How to draw manga. vol. 10. getting started

tecnicas de dibujo manga

2. DST

3. Chapter 1

- The Basics -
Pens, Ink and Paper

4. Topic 1
‘The Bare Essentials

Scrap paper, a mechanical pencil and
an eraser.

In fact, al the great
masterpieces started
off like this.

5. Ma 777] Manga begin as simple drawings that require nothing more
Les than a pen and ink. Buy items such as rulers, feather dusters
Tools of the Trade | and white-out as you find you need them.

Dil

We.

Pens and inks

8
li, ME e
I~ |
il |

ER

Tone management and attachment tools

=

6. Topic 3
The Ins and Outs of Pens

Pen tips and bodies are sold separately. Replace old, worn tips
and use new ones, Be sure to have some spares on hand,

Insert the pen tip and draw away!

À
/
N
UN U

0

pen body

7. Topic 4
| Types of Pen Bodies
There area variety of pen

bodies. Choose one that is
comfortable to use.

are 00 heavy and cumbersome. If you fee
this way, cu off the end ofthe pen

7 The end has
[ been cut of
Its lighter and easy to
‘Shortened pen draw with, ”

8. m Pen tips are manufactured by such companies as Zebra and
opio ‘Tachikawa, among others. There are four basic types of tips.

Tactikana wo zebra
(~ Round Pens >)
(cro gn

Gus Taha Nido zebra
a

(So00n Pens | | | |
Tachikawa Taghikawa lo zebra Zebra
iman) (Come) (mm) (Crane)

+ G-pens and round pens have a wide following,

+ Spoons pens (aura pen) are les popular School Pens )
+ School pens are said to be for people with a heavy School ene)
drawing nnd
Tacna

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9. Round Pens ) (G-Pens
While the feel G pens yield soft and Re
when drawing flexible Ines. Thick TS
with round pens lines can aso be
is hard, they drawn with these
give distinction kinds of pens. ((
between thick
and thin Ines.

| Key
=

TUT Con

‘School Pens ) Spoon Pens
School pens Spoon pens
produce the yield smooth,
hardest Ines fluent and
ofall and are somewat soft
ideal for exta- lines
fine work.

Some atts
modes prefer just the
\ Sami, amor School pens Y opposite:
Ve NE AE
\ pens are easy | for fine lines

to use when | and G-pens
drawing and round
single, thin] pens for thick
lines.
Of course, it
all depends
on the
person.

10. Which pen tip should you choose? I all depends on
whom you ask and, of course, what you need the pen
todo.

Artists who have heavy hands will
find spoon pens ideal for drawing the
kinds of lines normally associated

Some illustrators are able to
use G-pens to draw lines
that are just as smooth as.
those created with spoon
pens,

aluminum — chrome

| | Tachikawa spoon Zebra spoon (aluminum)

‘The quality of the pen and
tip varies from one brand to
the next, You will discover
slight differences in the feel
of pens and the quality of
the lines they produce.

Zebra spoon (chrome)

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11. Topic 6
Proper Use of Different Kinds of Pen Tips

Since well-defined illustrations are fundamental to manga, characters are drawn with thick lines
and backgrounds with thin lines.

000

an

{

Bad example: The outlines of the character are — Bad example: The outines of the character
thin and the background lines are thick and the background have the same thickness.

LI

Good example: The outines ofthe character Good example: The outlines of the character
are thin but the lines of the background are are thick and the lines of the background are
even thinner, thin

13

12. Experienced artists use a variety of pen tips.

Thick, modulated
lines can be easily
Grau with G-pens
and round pens. Thick ||
lines cannot be
produced with spoon
pens or school pens
without applying a lot
of force, and are
therefore best suited
for uniform lines.

13. With the same round
pen, there is a
Noticeable difference | (
in the tines drawn
with new and used
pen tips. Some
people like to have
several pens on
hand and divide their
usage.

Not al pen tips fit all pen bodies.

Some brand-name pen bodies can only use tips produced by the
same manufacturer. Before buying a round pen, make sure the tip
fits the body,

| | diroto Zebra

Tachikawa Nikko

various round pen bodies

15

14. Topic 7
New and Used Pen Tips:
Choosing One That's Right
As the tip ofthe pen
becomes worn with use, Al
the thickness of the lines S brand-new pen
and the feel ofthe pen will gighty used pen (than almost +

mean mme,
Be nn ld

ae ——

od pen (reserved for frame borders
and extremely thick ines)

areas tobe enlarged - done
with an old pen

fine areas — done with
a brand-new pen

smooth areas - done
witha sighty used pen

Once you've Some people ike Pens that are
broken in a new to change to a slighty used wil
pen tip, you wll new pen tip when draw finer ines
be abl to draw the tp becomes than brand-new
lines exactly ull pens, Use scrap
how you want paper to break ir

new pen.
example of when
the tip ets sap

+ pen tip sharpness — À pen whose tp is sharp will produce Ines that end in a
fine point. Round pens are said to be the best for drawing the sharpest Ines.
+ when the pen becomes easy to draw with, it can also mean thatthe pen tip
16 as been crushed and cannot be used property.

