Warriors Wiki:Charart/Apprentice Tutorials

Burntclaw is now the head of the Apprentice Tutorials. If you have any tutorials you would like put up, put it up for approval on the talk page. Title your tutorials as Username.tutorial.png. If you want to update another tutorial, send it as Username.tutorial2.png. Remember, there can be more than two tutorials on different subjects. Be sure to vote on the elimination of tutorials.

First and Foremost
Everyone always asks how to become a warrior; well, here it is:
 * Users join as an apprentice.
 * Apprentices ask questions if need be from experienced users. Before an apprentice puts art up, they should get basic guidelines from one of the tutorials listed below; i.e: art program, shading style, basic instructions etc.
 * Apprentices may request a mentor.
 * Journey from apprentice to warrior.
 * Have to have more than one image approved and be nominated.
 * Know how to use shading, highlights, blur, etc.
 * Be able to put in good critiquable comments to others' images.

Tools
Tools for Gimp:

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072241%21PCA_Tut.png

Tools for Pixlr:

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072300%21PCA_Tut.png

Ears & Eyes
For a good looking ear pink choose the colours like this~

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072215%21PCA_Tut.png

And for pupil placement and shading in the eye~

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072228%21PCA_Tut.png

Example Image
We all know that sometime you just can't describe a colour. You want somebody to darken the image, but when they do, the colour looks weird. You want somebody to lighten the earpink, but when they do, the colour is just off. If you really just want to show the artist the colour the earpink or eyes or pelt really should be, you can just use the. Just save the image to your computer and bucket fill it with the proper colour you want the artist to use, and then reupload the image over the previously mentioned file with what the colour is for, the artist, and the image the colour is for. For example, you could say, if you were uploading an earpink colour for my TB image of Rain. Then you would go to (again, just an example) my section on the Tweak Page and put this code:  under the section. You'd then say "" or whatever you were going to comment on. Remember, guys, the image shouldn't be used every time you want the artist to darken the stripes or lighten the earpink - just when they really don't get it. Hopefully that was helpful.

=Shading Placement= http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20130102194259%21PCA_Tut.png

=Plain Cats=

Paleclaw
http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229080540%21PCA_Tut.png Step 1 - Make a layer below your lineart and fill it with your white. I usually use one or two shades away from pure white.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229080636%21PCA_Tut.png Step 2 - On a new layer, block in your shading. The key on white cats is to not make your shading too thick, otherwise it will spread over the entire image when you blur the shading, making the image look gray.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229080651%21PCA_Tut.png Step 3 - Blur/smudge your shading as desired.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229080716%21PCA_Tut.png Step 4 - Though this step is optional, a nice trick is to pick a color a shade or two lighter than you the darkest you want your shading to be. Then lock the opacity of your shading layer, and paint bucket over it. Set the layer to multiply and leave it at that. By doing this, you ensure your image will never be darker than you want it. If you don't want to do this step, set your layer to multiply anyways, and change your black shading's opacity till it looks right.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229080822%21PCA_Tut.png Step 5 - Finally, add earpink and eyes and remove the waste. Just a tip on removing waste, it's sometimes a good idea to not remove the waste on your shading layer if it's on multiply. The waste won't show up as long as it's set to that, and leaving it there will make blurring easier later if you need to.

Hope this helped.

Dual Coloured
''I use GIMP and Paint, but you're free to skip where I use Paint and use GIMP instead. I just find Paint to be a simpler program to use.''

Step 1: Insert image into Paint.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065728%21PCA_Tut.png Step 2: Fill in base fur colour. Now, we're going to making this little guy grey-and-black, because he's just awesome like that.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065736%21PCA_Tut.png Step 3: Add markings. Woah, woah, WOAH. It's green. Don't worry kiddies, I did that on purpose :3 It's a lot easier to separate the markings into layers if the black is a neon colour. Like green.

''Add image into GIMP. On Paint, go to Select, then Select All. Copy the image (or press CTRL + c). Go to GIMP, click File, then underneath New, it should say Create, with a little arrow beside it. Hover over that, and then click on From Clipboard. Your image should show up, in its own layer. Be sure to right click on the layer and select Add Alpha Channel, or it won't be transparent. On the subject of transparency, see here for information how to make an image transparent on GIMP. If your cat has markings (tabby stripes, patches, ect.) use the Select by Colour Tool to select all of the marking colour in an image. Then I cut the selection (CTRL + z), and re-paste it (CTRL + v), effectively starting a new layer. Create a new layer (don't ask why, it just works) and there you go. Now, select all the colour in the marking layer and go back down to the layer you started on. Use the dropper tool to select the base fur colour, then use the bucket tool to fill in the now-transparent markings.''

