Inking Tips: Solid Vs Loose Lines

In this post we're going to talk a little about inking. I've spent a little more time with pens and ink so in my tests and drawings I've learned a few things that I'd like to share. I will sperate this in to two sections: Solid vs Loose Lines and Texture/Shading. This isn't extensive but I hope it's helpful in the long run!

Note: When I say inking, I mean art pens, not a brush or fountain pens, though these things might apply to those as well. I am talking about art pens like Prismacolor pens or Sakura Micron (or pigma) pens (or other pens like them, there are other brands as well).

So, without any further ado, lets begin!

Solid Vs Loose Lines: 

I've learned in recent months and really over the year that just because something is outlined that doesn't mean that the lines themselves have to be totally hard in nature. For example, if I drew a cartoon cat face I could ink with hard lines and you can tell he's fuzzy, or I could ink with looser more fluid lines not following the exact curvature of the face and he could almost appear to feel furry. He's still a cartoon but he's got more detail.

Neither one is better than the other but they are different. However if you like to color with a looser medium like watercolor, or a more detail oriented medium like colored pencils (pencil crayons in some countries) then maybe the looser style is more fitting. Of course it depends on the subject matter.

In the drawing below the inking on the character is loose and the inking on the poppy flower is solid. Knowing when to combined styles is key to making a picture coherent and not just a rambled mess.  Another thing to notice in this drawing is that there are different line thicknesses. The pattern on the dress has thing lines the fur on the character is thicker as well as the outline of the flower itself. It's all about finding what looks good.

Combining styles, knowing when, and creating something nice comes with practice and also some knowlage of yourself. Your style might be different than mine, so as I say these things it's not THE WAY it's just how I see things, take what's useful and ignore what's not....Anyways, moving on!

Texture and Shading:

There are many ways to add texture and shading while using pen, it can be VERY time consuming but it is well worth the effort.

 Within the styles there are many things you can do, a few are:  Hatching, cross-hatching, circles, scribbles, lines, and dots. Each of these have their place and are great for texture and shading, as well as fun patterns if you like artwork that isn't a subject oriented but an abstract style.

As a few examples I drew grapes, a tulip and an eye to show some of the things you can do with ink.

Grapes:

With the grapes I added a lot of black areas, these show contrast, three-dimensionality , and also some shading. I also did cross hatching on the grapes and the leafy part as well as scribbles on the grapes that would be more shaded. The section that says highlights refers  to those little parts I "roped off" that show where light would be hitting the subject.

Tulip:

For the tulip, I also did some contrast with the highlights and cross-hatching, but I also added some lines along the edge of the flower following the curvature, it's a more subtle looking approach to shading lovely for "softer" shadows.  I also added cross hatching in the more shaded areas.

Eye:

The eye shows fluidity with the eye-lashes, making fast but calculated strokes can make your artwork look much more "alive". I also used lines to the hair of the eyebrows, also using fast movement to make the hair look more fluid and textured. Highlights as  well on the white of the eye (since it's really off white and moist you would have a highlight sometimes) and the iris itself.

Another thing you can do with ink is make areas black (or dark if you're using a colored pen) then go over it in white. In this picture I colored the edge of the butterfly-wings black then went over them with a white pen. - You will also notice that I used different pen sizes as well as did lots of contrast black. Also if you look at the picture you'll see I added dots which add texture and a pattern to the butterfly.

In this drawing you can see I used hatching to texture the sash, circles in the paisleys and scribbles to show the shadow of the neck. There's also some contrast shading too.

Overall these are some things I've learned and I hope they help you as well!
Thank you for reading and God bless.


~ Firefly

Sketching and Inking Process - Scarecrow Wreath

This is a sketch/inking process for a drawing I'm working on. I'm yet to color it but at least you can see the process.

     Enjoy!

Sketch:

First, I block everything in. The wreath outline and the base for the body, including the head. I also put basic facial guidelines.

Now I add details likes hair and clothes on the scarecrow, and guidelines to other things like the cone flowers in the background and a soon to be sunflower along with a leaf (which I later get rid of).

After a while, I've added more details, fleshed out the face and drawn other things like the acorn and pine cone branch where the leaf was. And put leaves on the other side.

After I drew out everything, I lightened some lines and went over the whole drawing with a mechanical pencil. In so doing I also added a tree/wood pattern to the wreath.

Inking:

First, I used a fine-point sharpie that was older so the ink flow was thinner than if it was new.
I started on the clothes and hair, along with the hay-based hands.

Next, I inked more hair and added the bows, along with the face using a new fine-point sharpie which makes a bigger ink-flow. I inked the outer edge of the wreath with a 1.0 Sakura Micron pen.

I also inked the outside of the edge of the pine-cones with the sharpie then I inked the inside using a 005 Sakura Pigma pen.

After I inked the cone flowers with the new sharpie but the inner-part was inked with the 005 point pen. I also inked the sunflower but I forgot to take a picture.  After all that was done I added the wood with the 005 point pen.

In the end, I added some thicker lines and I erased.

May God Bless You, Your Family, Friend; Along With The Health Of Yourself, Family, Friends, And All Who Know You. ~ Amen

~ Firefly

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My Process For Inking -

My Process For Inking -

I've been questioned on "how do I create ink-drawings?"; Well, this is how in a nutshell!

I've done a much more detailed post on this, that can be found here.

First I sketch me out a drawing:

When sketching I start with a normal #2 pencil for the lines that show off the form then making the initial lines; Then I switch over to a mechanical pencil to tighten up lines so I see for sure what I want. - When I sketch I do actually sketch out the hatching and cross hatching but it's just as a guide I'll stray a little bit but I do follow it a lot as well. I'll also sketch out shapes for shading just so I know where to go. (More on sketching with 2 pencils here.)

