Introduction
Hey-hey! I am an artist AloneFlaver, and this is my Clip Studio Paint TIPS of the Month contest guide! This time, I’d like to tell you how I draw muscles in Clip Studio. Male bodies, to be more specific. For this guide, I will be using the iPad version of the program. I have also prepared a video version of the tutorial that conveniently showcases the whole process.
Let’s not waste time and jump straight in!
Start with a 3D model
My method of drawing is convenient for people with little experience in shaping up bodies. This method is also unique to Clip Studio Paint as it utilizes several of its special features. The first one is right here. To begin, place a humanoid 3D model onto your canvas. You can stick to any model you like or the one that matches the character you want to draw. But I will stick to the default Clip Studio male body to keep this guide valid for as many people as possible. Position it as you please.
In the next step I use a Clip Studio Paint EX exclusive feature called “Extract line”. It smoothly turns your layer’s contents into line art. It works perfectly with models as it has their volumetric data to extract lines in the best way possible.
I activate “Extract line” in the Layer Property window and toggle it to clean up the inner zone of the body.
Next, via the same window, colour in the body with a neutral grey shade. Then rasterize it for convenience (you can keep a copy of the model before rasterizing it if you feel like you are not sure about its final positioning).
If you don’t have the EX version, there are some workarounds. For example, you can create a new layer and, using Auto select on the model’s outline, fill in its shape on the new layer. But I honestly recommend using “Extract line”. You can modify your model and its position even with the feature activated as it doesn’t rasterize your layer.
Preparing the materials
My brushwork style
Our preparations with the model are done. Now we can start drawing! Well, almost. First, let me tell you about the tools I am going to use for this.
My method of drawing is akin to shaping up a sculpture, as some artists would say. We will gradually build the character's form, going from the biggest strokes to the smallest and most precise ones. However, despite how high or low your current skills are, you do need to know at least some basics of human anatomy. There is no cheat code or some easy workaround, you simply need to know what to draw within the silhouette we have prepared, depending on its pose, view angle, and light source placement. Let references help you.
The brushes I use
I will be using only two brushes to prepare our character’s body.
The first one is the default soft airbrush you can find in your catalogue. It has been slightly modified, but you can keep it as is. The only thing you will really be doing with it is changing its hardness to shape softer and rougher parts of the muscles. Switch it constantly between all levels for a more complex appearance of your brushwork.
The other brush is a custom one. I have uploaded it to Clip Studio ASSETS, so you can easily download it. It is a semi-soft brush with clearer strokes. I use it for rougher shadow transitions and the smallest details.
The only other parameter I would mention for the brushes is the Perceptual colour mixing. It is optional, but I highly recommend turning it on for most of your brushes for the better and more natural mix of shades. It will come in handy for the later stages when we will start working with colour.
Don’t worry, the colour mixing won’t affect these brushes’ appearance if you raise the “Amount of paint” slider to the max.
Let’s draw!
Don't rush — mark the main shapes first
That’s right, I said that colour would come later. We will be working with the gray gamut in the beginning. I prefer to start with it, as working in monochrome results in a better perception of volume and chiaroscuro.
Create a new layer above the body silhouette and turn “Clip to layer below” on so the contests of the new layer would only register within the silhouette.
Now, using the soft airbrush and the second brush, start building upon it! I usually start with adding the outline shadows first. They help me understand the volume of the body.
Then I go around spreading basic soft strokes, indicating the main muscles like pectoralis major (the chest muscles), the abs, etc.
Step by step — make the strokes smaller gradually
Upon that, I give them more distinct borders with a darker shade of gray. You can use either of the brushes, but if you proceed with the soft airbrush, then don’t forget to switch it to a harder mode.
Switch between lighter and darker shades to match your light source’s position and gradually shape up the muscles. You are free to use any anatomy references so you don’t forget anything. The human body is a complex thing, so don’t hesitate to research and look at pictures to see how it works and what and where should be depicted!
And don’t worry if you suddenly notice the anatomy you have been shaping up is distorted. You can always correct it using the “Liquify” or “Mesh transformation” tools.
Shadow, light, and balance
The contrast is a tricky thing. Don’t make your muscles stick out too much from one another with strict dark borders. Remember that our bodies do not consist of blocks or cubes of some sort. We are pretty soft in all kinds of manners even when in good physical shape. Our muscles are enveloped in skin that dilutes the borders between them and joints even more. So make sure to interconnect things like abs a bit, or shoulders with biceps, etc.
Sure, high contrast is necessary for certain places, but use it in a more global sense, covering whole areas instead of borders of separate muscles. For example, the Serratus anterior (side torso muscles) are on a different volume axis from the abs of the chest. So they will be on a different plane for light.