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065758%21PCA_Tut.png Step 4: Okay, now you should have an image that's transparent and on two separate layers, but the markings are still green! This is simple to fix. Simply using the Select by Colour Tool, select the green (durr) and use the bucket tool to fill it in with black. I advise not to use pure black; it's very hard to shade. Use a really dark grey.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065826%21PCA_Tut.png Step 5: Blur those markings. Now, if you can't tell, I really love my Smudge Tool - maybe a little too much - so if you just want to have him solidly black (like Barley), simply use the Blur Tool, not too aggressively.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065837%21PCA_Tut.png Step 6: Because of the smudging, it looks more like dark grey instead of black right now, so I just used my Burn Tool to make the markings a little darker. Moving on.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065904%21PCA_Tut.png Step 7: Add some shading. Be sure to start a new layer. I tend to use three shading layers - one for the tail, head, and main body, one for the two legs closest to us, and one for the legs and ear farthest from us - but it's really not necessary. It just makes it easier to blur the way I do it.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065851%21PCA_Tut.png Step 7: Blur, using Gaussian Blur. I usually set it to 7 and repeat it a couple times, but that's also not necessary. You can set it anywhere from 5 to 20 and it'll look fine.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229065914%21PCA_Tut.png Step 8: Now set the layer mode to Multiply. This makes any shading outside the blank invisible, but doesn't delete it, in case you want to blur it more later on. Then, drag the layer opacity to wherever you see fit.

''If you don't use highlights, you can skip this part and go straight to step 11. However, I recommend you use them for an image like this.''

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229070001%21PCA_Tut.png Step 9: Start a new layer, and do this <--- with your Paintbrush. We're making highlights!

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229070019%21PCA_Tut.png Step 10: You already know how to blur, so I'm skipping that step. However, for highlights, you should probably set the layer mode to Overlay, then reduce the opacity. You don't have to, but...

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229070041%21PCA_Tut.png Step 11: Add earpink, and you're done! You can use this method for any type of dual-coloured cats, even for tortoiseshells.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229071926%21PCA_Tut.png ''And here's what he'd look like in black-and-white! Fascinating, no?'' 01:54, December 6, 2011 (UTC)

=Tabbies=

Tabby Types - Shelly
http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/2/2f/20130121021951!Shellyheart.png

Tabby Types - Ivystripe
 Please do not simply copy and paste these onto your image, they're merely a guide and should not be directly pasted onto an image.

Thin Tabbies
Hi everyone! I'm Splook, and I'm here to show you how to do my favorite kind of tabby: the thin tabby! I'm using the program GIMP. Open your blank and color select the white inside of it. Press delete, then go up to the top toolbar and press "select" < "none." Then make a new layer and put it behind the lineart layer.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072436%21PCA_Tut.png I'm going to do a brown tabby. Fill in the whole blank with your chosen color. ''Make sure the whole blank is colored. ''Now make a new layer above the base layer and name it "stripes."

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072532%21PCA_Tut.png Put the brush on the smallest possible (make sure the scale is 1.00) and put stripes across the whole image. Connect them, go across the blank, do whatever you want! I like to make sure that every somewhat large spot of empty space is covered.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072554%21PCA_Tut.png Go to the blur tool (the teardrop tool)and put the scale on the largest it can be. Lower the rate to 30 or 20 (this was at 30) and swipe across the blank two times. Now create a new layer named "shading" above this layer.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072616%21PCA_Tut.png Choose a color darker than the pelt and draw in the appropriate areas. Now go back to the blur tool and raise the rate as high as it can go (100) and blur it together. (or use guassian blur.)

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072632%21PCA_Tut.png After blurring, it should look like this. Go to the box where you have your layers and change the mode from normal to multiply. Lower the opacity to your liking. Now make a new layer for your eyes and highlights.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072657%21PCA_Tut.png Fill in the ear and eye. Now go to your base layer and fill the outside of the lineart with neon color (or a color you didn't use.) Color select then delete. Press delete on all your layers. This gets rid of the waste.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072711%21PCA_Tut.png And there's your thin tabby cat! I don't use highlights, my "highlights" are the light source. Thank you for your time and happy charart making! 19:57, August 14, 2012 (UTC)

Marbled Tabbies
By: Blue Orca

Dappled Tabbies
04:15, December 2, 2011 (UTC)

Spotted Tabbies
07:47, February 18, 2012 (UTC)

=Tortoiseshells= Here is how I make my torties:

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072313%21PCA_Tut.png First colour pick the line art and put it on a new layer and colour in the background with the dark base colour, usually black or dark brown

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072323%21PCA_Tut.png Then add another layer and add splashes of a lighter colour, usually a shade of ginger, and smudge with circle brush 3 at a rate of 60, and then blur at a rate of 25-30

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072332%21PCA_Tut.png You can repeat step 2 for every colour you want, but adding more than 3 usually looks too busy, so try to stick with 2-3 different colours.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072347%21PCA_Tut.png Then add another layer for shading. I use solid black, but any dark colour would work. Just paint it where the shading would go, erase where the highlights would be, and blur really well.

