object with no dimension. The second panel I understand it's zooming into the mouth but it might be framed too tightly for others to read instantly. Most honest feedback I can give.
Jme
4yr
I have a question about figures intersecting the sides of panels. David's description makes sense, but I've also seen super close-ups that essentially cut off one half of the character's face using the top and side of the panel. Things like that.
What's an effective way to do this without it looking odd in the way the video describes?
Charlie Roberts
4yr
I think cutting off and intersecting are two different things. As he mentions in the video it's ok to cut off parts of the character as long at it's not the joint. He does make an exception with the head, but that was a medium shot. If it's a close up, then you'll have to cut off parts of the face somewhere. Also maybe a bad example would be if the close up was of the eye and the eye was touching the panel borders (interecting) rather than pushed a bit further into the centre of the panel, away from the edges.
@siraxdo
4yr
Apart from looking at how others do it and what you like there: Draw a full head to shoulders, cut out the panel shape (or many shapes) from a different sheet and play around. Or you take a head photo shot and play around with crops in photoshop. That should give you an idea of what you like. It will probably depend on the focal point of your storytelling (creased forehead, shocked eyes, wrinkled nose, clenched teeth, all of those) And when it comes to panel arrangements: Check, if any line, that gets cut off by a panel border, is picked up at the next panels border. If so, it might connect the images in an unwanted way. That problem is not exclusive to head and body crops, it can happen with any line.
Benjamin Goerge
4yr
A bit unrelated, but what kind of pencil are you using? it looks like a mechanical pencil, but allows for more of the edge of the graphite to be used.
Benjamin Goerge
4yr
Thanks everyone!!!
Hugh Chapman
4yr
Here it is at Amazon ... https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Mars-Technico-Holder-780/dp/B000WL4WEC/
•
4yr
David uses a 2mm drafting lead holder with 2H lead, on smooth bristol board.
Erin :-)
4yr
Wow, that was amazing! I love the way he broke down and demonstrated tangents. It's funny, from photography, to drawing, to digital painting, to even observations of things you pass day to day, some things look odd and don't look natural, this explains why and I hope to be able to do better compositions based on this information. Thank you David, nice job presenting it :-).
Course by Patrick Jones
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About instructor
I’m a comic book artist for Image, Marvel, DC, and others.
