Show off your comic site ?

Lone Stone

Ive been looking around the interweb lately
looking for a website where people can upload
there own comics and get feedback on them etc

Does anyone know any ?
i couldnt see anything in the stickies (unless i missed it sorry)
And please i hate deviant art !

ztoical

you can get a free accont with Deviantart and when up loading art you can pick what level of critique you want. It can be hit or miss wither you get decent feedback as while there are some good artists on DA who are able to give constructive feedback theres alot of 12 year old girls who draw themsevles as cats.

You can set up a blog, post your work, then post links on boards like this one asking people to look at your stuff. The likes of livejournal have community blogs that you can post to. There are forums/boards that you can post to but it depends on [a] what level your work is at and what type of feedback your looking for. The likes of say creativeireland is populated by professionals in the arts/design fields and are good for helpful critique but they don't mince words.

If your doing something like an on going webcomic you can try the likes of webcomics nation for hosting and again post the link around the net for people to see. It can be slow getting people to leave feedback to start but if you post regularly and with some level of consistency you'll start getting the critique you want.

Lone Stone

Thanks for the reply well i was looking for a more irish based one but there doesnt seem to be any around.I mite give deviant art a try but something about that site's layout baffles me to no end.

Maybe il try out creativeireland see what thats like i dont know what lvl i would say im on.Im alrite at doing comics every loved it got some wierd reactions some girl called me a sociopath over it im just a bit anxious about showing it off as i am a really bad speller.

Here's the a page from the last one i made. I done 3 parts so far this comic.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Regna/Mr%20Darcy%20Part%203/1.jpg

ztoical

Lone Stone wrote: »

Thanks for the reply well i was looking for a more irish based one but there doesnt seem to be any around.I mite give deviant art a try but something about that site's layout baffles me to no end.

Maybe il try out creativeireland see what thats like i dont know what lvl i would say im on.Im alrite at doing comics every loved it got some wierd reactions some girl called me a sociopath over it im just a bit anxious about showing it off as i am a really bad speller.

Here's the a page from the last one i made. I done 3 parts so far this comic.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Regna/Mr%20Darcy%20Part%203/1.jpg

Other then issues with spelling [which I can relate to and is one of the reasons I do alot of silent comics :P] Do you know what type of critique your looking for? Do you want just feedback on the story or are you looking for feedback on the more technical side? Comments on figure drawing, colouring, perspective, storytelling etc etc. I know that might sound awful confusing but some people when they ask for feedback are only looking for comments on one area and not on everything and sometimes its the other way where they want comments on everything and people only comment on one thing. Also do you want people to leave comments on the thread or send them to via PM?

TiM_rEAPeR

Lone Stone wrote: »

Ive been looking around the interweb lately
looking for a website where people can upload
there own comics and get feedback on them etc

Does anyone know any ?
i couldnt see anything in the stickies (unless i missed it sorry)
And please i hate deviant art !

Hi Lone Stone. I was looking at your work with a bit of admiration, firstly because you've taken that all important first step to get up and write and produce something even when this world is flooded to no end with comic artistry and exceptionally talented illustrators.. and that is quite daunting sometimes. I am currently messing around with ideas and visual cues to start my own proper comic, but its gets a bit distracting sometimes.

However, I would like to give you my few pointers after the first look at your comic. I really like your drawing style, and the compositions are quite good. I do have one minor crit, something subtle than can make a huge difference on a professional level.
As a graphic design student Im learning about the importance of type and image and how they must work together. I notice that you choose 'comic sans' as your typeface, to be blunt... in the world of all things design and anywhere it is almost considered a sin to use 'comic sans', essentially its a tacky microsoft typeface for kids that is insulted and joked about to no end in the industry. (http://ldc.upenn.edu/myl/llog/autaux.gif) I think you get the picture here

I know that you were going for the comic typeface, but there are better alternatives. Try going to www.dafont.com to download a more realistic comic hand style. Also, try to stick to no more then 2 font sizes. Too many font size inconsistencies can affect legibility. I found the word spacing in the yellow boxes to be a bit cramped.. maybe increasing the box size or reducing the font.
Also, if you are using photoshop for you typography, I would recommend you switch to other programmes, maybe adobe indesign, as it has more dedication to letter spacing and other important typographic treatments (like the spacing between individual letters and the spaces between lines). It might sound petty and unnecessary, but typographic treatment can make a huge difference. Try http://www.typophile.com/node/36287 for some info. Other then my minor tips, great work.


