Uh... How to make my linearts... cleaner??

[tuna_sushi]

I was just wondering how to make my lines less messy and stuff...
My lines are not that smooth and stuff, I need a program / tutorial to make it smoother!!
this is an example...









you can see how rough it is on the bottom of the dress (Legs, too)
ZOOM IN

[archia]

What program do you use? Do you have a tablet or do you mouse draw? (:

[tuna_sushi]

I use adobe photoshop elements 8 (I used to have cs7... now it's gone... T_T)
I have a tablet, but my lines are still wiggly

[Auro-Cyanide]

I use adobe photoshop elements 8 (I used to have cs7... now it's gone... T_T)
I have a tablet, but my lines are still wiggly

I'm going to guess you mean photoshop 7 since CS is only up to 5

There are two ways to get clean lines, one is to draw them and one is to use vector tools (like a pen tool).

The first usually just requires practice and people tend to have their own way of doing things. Sai also has a smoothing function (which I personally do not like) that a lot of people find useful. Some people zoom in a lot and carefully trace the lines. Some use a draw and erase procedure. I generally use zoomed in for details and zoom out for long lines. I find that moving quickly with confidence helps me get nice smooth lineart, but that is the way I do it, not the only one.

The second uses a similar method to vectors, in which it uses mathamatical points to calculate angles and curves. Basically, you use the pen tool to draw the paths and then you stroke the paths. I know Sai has settings that allow you to taper points and control flow. I don't use this method because I find it tedious and I am super impatient, but a lot of people are really happy with the results they get from this method.

[archia]

You could also draw two or three times the size of the finished picture. The 'wiggliness' is reduced when you shrink it to the proper proportions at the end, and then sharpen

But yeah, remember to zoom in when you're lining. That's important!

[jaypee_1]

Do you use tablet for drawing the line art? or just the pen tool on photoshop which also guarantees a clean line art .

[Niki]

Personally I hate the pen tool. Mostly because I can't use it well and it takes too long... (T_T)

A tip I have is to find out whether you draw vertical lines or horizontal lines more comfortably. Paint Tool SAI has a rotating function (not sure if Photoshop does) that can turn the image so it's easier for you to draw the kind of lines you like ^^ Um, it's hard to explain. Hope I helped!

[lordcloudx]

I personally use the pen tool in photoshop since I actually find it easier and faster to use than my drawing tablet. After you've done about 10 drawings using the pen tool, it becomes pretty instinctive to use. Of course, this is provided that you know how to use the tool properly.

[JustAnotherMe]

curve tool in SAI helps a lot to make a really neat line art. But I personally want to try to draw manually since it took a long time. But for now I'll use curve tool bcoz it really save my time to do the coloring and all (with the line being very neat).

[Anna]

Actually, SAI also has this setting at the top (next to the rotation icons and such) which is called 'smoothing' or something and adjusts the lines you draw. The higher it is, the more it will 'fix' the flow of your lines.

It helps a lot to get smoother lines when you're drawing zoomed out, but I also recommend zooming in for details and the actual line-art. Make a sketch before doing anything too.

edit: oops, Auro-Cyanide also shortly mentioned the smoothing option XD. You might hate it at first (as I did because of the 'lag' it gets) but I think it's a matter of getting used to it, since it does help in the end.

[Gear]

On the occasion I draw something, once I've scanned it, I'll load it into Photoshop, keeping the original length. Then, using a mouse+keyboard combo, I hold down the shift key and click to create straight lines. I trace the original drawing using hundreds/thousands of these tiny lines, that when zoomed out and resized, create a nice, clean trace of the original photo.

[tuna_sushi]

thanks for all the help! I use SAI now and my linearts are so clean