Also... Any tips for when designing characters? 🐁
thank you for ur super sweet previous ask thing.. aaauuhhmm when it comes to designing characters, it depends on the kinds of characters you are making. i think one thing that can apply to any sort of character design is to try and find inspiration from several different elements; color palettes, outfits, aesthetic boards, previous characters, real people, etc. It's good to have several sources of inspiration, that way you can pick and choose elements that you like and you're more likely to come up with something unique. it's near impossible to make something entirely unique, more likely than not when you create something there is something else that already exists that is similar to it and that's ok.
for more specific tips, i recommend drawing small (i always draw small anyways, but this is especially helpful when you're creating a lot of adjustments) and fiddling with the design until you get something interesting. don't worry about any details just yet, just get an overall vibe/shape down that you feel ok with.
next, flat colors~ i try to keep every color separate in a way that i can easily adjust and change colors as i work. if you're stuck between several options, duplicate your lines and color with the alternative choices. you can compare the colors side by side and deduce from there.
after you get somewhere with the colors that you like, now it's time to add details. adding details from the beginning can be very overwhelming, but when you're adding them in after you have your base down i find it's more flexible(?) if that makes any sense. create a new layer, new folder even, and start playing with what kinds of details you would like to add to give your character more depth. think about what the character maybe symbolizes, important aspects in their life, anything you can think of to give them some visual personality. keep in mind your limits, if you enjoy drawing super detailed characters then feel free to add a ton of detail. if you're someone who is easily overwhelmed by that then you should keep it simple, you can still create an impactful character design without adding a ton. often times when i create a detailed character i seldom draw it, it's more of a trophy piece. most often i draw my simpler designs over and over, often simplifying them further. if i want to draw my detailed characters again i'll most likely simplify them as well lol.
if you're having a hard time creating a design, come back to it later. sometimes coming back to a concept with a fresh mind can really do wonders. here's an example of a character i was really struggling to design, excluding the numerous doodles i did trying to get their style right lol;
i had a really hard time figuring out the shapes and finding a color palette that i enjoyed, it took me several days but north ended up being one of my favorite ocs as of late.
uhh tldr: draw inspiration from several sources, start simple and add detail as you go. trial and error..
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