I have a few things of mine at www.flickr.com/phelander

Lone Stone

Thanks for the replies. Yea the font i used is comic sans i was told its a no no but i couldnt decide which looked best and i found it a bit difficult with the layout of the txt i was a bit baffled at time trying to get what i wanted into it without out taking away from the image.

And ztoical ive just been looking for a place to maybe get tips on things any feedback at all really this is only the second comic i ever done so i was just looking for somewhere to get some hints and tips and some feedback on my own attempts.

Also i only used photoshop for the txt i dont have any other programs but il try get my hands on indesign if its better for adding txt.

This was a college project doing animation at the moment and we had to do a comic and i just kept doing it that page i showed is complete diffrent from the first two parts of the comic i started it out as a kind of "web comic" style and then i was trying to go for a more gritty look.

Also do you have the name any good comic fonts or is there a standerd type of font that is generally used ?

Fysh

Hi Lone Stone, there are loads of decent and freely-available fonts out there that are tailored for comics.

Personally I like DigitalStrip and DamnNoisyKids myself, although the last time I needed fonts I went on a search for a few hours and fetched a whole bunch of them. When I get home I'll sort through some of the names and see if I can find links for you.

Regarding the actual lettering, I've always done mine in Photoshop but that's more out of laziness than anything else. I've been told that Illustrator or InDesign are better for it but they're also pretty damn expensive to get legit copies of. I don't know of any opensource programs that can be used for lettering off the top of my head, but then I haven't really looked...

Fysh

Right, I've done a bit more searching. Blambot was one source of free fonts for me (they have a bunch of "pro" fonts as well if you see something you really like), and from a quick look there I can see the likes of Arcanum, DigitalStrip, Ale & Wenches and Straight Jacket which I like the look of.

1001 Fonts is the other main source I've used in the past. There are loads of fonts here, but probably my favourite from among them is Little Lord Fontleroy, and part of that is just the name. Lots of good stuff there.

(Wikipedia has also thrown up FontForge, a free font creation tool, although that's possibly more work than would be practical for some people).

I can't find anything that seems to be particularly easy to use in terms of lettering, but maybe someone else can suggest one. If you're looking for a free opensource alternative to Illustrator it's worth checking out InkScape. (Caveat - I haven't used it myself, but have been told it's good by a couple of people who've used it to create entries for the Comic Challenge).

ztoical

TiM_rEAPeR wrote: »

Also, if you are using photoshop for you typography, I would recommend you switch to other programmes, maybe adobe indesign, as it has more dedication to letter spacing and other important typographic treatments (like the spacing between individual letters and the spaces between lines).

If your looking for a computer program to do type then get a copy of Illustrator [CS3 would be great but CS or CS2 are fine, just don't go below CS] Indesign is a desktop publishing program used for laying out books but Illustrator would be the better program for type as its been developed for graphic designers. The way you can play with type in illustrator is really fantastic.

ztoical

Lone Stone wrote: »

This was a college project doing animation at the moment and we had to do a comic

first year visual language at Ballyer by any chance?

TiM_rEAPeR

ztoical wrote: »

If your looking for a computer program to do type then get a copy of Illustrator [CS3 would be great but CS or CS2 are fine, just don't go below CS] Indesign is a desktop publishing program used for laying out books but Illustrator would be the better program for type as its been developed for graphic designers. The way you can play with type in illustrator is really fantastic.

Not to be petty, but im pretty sure they've all been designed for graphic designers. Im not sure what you specify by "playing with type", but I would agree with you if your talking about designed type and large lettering. Indesign in used for pretty much everything these days, including article design and web design. Its easy for layout out and large amounts of imported images and I could strongly argue its the best for text boxes. You would only use illustrator to import typography.

