[1] Preparations

Before I imported my illustration, I opened a new canvas.

 

I went to the [File] menu > [New] and set the size to A3, the same as the line art.

・ Use of work: Illustration

・ Canvas size: 5787px × 4093px (This is 420mm × 297mm, A3 size, when the unit is set to mm)

・ Resolution: 350 dpi *Note: Color illustrations should be set between 350–400 dpi.

 

[2] Scan

I’ve already registered my scanner in the [File] menu > [Import] > [Select Scan Device].

 

I imported my illustration to the canvas from the [File] menu > [Import] > [Scan].

The settings depend on the type of scanner, but in this example I scanned with the following settings.

 

The line art is A3 size, but my scanner can only read A4 size paper. I scanned the paper in two A4 size halves, then combined them after importing.

 

Although it can take some time, if you are very careful with the angle that you put the paper in the scanner, it comes out very well.

 

[3] Adjustments after importing

I perfectly lined up the two images that were scanned separately. Then, in the [Layer] palette, I held down the Shift key so I could select both layers at the same time.

 

I right-clicked to display the pop-up menu, then selected [Merge selected layers].

The scanned image was quite dark, but the [Extract lines] tool isn’t suitable for this image. I adjust the picture in the following ways to make it brighter and make the lines stand out more.

 

[Layer] menu > [New Correction Layer] > [Brightness/Contrast]

・ Brightness: 10

・ Contrast: 20

 

[Layer] menu > [New Correction Layer] > [Level Correction]

I moved the black handle on the left to the right to make the black parts stand out more.

 

You should aim to make the background of the picture look white.

Note: The values for tonal correction differ depending on the scanned lines. You should adjust the value while looking at the results on the screen.

For detailed information, please refer to the Instruction Manual.

 

[4] Extracting the line art

The line art and the background paper were on the same layer, but I extracted the lines to make it easier to color.

 

From the [Layer] menu, I selected [Convert Layer].

In the pop-up [Convert Layer] dialog box, I used the following settings.

・ Expression color: Gray

・ Used color: Black only (White is not selected)

・ Keep original layer: On (You can uncheck this option if you do not need it)

 

This makes the white parts transparent and only extracts the lines.

As a test, I made a colored layer underneath to check if the lines were extracted properly.

 

[5] Coloring the line art

Compared to black lines, I think that brown lines look friendlier on the screen when colored in.

 

I colored the lines using the [Layer Property] > [Layer color] setting.

・ [Effect]: [Layer color]

・ [Layer color]: Set the color you want the lines to be.

At this stage, I erased any lines that had gone over when I was drawing by hand, and the line art is finished.

 

[6] Blurring the line art

I thought the lines looked a little bit stark and inorganic, so I blurred them a little bit to increase the hand-drawn feeling.

 

First, I copied the “line art” layer with [Layer] > [Duplicate Layer]. I renamed the copied layer “blurred line art” and put it above the original layer.

 

I selected the “blurred line art” layer and added a Gaussian blur in the following way.

 

[Filter] menu > [Blur] > [Gaussian blur].

・ Area to blur: 5.00

I set this value between 2 and 8 depending on the canvas size.

It should look as if it’s hardly blurred at all.

 

I set both layers to [Multiply] and reduced the layer opacity to 90% so that the lines aren’t too strong.

 

Next, I’ll show you how I added the base colors.