#inktobertutorial

Here is the first series of Inktober 2018 step-by-step, based on my artworks, where I will briefly guide you through the process of drawing a specific piece.

This knowledge can be easily applied to your own works. So, let us begin. 

Step 1: Draw a very general sketch in about 1-2 minutes, which will give you an idea of overall dynamics, object sizes and composition.

Step 2: Make a clean sketch, you may have found better poses by now - sketch em up. 

Step 3: Make a clean lining for future work - just the basic forms - don’t forget to erase the pencil at this step, as eraser takes out your inking.

Step 4: Begin to identify the darkest values and go I nto some details (armor in this case). I used Indian ink, applied with a sumi-e brush + 0,8 & 005 liners.

Step 5: Continue to add different values - I first apply Van Gogh oxide black watercolor to get an understanding where my darkest & lightest areas are at. It can be done quickly and saves a lot of time.

Step 6-7: Begin inking - going more and more in details. Looking at your work through the mirror helps a lot at this stage as well. For inking I use various Pigma Micron liners (005, 01, 04, 08, brush, 1) + some of Faber-Castell black pitt black pens (M, F, S, XS, B).

Step 8: Draw more details, corresponding to surroundings - imagine light and shadows falling on your characters / objects. If some areas should be lit or I want to bring in some extra details - I use hybrid white pen, but Faber-Castell white pen works fine as well. 

Step 9: The final step - requires the biggest amount of time and only you can decide when the work is done. This stage can take anything from couple of hours to several days (if you need a brake or get a fresh perception of your work). We go into the details of the surroundings, of every object, without losing an artistic feeling of your initial idea, the one you had in mind. You can exaggerate some objects, others you can hide. 

It’s also great to do a small study - i.e. how the buildings, lanterns, armor and swords looked like in 16 century Japan, to make the picture more authentic.

That’s it. My biggest advice: studying anatomy and knowing the academic basics is essential if you want to become a good artist. You are becoming a better artist to visualize your ideas and thoughts more clearly, to let people see you in your works. You are getting better not for the sake of it, not for others, but to discover yourself. And this discovery has no limits or boundaries...

The final piece - see link below