15. Topic 8
Pens and Their
Round pens and schoo pens are
best for nor oti ines,
Spoon pens ae good lor sharp
Ines, and g-pens ae bes fo
Strong ine.

thin tines ~ school pen
S N

WSS

16. Topic 9 =
Reasons to Use Ink Pens
‘While it doesnt mater what you use
to craw manga, keepin mind that SE
drawings done with ballpoint pens
and pencils do not show up well
when printed. Since ballpoint pens in
particular yield thin, monotonic lines
and tend to leave rob marks, they are
hardly ever used

ballpoint pen

18

Felt-tp pens are used for
emphasizing outines and

coloring in with black.
Since they sometimes I
run and cannat be used
for drawing sharp, fine
lines, their use should be A

reserved for bringing out running ink
special qualities in

drawings, wy

Ink pen fel-tip pen

emphasis
(extremely thick tines)

17. Topic 10
Using a Fine-Tip Pen

Fez res are
PO vst or drag
/ uno ies bare
/ muero nd
irate Tes pes
caring ota
pon ow

template or
draftsman's
ruler for

\ curved Ines

Fine-tp pens are often used with templates,

18. Here are two
illustrations
done in ink.

‘A Few Words About Ink:

‘There are two kinds of ink: waterproof and
water-soluble. As both are chemical products,
a chemical reaction occurs when they are
mixed together, and overtime the colors will
fade. You may be tempted to add or mix inks
When supplies are running low. However, is
best not to mix inks at all, even if they are the
same type and brand,

Waterproot ink
doesn't run,

water is spilled

19. Normal back ink, drawing ink
and India ink are water-soluble,

Even if you spill water
on drawings done
with document ink,
they will be fine.

ink products are

a fi
water roo sirable.

+ Most experienced manga artists don’t lke black document ink, as it tends to be a it on the thin ide.
They preter to use drawing ink instead,

21

20. Preparing and Cleaning Pen Tips

brand-new pen with old

ee
bien À ee

LE Eneas X ae

dificult to use. € pes

old. Switch tc

Since new pen tips
are coated with
= antirust oil they
repel ink when
> fist used.

Itis also OK to rub the
tip with a wet tissue:
or loth,

After inserting a
new pen tip into
a pen body...

kt,

heat the tip
abit witha lighter

+ NOTE: Ifthe pen tip is heated to the point that it becomes
Fed, the metal will become soft. Only heat the tip lite and
then quickly ip it int the ink to cool the tip down.

22

21. UE Tt tas sues of arg pen a 4
Ba size is roughly 1.25 times larger than the average manga magazine.
Manga Paper
A4 B4
B5 Use this size when Use this size when
me se me vg ETA
A snd es opty of raga
en pl apc,
cane
Gamma
manga magunes
Dante
Seen
teed 824 manga paper
manga magazines. for uso with a
manga magazine) —
Boze |
rs
am |

‘While B4 paper is used, the drawing does not use up the entire page.
‘Actually, the drawing area is fixed to about A4 si

‘+ NOTE: If 84 paper is reduced, it will not be B5 size (magazine size). The
fixed A4 size drawing area when reduced will be BS size.

orginal size 82% size
Paper Quality:
Kento paper, at paper, and high-
Quality 90-kg and 135-kg paper
are the types most often used in
drawing manga. (135-kg paper is
thicker and more durable than 90-
a paper) te sz en
made into a
the size when drawn a aaa

The lines look sharper and more beautiful
when reduced a bit!

23

22. ‘The drawing area (frame) for

manga pages is fixed. Manga L + L
paper sold commercial has the => e
frame Ines printed on the page.

r - 4

i cl
Ac Pape Sue à |

7m X 364mm (101. X 14 in
10mm X 297mm (8:3. 11.70)
B: raw to ete or ahii se ext page
©: Outer Frame — extend
finishing touches to here
20mm X 310mm (Fin, X 1220)
2mm X 257mm (72. X 10 in) i
D: ner Frame - the standard frame fr i
ing rames
180mm X 270 mm 7.0. X 106)

A4 = 150mm 220mm (89n.x 871)

‘The frame lines and guidelines are
done in blue because this color does
= ot show up when printed

N

+ NOTE: Lines drawn in blue pencil that are too strong will show when printed. Yellow.
lines wil not show up at al. Red nes, however, wi tun black when printed.

24

23. the edge ofthe paper e

DE

Tachikiri Lines

An illustration drawn to the edge of the paper is
called tachikin” in Japanese.