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072406%21PCA_Tut.png Then lower the layer’s transparency until you have a nice balance between shading and coat colour. I set it to 39

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072417%21PCA_Tut.png Then add one more layer for the ear pink and eye colour

http://images.wikia.com/warriors/images/archive/1/17/20121229072427%21PCA_Tut.png Now the most important step, go to the line art layer and select outside the line art (using fuzzy select). Then go through all the layers hitting Crtl+X and that will get rid of all the waste on the outside.

And there's your finished tortoishell. I would probably be told to lighten the shading, but I'm partial to dark shading so it looked fine to me. There's lots of different kinds of tortieshells, like a dark one like Redtail, tortieshell and white like Cherrytail and calico like Poppyfrost.

=Brindled Tortoiseshell= This is a traditional tortoiseshell with brindle patterns.

=Calicoes= This is a tutorial on Calico cats. 06:36, January 22, 2012 (UTC)

=Mottled & Flecked=

=Abnormal Lineart= Here is some ways to change up the lineart to match the character decription better. A few things to make sure of:
 * Make the new lineart thick
 * Check the box that says "Hard Edge" when erasing to make sure you get it all
 * Double check to make sure there's no waste

Chances are this is the only type of lineart change you will need to make. Its simple. Just erase the ears tip and draw in the new gap using true black. Some good examples are Lionheart, Yellowfang and Bluestar. Another likely lineart change is patchy fur. You can see some examples on Dappletail and Stoneteller, or for really patchy fur, Running Horse Pretty much the same steps as the torn ear. All lineart changes are basically the same. Erase, redraw, fiddle with it, put it for approval. Easy peasy. Heres some more abnormalities: Stumpy tails like Halftail and my favorite, Berrynose Ragged fur like Silverhawk and Raggedstar Twisted feet like Oddfoot and Cinderpelt Tuffed ears like Redtail and Tawnyspots A crooked jaw like Crookedstar

=Shading Styles=

Basic Shading


 01:11, November 4, 2011 (UTC)

Smudged shading


by

A Closer Look
This is a closeup view on how I do my shading.



In the first picture, (The top left one) you see that in a new layer, I put black in pencil where I want my shading to be. There are many different spots to put shading, remember, not only one way.

In the second picture, (The top right one), you see that I am going to guassian blur it. To guassian blur, go to Filter, then blur, and then guassian blur. Put it at a rate from around 15 to 23. Mine is at 20. Once you have set the rate you wish to blur it at, click OK.

Lastly, lower the opacity of the shading layer. It depends on how dark you want your shading. In the bottom picture, you see that I put my opacity at 38.7.

When you are done, you can always tweak the shading, such as using the blur tool to blur some parts, or changing the opacity number. If you blur some parts, make sure to put it at a higher rate. Remember that you can get very creative with shading, there isn't just one way to do it.

-

Shading Without Layers
This is probably the most confusing way to shade I've ever done, but it's how I did my first... at least 9 chararts. It's super confusing, Wildheart was at my house and I showed her how to do and she didn't really get it, so I wish you the best of luck. This is a good way to do highlights because they're already 90% blurred before you even touch the blur tool. Enjoy!&nbsp 00:05, December 10, 2011 (UTC)

=Tweaking=

This section is mostly for warriors, though some apprentices may need to use one or two of these for a normal image every once and a while.

Changing Pelt Lengths
Here is how you change the pelt length of cats without having to do a completely new charart pixil (invaluable if you like the original picture a lot, you did the wrong pelt length and don't want to start anew, or for consistency purposes)



Blurred Lineart
Blurred lineart is something you'll probably run into a lot when you're tweaking. It's actually a lot easier to fix than you'd think. Just follow these steps and you'll be fine. Sorry if it doesn't make sense at some parts, I'm horrible at explaining things.



♔ⓅⓐⓁⓔⒸⓛⒶⓦ♕  ☆StarClan be with you★  04:42, November 6, 2011 (UTC)

Tweaking Shading


-

Changing Color


22:24, December 6, 2011 (UTC)

Adding Stripes
05:13 Thu Dec 8

=Videos= Here are some videos where you can see how it's done

OA for these were (in order) Insaneular, Nightshine, Ivystripe, Oblivion, and Shelly

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460pxpx|left|Ivystripe's all-around GIMP tutorial

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