April 6, 2011
Fig 1. Click above for a basic overview of the tools we will be using in Photoshop. Some of the content we covered today, presented raw: Why use digital tools for sketching? Composition - much more flexible for laying out pages, once you have scanned in final drawings Digital presentation - able to put in Keynotes, Powerpoints, InDesign, PDFs, and the web. Sharing larger and with bigger audiences. Rendering - able to quickly and flexibly render—create textures, change colors, more naturally express form, etc! A few computer do/don’ts: Never spend more time on a sketch render than the time spent creating the original drawing! Avoid typography—handwritten test preserves the sketch feel, keeps the expectations at a appropriate level. Do clean up the raw scanned sketches before doing anything else. Don’t scale up or down in extremes. Do use the computer as a hybrid tool. Use your printer/scanner to bounce between digital and physical. Create rough underlays, compose in cpu, print from and overlay, scan back in. Explore, hack. THE KEY METAPHOR FOR PHOTOSHOP SKETCH RENDERING: Use your layers like tracing paper. Top layer is the original sketch—you want your lines ON TOP of everything, this is what makes it a sketch rendering. Then highlights Then shading Then color Then your shadow Then a blank white layer (a blank sheet of paper)   The key to making your layers go from “regular paper” (not transparent) to “tracing paper” (able to see through to layer below) is the MULTIPLY setting on the layers palette.(See the screenshot above, on the right side of screen.) Lastly a quick Photoshop process cheat sheet: NAVIGATION Hold down space bar to pan ⌘-space to zoom in Alt-space to zoom out  “V” to go back to move tool   SCANNING 200-300 dpi JPG   CLEANING UP Image > Adjustments > Levels. (or ⌘L) Move the top most slider to reduce noise, middle slider for contrast Image > Rotate Canvas (to rotate image) Select > All (or ⌘A) to select the entire image to cut or copy With an area selected, Edit > Free Transform (⌘T), and then mouse over the corner of your selection to rotate a selection a small amount   LAYERS Make bottom-most layer white Multiply all sketch layers above the bottom layer Group layers into folders, name them (select layers with ⌘-click, upper right corner of layers pallette is a pull down menu, select ‘make new group from layers’) Folders: Original sketch (on top, multiplied) > Highlights > Shading > Color > Shadows    SELECTION Use polygonal lasso tool to select areas beneath sketch ‘Delete’ will fix messed up clicks ‘Esc’ will get you out   COLOR Double-click layer thumbnail to open up layer options Choose color overlay, adjust swatch color Use transparency settings above layers to adjust levels   SHADING Fat airbrush and erase, adjust airbrush opacity & flow Select areas, airbrush inside Click one point, hold down ‘Shift’, click a second point to make a straight line

Fig 1. Click above for a basic overview of the tools we will be using in Photoshop.

Some of the content we covered today, presented raw:

  • Why use digital tools for sketching?
    • Composition - much more flexible for laying out pages, once you have scanned in final drawings
    • Digital presentation - able to put in Keynotes, Powerpoints, InDesign, PDFs, and the web. Sharing larger and with bigger audiences.
    • Rendering - able to quickly and flexibly render—create textures, change colors, more naturally express form, etc!
  • A few computer do/don’ts:
    • Never spend more time on a sketch render than the time spent creating the original drawing!
    • Avoid typography—handwritten test preserves the sketch feel, keeps the expectations at a appropriate level.
    • Do clean up the raw scanned sketches before doing anything else.
    • Don’t scale up or down in extremes.
    • Do use the computer as a hybrid tool. Use your printer/scanner to bounce between digital and physical. Create rough underlays, compose in cpu, print from and overlay, scan back in. Explore, hack.
  • THE KEY METAPHOR FOR PHOTOSHOP SKETCH RENDERING: 

    Use your layers like tracing paper.
    • Top layer is the original sketch—you want your lines ON TOP of everything, this is what makes it a sketch rendering.
    • Then highlights
    • Then shading
    • Then color
    • Then your shadow
    • Then a blank white layer (a blank sheet of paper)

 

The key to making your layers go from “regular paper” (not transparent) to “tracing paper” (able to see through to layer below) is the MULTIPLY setting on the layers palette.
(See the screenshot above, on the right side of screen.)

Lastly a quick Photoshop process cheat sheet:

NAVIGATION

  • Hold down space bar to pan
  • ⌘-space to zoom in
  • Alt-space to zoom out 
  • “V” to go back to move tool

 

SCANNING

  • 200-300 dpi JPG

 

CLEANING UP

  • Image > Adjustments > Levels. (or ⌘L)
  • Move the top most slider to reduce noise, middle slider for contrast
  • Image > Rotate Canvas (to rotate image)
  • Select > All (or ⌘A) to select the entire image to cut or copy
  • With an area selected, Edit > Free Transform (⌘T), and then mouse over the corner of your selection to rotate a selection a small amount

 

LAYERS

  • Make bottom-most layer white
  • Multiply all sketch layers above the bottom layer
  • Group layers into folders, name them (select layers with ⌘-click, upper right corner of layers pallette is a pull down menu, select ‘make new group from layers’)
  • Folders: Original sketch (on top, multiplied) > Highlights > Shading > Color > Shadows 

 

SELECTION

  • Use polygonal lasso tool to select areas beneath sketch
  • ‘Delete’ will fix messed up clicks
  • ‘Esc’ will get you out

 

COLOR

  • Double-click layer thumbnail to open up layer options
  • Choose color overlay, adjust swatch color
  • Use transparency settings above layers to adjust levels

 

SHADING

  • Fat airbrush and erase, adjust airbrush opacity & flow
  • Select areas, airbrush inside
  • Click one point, hold down ‘Shift’, click a second point to make a straight line

    (Source: objectsketch)

    5:24pm
    1. objectsketch reblogged this from objectsketch and added:
      Fig 1. Click above for a basic overview of the tools we will be using in Photoshop.
    2. objectsketch posted this