Le Paper
Extend the drawing a few centimeters tachi ine
beyond the normal frame to create tachkir
‘rawings. Manga paper has taciki
guidelines indicating how far to extend
the drawing

actual frame

+»:
1 Cool!

24. along ruler
(94-40 centimeters
or 13-16 inches)

Topic 14
Creating Spreadsheets (two-page frames)

Join two pages to create a spreadsheet.

a sharp cutter

Items to prepare

[EZ] Mark the side of
12/7 he page that wil

T be attached to
| the other page.
| (Make this mark
along te fram
(EN Gather two pages of manga paper. | borer, mie
| tachi border)
| Do this for both
+ pages.

Then remove the marked area of each page
Using a ruler and cuter.

26

25. 7 Line the two pages up perfectly

‘Temporarily attach masking tape tothe front
side to hep ine up the pages.

ED attach cellophane tape firmly along
the back side.

&

ism’

front side

back side

|

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26. Topic 15

Preventing Blotting When Inking ]
‘Why Ink Runs and What Paper to Use

Most outlines are drawn in pencil, which is
easy to erase. If used too often or too.
heavily, though, erasers can damage paper.
When the drawing is finished in ink, is
these damaged areas that cause the ink to

ty pap
manga paper are durable enough to
handle a ite erasing

Countermeasure 2

Keep the page dry.
Rest your hands atop a
piece of clean scrap
paper to avoid staining
the manga page with oil
or sweat. Avoid
touching the page as
much as possible.

+ Oil and sweat from fingers and hands cause ink to run.
+ Just one drop of water on a page can cause ink to run, even after Ihe water has

seemingly ried,

+ Some artists like to rest their hands on paper towels when drawing.

28

When old ink is use
can lead to running.
Use new ink to avoi
this problem.

dit

id

27. ‘Merits of Various Kinds of Paper

ts possible Commercially Sold Manga
tousean Paper:
eraser without =
damaging the
me ~ tnt |
A ruler is
prints on the [E
paper, making
‘ leas) to draw

parallel ines

when creating

frames,
Kento Paper:

er Super for drawing smooth
lines when using ink. For
The thickness. artists who lke to use alot

makes itfee tke 3096 shape ramos, \
the pages Of pages without ruled borders
fealmanga law a greater amount of
magazine. freedom.
Pe,

FH
+ Some art stores also sel hin

Keno paper

Hee to use \
Kento paper |
|

Art Paper:

Pencis such
as soft 28

and 68 can
used, when

be used with
art paper.
inking it has a

satel a EN
found n any 04 couse, a at QE
Cu nape eraser) should be 4

used,

While it does
‘nap up when
anormal
eraser is

29

28. \White-out is used for
corrections. i-based
white-out is fast-rying
and effective. What
mor, itis easy to use
‘ens and fine-ip pens
on op ofthe erased
ara.

before corrections

A fingerprint on the elbow was erased ‘The wink looked different from what the
artist had intended, o it was erased,

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29. Liquid Paper”
correction fluid

“after corections |

A crooked line along the buttocks was erased The area along the lower back was drawn too
and a curvier line was drawn, wide, soit was corrected and redrawn,

31

30. Toe 17" various kinds of white-out
Corrective Liquids

Most corrective liquids, commonly
called white-out, are diluted with water
before use. However, when correcting
drawings done with water-soluble ink,
‘don't add water to the corrective

liquid. comecton ic Martins,
Used soy ler De Proc
manga vn

‘The greatest merit of
wihite-out is that
‘nike with oil-based
products, a brush
Y) can be used to
Correct detailed \
areas,
+ Oik-based correction liquid is diluted with a special solution;
however, ordinary brushes cannot be used with his.

correcting detailed areas,

By using a fine brush, delicate
‘operations can be performed!

+ One way to divide the usage of corective liquids i to use water-soluble white-ou on detailed areas and o
based white-out on areas that you want to redraw. Some people only use water-based white=ou for
Corrections. The use is a matter of taste as there are some differences in ne ease of making corrections
and applying finishing touches.

31. How to Use Water-Based White-out

When using a
brush, the Y
trick is to CE

When using
Bion white-out, the

AAA, eee ou

* will run and
z Dit tthe area
ner is ubted
briskly witha
brush

Method 1] Woe the trsh a
ore it
saut,

\ = Ze

Sr

| Pacer

2 || @useanya men

Fan ery ar wth
water Clean he rush
ate and ey win a
tonel

2 Aad abit of water

33

32. EB The drawing will look like this ifthe ZI Once the white-out is completely
white-out is immediately wiped away. dry, hold cute ike ths.

ES] Scrape off the dried white-out with
the back end of a cutter.

“+ With this technique, the trick is to dry the white-out quickly. When necessity

si arses, some pros use a hairdryer to dry the white-out

33. Chapter 2

So You Wanna Draw Characters?