TIP:
When adding color to line art, keep the colors light and bright. If color is too dark, contrast in the line art is lost. Looking at color through black line work tends to dull the color. Making the color brighter will help overcome this.

TIP:
Be careful with yellow. When your eye mixes the black of the lines with yellow, it will make the yellow look green. Adding a touch of red to the yellow will help overcome this.

The art was to be printed in 4-color process, so I worked in CMYK.

The line art with black lines and a transparent background will be the top layer. A new layer is added and named "background," this layer will always be the bottom layer. I fill this layer with a color that acts as an underpainting, much like a traditional painter does an underpainting. This helps give the art a color harmony. Another layer named "color" is added between the line art and background layers. Most of the painting will be on this layer. I frequently added new layers for a special color effect. After the desired effect is achieved it is merged with the color layer.

I always save the art with layers and extra channels and make a flattened copy to send to the client.

See step 10 for the finished art.

Scratchboard Illustration by Michael Halbert
PHONE 636-349-1145 EMAIL michael@inkart.com
Copyright © Michael Halbert 2000