That is why, to emphasize the depth and volume of the body, you should separate them in terms of lighting from the front part of the body.
Summary of the brushwork process
Overall, the whole process is basically:
– Use a model to help you create the base
– Mix soft strokes with more distinct ones, big ones with small ones
– Emphasize the volume and depth by constantly switching between multiple shades of gray
– Use references, either biological or artistic ones
If you want to see more of the uncut process of how I was drawing the body, please consider watching my video version of the guide attached at the beginning of the article.
Colouring and editing
Shading correction
Before giving your character a proper colouring, we need to correct the balance of its shades. it is pretty hard to create a perfectly balanced grayscale image with manual strokes. So let’s go to Edit → Tonal Correction, and play with the “Brightness/Contrast”, “Level Correction”, and “ Tone Curve” tools to reach the desired effect.
There are no strict values I could recommend, it all depends on the shades you used, how you balanced them, and what effect you are even aiming for. These are the parameters I applied to my piece:
After that I merge the layer with the strokes with the silhouette one to proceed.
Adding colours
And now we are finally going to colour the character. There are plenty of ways to do this, but I usually stick to the wonderful gradient maps! The process is simple. I duplicate the newly merged layer with the body and change the copy’s layer preference to “Color”.
Then, while this layer is selected, I go to Edit → Tonal Correction → Gradient map. From there you can use any gradient maps you created or obtained from the Assets.
Here is the skin shades set by Kureihii I really like to use:
I apply the map I deem the best for the current art and lower the layer’s opacity to a degree that makes the character’s skin look more appealing.
You can also use “Color match” instead of “Gradient map” in the same menu. It will have a slightly different effect that might work better for your needs, and it also supports gradient map sets.
But the skin looked a bit plain, so I duplicated the “Color” layer, changed its layer preference to “Overlay” and increased its saturation to create a more striking step between the lighter and darker parts of the body (the zone that is also called The terminator). Then I lowered its opacity even more so as not to oversaturate the image.
You can play with various combinations of such correction layers. You can combine several gradient maps with several layer preferences to achieve amazing results. The same goes for the level and contrast correction. Find your perfect balance of all of those things!
The magic of small details
We are almost there! The body is done and has been coloured. But to make it feel more “alive”, I usually apply several more small techniques. Let me tell you about each of them.
Emphasize the complexity of the anatomy
To make the body look more realistic and complex, you can use small details like veins or scars. Drawing them is easy. Just pick one of your brighter shades and, with a small-scaled brush, place several “streams” of veins across the body. You can emphasize them by adding a couple of darker strokes on their sides to show their volume.
Texture makes the skin feel more natural
I like to apply noise texture specifically to the skin of my characters. You are free to use any noise pattern you can find on the Assets or online, but I usually make mine myself. It’s pretty easy! Just create a new layer and set it to “Soft light” (this preference won’t let noise alter our colours’ brightness and saturation in a substantial way, though you can also try the “Overlay” preference).
Now go to Filter → Render → Perlin noise.
From there you need to toggle the first four sliders and check which combination works for you best. I don’t have a specific set for it as it all depends on the conditions. But I’d say that setting the “Scale” to the lower side, and “Amplitude” and “Attenuation” to nearly maximum is usually a nice spot. Then apply it and lower your layer’s opacity to a comfortable degree.
Reflex and its physics are essential
Learn to use reflex. Reflex is a physical effect when light hits an object, bounces off of it and then hits another object, lighting it up with the shade of the first one a bit. It might seem like our bodies are not that reflective to CAUSE reflex and not just ACCEPT it, but that’s not the case. See how I make my hand reflect light from the window onto my other hand, and how the light is slightly orangish because of the skin shade on the first hand it hit.
So if the body parts are placed in a way they might reflect light onto one another, you should absolutely showcase that! Just pick a slightly lighter shade than the shadow and add the reflex. Here are a couple examples where I used it:
Shadows make volume
You can also improve the perception of volume of your character by adding another simple shadow to it. Just create a “Multiply” layer (make sure it’s beneath the noise texture and with “Clip to layer below” on) and apply a gradient of a neutral shade to it, going from the lower fringe of the canvas to about its center point.
The results
And that’s about it! I can alter some of the mentioned steps depending on what and how I’m drawing (for example, I can use different gradient maps or numbers in the sliders), but the main steps and principles are always the same.
And to showcase how this body I made could be used in an artwork, I added some scenic elements to it to imitate the full-fledged art conditions. It’s simple but effective enough for this tutorial.
And here are a couple other examples and work-in-progresses of how I used the same technique in my personal works with my original characters.
I hope this guide was informative and useful, and that it will help you draw the coolest muscles in your works. Thank you for your time! ^-^
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