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[bbtombo]

Hey guys!

Hope you're doing well. I just got PICO-8 and I really want to start getting into pixel art, and I really like the idea of the limitations the program makes for you. I don't really know how to draw much else besides doodles? I really want to get into it, but all these tutorials are like "YOU SHOULD KNOW HOW TO ACTUALLY DRAW BEFORE YOU START PIXEL ART." So I'm just wondering if you guys have any advice / links I can follow up on? I know I have to just start drawing, but if you can point me in the direction of any beginner's guides or youtube channels that you like, that'd be dope.

Thanks,

jc 

[JWK5]

Start by picking a program and just making things with it (knowing ahead of time and getting comfortable with the fact they'll probably look screwed up). Don't start pressuring yourself with the "rules of art" yet, just make stuff.

Once you've reached a point you're comfortable with things it is time to get uncomfortable again. Pick something you want to improve and search out some ideas for doing so. Let's say you're making these characters but the bodies just aren't looking right, well what are some games that did the bodies in a way that appeals to you? Start there and copy the shit out of them, I don't even mean loosely, straight up redraw them if you want. Once you get comfortable (there's that word again) with your ability to emulate them it's time to get uncomfortable, go back and try to figure out what led the creators of the art you are emulating to make the decisions they've made in reaching the end sprite, tile, or whatever the pixel art is.

When you've gotten it down enough that you're comfortable with emulating their style to create "original" characters, tiles, etc. (i.e. their style but your design) then start working towards learning about anatomy, how light works, etc. so that you can start learning the things that informed their decisions.

The key here is work to get comfortable, then add in a new learning mystery to immediately get yourself uncomfortable. This keeps things manageable and moving along but not boring.

A lot of people will tell you to study anatomy and this or that principle but its been my experience that for at least 50% artists that is a kiss of death that will destroy any enthusiasm they have in being creative. Some people are very technical and learn from the bottom up, but some are very emotional and learn from the top down.

What I am suggesting is a top-down approach, but if that doesn't cut it for you then go ahead and search out the anatomy, color theory, etc. right away and see how you fare. Either way, jump right in and make stuff.



I am more "show" than "tell" with my critiques and suggestions here when it comes to helping people out with their art, so feel free to post your progress and if you'd like I will give some advice when the time comes. You can even PM and let me know you've made the post if it looks like I've missed it (sometimes I am forgetful).



In any case, keep at it!



EDIT: Speaking of the programs, here's a few of my favorites (which are either free or have a free version):

Tile Studio (Good for spriting and making tiles)
Graphics Gale (Good for spriting and making tiles)
GIMP
...and of course, good ol' MS Paint.

[cynicalsandel]

Can't really top what JWK5 said, but just wanted to agree with their "top down" approach to art. I've only ever improved by trying to ripoff art I like.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

-just avoid tracing, tracing is evil.
-find a pretty palette and stick to it until you understand how colors work.
-imitate "good" artists
-learn the difference between "good" minimalist pixel art and "lazy" minimalist pixel art.


not free, but sprite something is a good app for pixel art ,spritesheed and small animated pixel art.

[ProgramGamer]

I'll just add one thing since most of the good stuff has already been said:

If you want a community, go to Pixel Joint, they are a dedicated pixel art website with monthly competitions and a really awesome community.

[Kyle Preston]

-just avoid tracing, tracing is evil.

Can you be more specific?

[Canned Turkey]

Tracing is artistic laziness incarnate.

If you want to use a reference that's fine.
If you want to follow along with mr. bob ross of pixel art that's great.
If you want to copy classical work (Michelangelo) in a different style or just for the sake of it, that's awesome.

But don't trace.

Learning is practice. If you want to be an artist and learn to make art, welcome to the club :D
But tracing isn't practicing therefore not learning. All you're doing is ingraining another artists style and work into your habits, without learning why they drew a certain thing a certain way. It's like when you're a kid and your parent puts you on your lap to "drive" you aren't driving. You don't know why you're turning the wheel or how far you should turn it or how it really feels to even be in control of the car. Strictly following isn't learning.

Here's my goto reference and what set me off on pixel art:
http://pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=11299

Here's a good follow along by the savior of my soul Derek Yu, no tracing required:
http://makegames.tumblr.com/post/42648699708/pixel-art-tutorial

Also learning is practice. Practice practice practice.
As well as practicing, you will not improve if you are not open to criticism. Even cheap criticism holds weight because you can learn to justify artistic liberty.

[ProgramGamer]

Strictly following isn't learning.

This needs to be somewhere.

[JWK5]

Tracing is artistic laziness incarnate.

If you want to use a reference that's fine.
If you want to follow along with mr. bob ross of pixel art that's great.
If you want to copy classical work (Michelangelo) in a different style or just for the sake of it, that's awesome.

But don't trace.

Learning is practice. If you want to be an artist and learn to make art, welcome to the club :D
But tracing isn't practicing therefore not learning. All you're doing is ingraining another artists style and work into your habits, without learning why they drew a certain thing a certain way. It's like when you're a kid and your parent puts you on your lap to "drive" you aren't driving. You don't know why you're turning the wheel or how far you should turn it or how it really feels to even be in control of the car. Strictly following isn't learning.

I have to call bullshit here.

One thing tracing teaches you very effectively is how to control your line work and hand movements. I highly recommend to any artist to practice tracing and trace the living shit out of anything and everything and as fast as you possibly can (while still maintaining legible lines). In doing so you will quickly develop your ability to freehand curves, straight lines, etc. and you will commit to muscle memory a lot of what you are tracing which gives you an effective tool set for later use.

You've got to get your head out of the "only good artists do this or that" thinking because there are so many valuable and versatile tools you are going to be throwing away if you don't. Art snobbery is constricting and limiting. If there is any golden rule to art it is "expand your options, explore your options, use your options".



