Do you know good software to make BG?(was:Background helps!)

[uselessp]

Hm, do anyone knows a program that might help when creating background art other than google sketchup?
I'm having trouble when it come to creating. . . City background.

There are way too much to outline. I need a program that can ease my time consuming works.
Should I show the sketch of my BG? But I want to use it in the upcoming project. . . (Sorry, spoiler/teaser isn't my style. I'll show it if you have enough reasons to move me.) >_<

[LVUER]

Why don't use photograph background and then filter it like crazy? It's very common to use filtered photo BG on free VN.

[erinism]

Um, I just use a photo (one I took myself or one from a royalty free website) and trace the bitmap (Modify > Bitmap > Trace Bitmap) using Flash. You can download the old Macromedia Flash in a bunch of places on a free trial, and there's no possible way you could google a serial key or download a key generator to unlock and get the full version - because that would be immoral and we just dont do that on the internet...

Anyway, I find when you do that you get a nice soft looking background; more cartoony, like the backgrounds in Katawa Shoujo. And you can change the settings to make the image look more/less detailed.

I hope this helped...?

[dramspringfeald]

then there's photoshop or gimp and some really bad wallpaper samples from the internet.

[uselessp]

I thought I would try that, but what I'm creating is a completely original background. Since it's fictional settings in a fictional world, I had to create everything from scratches, but. . .

Well, the problem is that I drew a whole city by pencil. And since sketches are rough, I have to outline that. Yet. . . Even seeing it by close gives me the shivers.

Me: "What the!? If it's like this, how can I outlines these all!?"
Me: "Then again, what about the coloring!? If I count all these lines, it will be more than 500 lines!!"
Me: "Even more, there are 3 Versions of this city!! (Three!!) What's more is that I have to draw other BG like this!?"

Like that. ;_;
If this continues, I might twist my hand due to overworks.

[LateWhiteRabbit]

I thought I would try that, but what I'm creating is a completely original background. Since it's fictional settings in a fictional world, I had to create everything from scratches, but. . .

Well, the problem is that I drew a whole city by pencil. And since sketches are rough, I have to outline that. Yet. . . Even seeing it by close gives me the shivers.

Me: "What the!? If it's like this, how can I outlines these all!?"
Me: "Then again, what about the coloring!? If I count all these lines, it will be more than 500 lines!!"
Me: "Even more, there are 3 Versions of this city!! (Three!!) What's more is that I have to draw other BG like this!?"

Like that. ;_;
If this continues, I might twist my hand due to overworks.

At the risk of being slightly drepressing in my response, sometimes it is just hard work. Yeah, you just have to sit down and draw those 2000 lines and color them. The closest thing to a "magic bullet" is Google Sketchup, and you've said you don't want to use that. And it is a completely original background in a fictional setting, so you HAVE to create it somehow. You can either create it in Sketchup and render out different versions to color, which takes more time to set-up but gives you infinite camera angles, or you can draw them by hand. There really isn't an in-between here.

There isn't any software that can just take an idea from your head and produce it in a few clicks. The only consolation you have is that the more backgrounds you do, the better and faster at creating them you'll become.

[Sapphi]

I would like to add that you don't necessarily have to do your background in a polished, detailed CG style. You could go the Impressionist route, or be deliberately vague with your backgrounds as part of the style. It really depends on the mood you are trying to achieve with your story, of course.

[ThisIsNoName]

I know you said you didn't want to use SketchUp, but have you looked into City Generator?
I haven't used it myself, but it seems pretty powerful.

Otherwise, the best suggestion I can give is to try to commission a BG artist. They'll probably have extra architectural knowledge to make sure you get exactly the style you want, and will know little shortcuts to be able to finish it in less time than it would take doing it by yourself.

[dramspringfeald]

got to Public Domain Pictures look up City then trace you a city. any identifying marks just replace with "building"