How to Make Clean Lineart in ibisPaint X

How to Make Clean Lineart in ibisPaint X

When you draw line art with ibisPaint X,

Chibi-Animenbo

I don't know how to draw line art well!

I think that many people think that.

In this article, I will teach you useful functions when you draw line art and tips for drawing well.

If you want to check the contents of this article on YouTube,

please watch this video.

Decrease transparency of a draft

When you draw line art, do you draw it directly without preparing a draft?

Before drawing line art, prepare a draft in advance.

Then reduce the transparency of the draft and create a new layer on top of that draft layer.

Animenbo

I use the new layer as a line art layer.

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What is a layer?

If you think so, please check the related article below.

I think that the transparency of the draft should be about 30 to 50%.

Recommended brush for line art

The brush I often use for this line of illustration is "Genius Pen".

Especially, "Genius Pen" is recommended when drawing Japanese-style illustrations.

Animenbo

And when I draw a line of hair, I use "Dip Pen (Soft)".

Hair looks better when drawn with a thin pen.

In addition to hair, for example, it looks more natural to draw

  • double lines on the eyes
  • nose
  • wrinkles

with thin lines.

In addition to "Genius Pen" and "Dip Pen (Soft)", I also used the "Dip Pen (Hard)" for the lines such as

  • eyebrows
  • eyes
  • nose
  • mouth

in the face.

Animenbo

I often use these three types of brushes drawing line art.

ibisPaint X comes in a variety of brush types.

Among them, there is an article that summarizes the brushes that are good to use for drafts and line art, so if you want to know more details, 

Please check the related article.

Draw line art layers separately

After drawing the line art of the illustration, do you find the part you want to correct?

In particular, hair and clothes are difficult to correct if they overlap with other parts.

If you erase or draw such a part many times, there is a possibility that the beautifully drawn line will disappear.

Chibi-Animenbo

Therefore, let's separate the layers for each part!

For example, you can draw a person, hair, clothes, eyes, etc. in layers.

You can scale it up or down, erase it, or add it later in layers for each part.

This feature is very useful as it does not affect other parts of line art.

How to draw lines very well

To draw a line neatly digitally,

  1. Adjust and use the pen using the "Stabilizer" function
  2. Enlarge the image and work
  3. Practice drawing beautiful lines from usual

There are three methods.

With Stabilizer, anyone can draw beautiful lines with digital tools.

This function is especially recommended for beginners who are new to digital illustration.

Also, the advantage of digital tools is that you can zoom in and out on images.

Zoom in and check frequently to see if the lines are distorted.

Finally, if you can't draw a line well with these features, you just have to practice.

If you practice drawing lines every day or draw illustrations, you will naturally get better.

Adjust the “Stabilizer” function

I think that the ease of use of the pen varies from person to person.

There are three points to choose the best pen for you.

  1. Draw a line close to the illustration you want to draw
  2. Hands do not get tired
  3. Easy to add strength

At this time, even if the line is slightly distorted, it will be straightened if you use Stabilizer, so it is okay.

Animenbo

Sometimes I change the pen I use all the time. At that time, I sometimes find that the new pen is easier to use.

You can't compare the pens without using a few, so it's a good idea to occasionally try new pens to see the difference.

Digital line art is prone to camera shake.

Many people don't get used to using tablets.

Animenbo

Therefore, I think that many people cannot draw the line well.

Stabilizer” is useful in such cases.

The "Force Fade" function also helps to draw lines neatly.

Stabilizer and Force Fade in ibisPaint X

You can find Stabilizer and Force Fade here.

If you would like to know more about how to use Stabilizer and Force Fade,

please check the related article.

Enlarge the screen to work

If you draw a line art while enlarging the screen, you will get a more beautiful illustration.

A tablet is convenient because you can easily zoom in and out with two fingers.

After drawing a line to some extent, zoom out to check the overall balance.

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Repeat this process to complete the entire line art!

For beginners who are new to using digital tools, it is quite difficult to draw a single line suddenly.

If it is difficult to draw one line, be aware of connecting short lines to make it look beautiful.

Some Japanese professional illustrators draw by connecting short lines too.

The point for connecting is to enlarge the screen and overlap the cuts and cuts on the lines neatly.

Hair is the best way to practice drawing a single line.

When you draw a line of hair, zoom in and out on the screen, especially looking at the balance.

At this time, the line will be smoother if you make the Stabilizer a little stronger.

How to draw beautiful lines

I think there are three main types of line drawing.

  1. One line, long stroke
  2. Overlapping lines traced from above many times
  3. A long line that connects short lines little by little

Of these three types, the one who is most accustomed to drawing a line is the one who can draw a long single line.

Those who connect short lines may not be accustomed to drawing lines.

However, even those people can correct the lines by drawing with digital tools.

Therefore, you can draw more beautifully with digital tools than on paper.

If you can draw a single line even with a digital illustration, you should do so because you can draw a smooth and natural line.

On the other hand, if you overlap the lines too many times, the natural momentum of the lines will be lost and the lines will tend to look unnatural.

Even if you can't draw a single line well at first, you can improve it considerably by practicing.

If you draw illustrations many times, you will naturally get better at drawing lines.

However, if you are still not good at it, you may try to practice drawing only lines.

How to check the balance of line art

When you can draw an illustration to some extent,

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Is the line art I drew well-balanced?

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Do you worry about that?

In such a case, it is a good idea to hide the draft layer and flip it horizontally to see the balance.

How to hide layers in ibisPaint X

Please check this image for how to hide the layer.

Horizontal and vertical flip in ibisPaint X

Also, here are the horizontal flip and vertical flip.

You can select either a partial layer or the entire illustration for flipping horizontally or vertically.

Animenbo

I want to check the balance of the whole illustration, so I choose to flip the whole illustration left and right.

Use Circular Ruler for round parts

You can draw the round part by hand, but you can draw a more beautiful line by using "Circular Ruler".

Circular Ruler in ibisPaint X

Here is the Circular Ruler.

It may also be used for human eyes.

That is when the eyes are directly in front.

Drawing the eyes with the Circular Ruler makes it very easy for beginners to draw circles, even if it is difficult.

If you draw a circle using the "Mirror Ruler" in Symmetry Ruler, you can easily create both eyes of the same size.

It also saves time.

Let's add strength to the line!

One of the tricks to show how to draw a line is to draw thick lines with shadows and edges.

Animenbo

I think that this method depends on peoples' preferences, but if you add strength to the lines, you will get a clearer illustration.

Also, if you make the lines around the illustration thicker, you will get a more anime-like pattern.

The taste of the illustration changes considerably depending on the strength of the line, so if you are accustomed to drawing illustrations, please be aware of the thickness of the line as well.

If you would like to know other basic usages of ibisPaint X,

please read this article.


If you've been using digital tools on your iPad for a while, your hands will hurt.

For the problem, here's a silicone case sleeve holder for your Apple Pencil.

If you are worried about hand pain, please use it!

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