Inking:
Before the actual inking I use my kneadable eraser to ghost out lines (for more information on that click here) then I actually take out my pens. - And speaking of which, I start with a smaller sized pen tip and go thicker as I go along; For pen brand(s) I normally use Sakura Microns or Prismacolor pens, sometimes I use something else like a sharpie or something but not always. (Reviews for pens here)

I ink the main lines first then move on to the details like hatching or patterns, it takes a while but it's easy to make a mistake and you can't really fix it; Correction fluid isn't really ideal although you could use a white pen but it's not a perfect correcting agent.

Once inked I erase my pencil lines, depending on paper and eraser I might have to go over lines to darken them again; Often when erasing the lines become dulled.

Tips:

• If at all possible, ink at a table or at least use a clipboard, the harder the surface the smoother your lines look.
• Don't press hard on a pen, you could: bend the tip, force too much ink out, or cause not enough to come out causing your ink to look sketchy.
• Keep a paper behind your picture when inking (if you are using a sketch book), this is so if ink bleeds it won't go on the next page.
• When you want to add shading and you already added hatching, make lines got the opposite direction of the lines you've already set, this will make a criss-cross effect that will make it appear darker.

____

I hope this was helpful to those who asked!

May God Heal and Bless all You Know and Love. ~ Amen ~

~ Firefly

[Traditional Art] Inking Process - Il Gatto Con I Fiori Di Primavera

[Traditional Art] Inking Process  - Il Gatto Con I Fiori Di Primavera

This is the inking process of a new drawing I hope to actually finish without getting bored half way through...This isn't a "tutorial" this is just a walk through of what I did.

The pens I used are my "Prismacolor Premier Assorted Markers", the sizes are as follows:

• 005
• 03
• 05

Okay Lets Begin!

The drawing is this one here.

1:

I started on the face of the cat using my 05 pen, first the "hair" and then the eye and the top half of the muzzle. - On the muzzled I tried my best to do a swift but careful line as to make it smooth and not ridged, I started from the first indication of the "bridge of the nose" down and around until half-way through the mouth, then started from the end of the mouth until the end of the first line.

2:

I inked the bottom of the mouth and face along with the rest of the hair that I wanted to keep, the ears and the nose. - To make the hair look smooth and sleek I tried to do swift lines.

3:
Next I went to the cloth that's around the cat's neck (I guess it's a scarf) and the lady bug on the cat's head. - Again, using swift smooth lines with the pen, trying to keep the pen flat down on the page not on a slant.

4:
I inked the butterflies wings and body but not his legs and feet.

Now I have switched to my 03 pen and added the pattern on the scarf and the little ladybug. - I didn't worry about how perfect the pattern looked as the flowers look kinda sketchy and simple anyway.

Bigger Version

5:

I've now moved  on to the butterfly and added the rest of his details (legs, feet simple pattern etc...), and inked the daffodil.

6:

Next I inked the iris that's tucked behind the cat's head, along with one of the small butterflies and the ladybug on the iris.

7:
Afterwards I inked the tulip and the lily that is intertwined within the leaves, and the other butterfly along with the little ladybug on the lily leaf.  - At this point the initial lines are down and I'm almost done.

8:

Lastly I added the final details to the fur, thickened outlines on the flowers and cat, alone with tuned up the eyes; For this I used my 005 alone with the 05 and 03. - An I'm done!

I hope this was helpful or at least interesting! 


 

May God Bless You, Your Family, Friend; Along With The Health Of Yourself, Family, Friends, And All Who Know You. ~ Amen

~ Firefly

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Inking Process - Candy Dancer - Not a Tutorial

Inking Process - Candy Dancer - Not a Tutorial

In this post I will take you through how I inked this drawing.
Hello! I was going to go through in detail how I sketched too but since I didn't think of that until I drew on the clothes which is near the end of the sketching of the person so, I don't really have enough to say "this is my sketch process";  I'll just gloss over it for now.

Sketching:

First I sketched out the girl.

 Then I added some more details to her clothes (lace, ribbon, a pattern etc..), along with a basic background.

 Added some more details, like the bow on the lollipop and the leaves on the rose below the girl and that's the basic idea for the sketching process.

Inking:

I started from the top down in the inking process; Until otherwise stated I'm using a 01 Prismacolor assorted pen in black.  

First I started on her hair on her head, then I inked her face; Moving on I inked her loose hair then her shirt area of her dress, and the bow.

Next I inked the first two layers of her dress and her waist.

This part is simply stated but one of the most time consuming parts of the process; I inked the last layer of her dress, notice how it matches the top part of the dress. 

Next  I moved on to inking her legs, feet, arms and hands. 

Now on to the background: I inked the background with a 03 Prismacolor assorted pen.

I fixed up the outlines of parts of the dancer girl with the 03 pen to make it have more depth.

 And that's my inking process!  (I used GIMP to make the image pure black and white without all the shadows of the camera.)

I hope this has been at least a basic idea to help you get started if you don't know how, or at least semi interesting, it's not quite the verbal inensity that you might have expected with explanation but I hope it's good for something. 

May God Bless you, Your Family, Friends; Along With The Health Of Yourself, Family, And All Who Know You. ~ Amen

~ Firefly

Useful Links:

Would You Like To Read More Blog Posts Similar To This One? Take A Look At The Official Blog Archive.

Would You Like To See My Drawings? Click here.

Have A Question?

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