EDIT: Better yet, get one of these, they are pretty cheap and they let you trace just about any object you can fit on it. It is actually pretty challenging trying to trace something with a lot of detail like an action figure, but the way it helps you bridge the gap between 2D and 3D is very illuminating, perspectives and such start to make a whole lot more sense. It really is a great tool for learning, I got for $10 at a store here and it is one of my favorite things to mess around with when I am bored and want to practice.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

i'd like to read once, a skilled artist saying in an interview or anything that he learnt by tracing.

There is a difference between artist and craftman. and tracing will lead you to craftmanship, you just learn how to reproduce.

[JWK5]

Sorry, but that's a load of crap. I know plenty of artists who developed valuable skills through tracing (myself included).

For example, it is a very handy skill to have developed when I take my sketches to my light table and ink them.

It is also a good precursor to learning to take any object you see in the environment around you and outline it (on paper or mentally), which in turn is extremely useful in gesture drawing.

When you trace you aren't just mindlessly copying, you are learning to study and read the lines. You are learning to move step by step examining the line composition of the work. It develops muscle memory along with developing an eye for contour.

You're speaking a bunch of nonsense about how it will somehow make a craftsman out of you as opposed to an artist (which in terms of drawing is ridiculous unless we are talking drafting) but you're giving no logical reason for it other than "it's lazy", which it isn't (as I explained above, it actually requires a lot of attention and control).

Like I said, art snobbery is constricting and limiting.

[ProgramGamer]

There is a difference between artist and craftman. and tracing will lead you to craftmanship, you just learn how to reproduce.

Isn't craftsmanship a huge part of art?

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

I could understand if all you're tracing is simple geometrical forms or simple drawings , lines, curves.
If you're tracing another artwork, that's when the problem is, because you can't (unless you're already talented) assimilate all the process that went behind the artwork.

It is also a good precursor to learning to take any object you see in the environment around you and outline it (on paper or mentally), which in turn is extremely useful in gesture drawing.

When you trace you aren't just mindlessly copying, you are learning to study and read the lines. You are learning to move step by step examining the line composition of the work. It develops muscle memory along with developing an eye for contour.

Then you need a lot if rigor because you don't learn volume this way.

And it's pixel art for a game here. Which will require more than just drawing skill.
-animating , background + character harmony.

you won't learn much by tracing because it's a process where it's faster to get bad habits that will slowdown your overall progress than good habits.

[ProgramGamer]

Point: tracing will not teach you how to draw like the person you're tracing, but it will teach you how to draw lines and shapes. Also tracing real life things teaches you to adapt 3D figures to a 2D drawing.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

Point: tracing will not teach you how to draw like the person you're tracing, but it will teach you how to draw lines and shapes. Also tracing real life things teaches you to adapt 3D figures to a 2D drawing.

it's probably better learning to draw real life things by looking at them then tracing over a photo.

[Canned Turkey]

Oh no I started an argument :O

Sorry guys I didn't mean to be so opinionated I just meant to stress that practicing actually drawing your own work is, from my experience and view, worlds better than tracing. Tracing might help at a low level yeah, but it doesn't help you be your own artist with your own style and vision, that's all.

[JWK5]

Then you need a lot if rigor because you don't learn volume this way.

And it's pixel art for a game here. Which will require more than just drawing skill.
-animating , background + character harmony.

you won't learn much by tracing because it's a process where it's faster to get bad habits that will slowdown your overall progress than good habits.

And by "you" do you mean "everyone" or just yourself, as in this has been your personal experience?

Because what I am telling you is that has not been my personal experience, nor the personal experience of many other artists I know.

Like I've said before, some people learn better from a bottom-up approach but some learn better from a top-down approach. If you can't figure out how to benefit from tracing that doesn't mean it is a bad skill to learn for everyone, it just means that you personally did not benefit from it.

Yes I believe tracing is a useful skill, but I think you are missing the point entirely. The point I am making is not that you should make tracing your only skill or even primary skill, the point is to make tracing an additional skill.

Oh no I started an argument :O

Sorry guys I didn't mean to be so opinionated I just meant to stress that practicing actually drawing your own work is, from my experience and view, worlds better than tracing. Tracing might help at a low level yeah, but it doesn't help you be your own artist with your own style and vision, that's all.

No need to be sorry, different points of view means different things to think about. We might not all agree, but maybe somebody else learns something from the discussion.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

And by "you" do you mean "everyone" or just yourself, as in this has been your personal experience?

Because what I am telling you is that has not been my personal experience, nor the personal experience of many other artists I know.

Like I've said before, some people learn better from a bottom-up approach but some learn better from a top-down approach. If you can't figure out how to benefit from tracing that doesn't mean it is a bad skill to learn for everyone, it just means that you personally did not benefit from it.

Yes I believe tracing is a useful skill, but I think you are missing the point entirely. The point I am making is not that you should make tracing your only skill or even primary skill, the point is to make tracing an additional skill.

i meant "everyone".
 There's a reason i was asking for proofs of "skillful" artists, it's that usually all the "artists" who told me that tracing is a good way to learn weren't that good, "there's something wrong in your drawing syndrome"-> usually drawings with a lot of awesome details but with wrong/off anatomy,volume or shadows that give an amateur look.

-Can you link me some work of those artists who learnt by tracing?

And as you mentioned before, yes tracing is an useful skill if you're tracing your own artwork but that's not learning process here for the op.

The point I am making is not that you should make tracing your only skill or even primary skill, the point is to make tracing an additional skill.

Since the op is beginning, it's better for him to ignore tracing for the moment.

[JWK5]

And who decides that?

In any case, this is ridiculous. I've said what I had to say, carry on.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

lol