Fysh

At this stage I'm going to point out that great though Adobe's various graphic design programs are, none of them are cheap and the Elements versions aren't really suitable to the needs of someone trying to make comics. It's ~€800 unless you qualify for a student version, and even then it's still €200.

Sure, if you're able to class it as an investment in your comics career or can afford it easily it's one thing. But I don't know many people who could drop €800 without thinking twice.

(and just to head this off at the pass before it even starts, I don't want any discussion about getting cracked or pirated copies)

Lone Stone

ztoical wrote: »

first year visual language at Ballyer by any chance?

No sadly i didnt apply there wish i did the place im in is well... il just say i wouldnt recomend it to anyone :mad:

thanks for the replys and help people much appreciated

TiM_rEAPeR

Ha, Well said. But at the end of the day, i'm of the opinion that... i'm not selling my work. Im learning in college... and anyone charging 800 euro is more of a thief then anyone.

ztoical

TiM_rEAPeR wrote: »

Indesign in used for pretty much everything these days, including article design and web design. Its easy for layout out and large amounts of imported images and I could strongly argue its the best for text boxes.

You can do text in indesign but it's not nessesary to use it. unless the book has tons of text and pages, then it actually would help with setting pre-set styles and crap like that.

InDesign is mainly used to organize text/images and design layouts and is probably best for creating multi-page documents like newsletters and catalogs. InDesign doesn’t contain as many tools for creating graphical elements as Illustrator or Photoshop, but does a good job in arranging elements together to form an overall layout. Illustrator is good for work that combines text and graphics. Also most comic artists who ink digitaly use illustrator or flash so its far easier to add type via illustrator then import the image into indesign. If your colouring you'd be exporting to photoshop [or what ever colouring program] then when getting ready for print bringing it into indesign [or quark for those stil working in the stone age which is sadly to many places in ireland still] If your going to be going from inking in illustrator to adding type in indesign to colouring in photoshop and back to indesign its a bit much when you can just letter and ink with illustrator all in one go. And the first person to say you can leave the lettering till last will be slapped - wither your lettering by hand or by computor add the text first unless your planning on pulling a Winsor McCay.

Fysh

Personally, I suspect that Bob Byrne's penchant for silent comics comes from having done a Windsor McCay once too often and then deciding he couldn't be arsed with the text at all...

Out of curiosity - it occurs to me that the only open-source/free layout system I can think of is probably something out of the LaTeX/MikTex family. I never actually learned to use it but it's a reasonably popular option for laying out papers and theses. Has anyone tried using it for comics?

Lone Stone

I made a bebo group woo altho il probaly get fed up and delete it
but the whole comic is linked up in a blog on the page.

http://www.bebo.com/Profile.jsp?MemberId=6966204135

magwea

My advice; if your comic is unintentionally similar to Jeff K's masterpiece http://www.somethingawful.com/hosted/jeffk/muchbettarthanpa/index.htm
get back to the drawing board.

Also Winsor McCay was a terrible letter.

Lone Stone

and because of people like you magwea i dont like showing off my comics.
thanks for the digg at my spelling abilities have a nice life.

Fysh

Lone stone, I wouldn't worry about it too much - you're hardly alone in having issues with spelling and it doesn't mean your comics aren't any good, just that getting someone to serve as editor/spellchecker for you would be worth considering.

That said though, any time you put your comics up anywhere you'll find people who think they're awful and will quite possibly tell you this, sometimes in quite creative language. It's all a case of finding a balance between taking constructive criticism on board and filtering out unhelpful negative comments.

magwea

Consider how much snide criticism even good cartoonists get. Fysh gave some sensible advice best to ignore the
unhelpful negative comments, i didn't mean to be unhelpful.

Keep showing off your comic.

Lone Stone

ok so anyways
ive been working away ever so slowly on a fourth mr darcy
cant seem to get into it like i did with the first 3.

This is a rough draft of the first page so im just checkin what you guys think of the font used cause as noted i was using COMIC SANS !!! :eek:



For some reasson i just cant work in portrait i gotta do it landscape it just feels to cramped but im going to maybe re arange it when i finish into portrait.

so fonts are go ?
check roger wilco