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Manga Studio EX 5 Cookbook
Manga Studio EX 5 Cookbook

Manga Studio EX 5 Cookbook: Over 90 hands-on recipes to help you create digital comics from page setup to exporting the final product

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Table of content icon View table of contents Preview book icon Preview Book

Manga Studio EX 5 Cookbook

Chapter 2. Customizing Brushes

In this chapter, you will learn the following recipes:

  • Creating a gritty inking brush
  • Breaking out with a broken glass brush
  • Creating a cracked detail brush
  • Foliage made simple
  • Creating a cross-hatching brush
  • Making a fabric trim brush
  • Making a ruffle brush
  • Making a brick brush
  • Blowing up an explosion brush
  • Creating a feathering texture brush

Introduction

Brushes in Manga Studio 5 can do a lot more than just making a pencil mark when you use your stylus to draw. By customizing your brushes, you can speed up your workflow and create special effects. Spend a little time now making a brush that imitates ruffled fabric, and save time later when you introduce a character with a penchant for wearing ruffles!

The brush settings can look a little intimidating at first, but once you know what everything does, you'll be flying through the brush creation process! This chapter is a good introduction to some brushes that you may need in your drawing process.

For all the recipes in this chapter, it is advised that you have a page open to make test marks on as you make your new brush. This is the best way to test what each option in the Tool property window does and how tweaking the options can make a difference in the look of our brush.

Let's make some drawing tools!

Creating a gritty inking brush

Some styles require a line that isn't smooth and even. We're going to make a gritty and uneven-textured inking brush to add some flair to our lines.

Getting ready

One of the materials used for this pen is from a free brush available from Smith Micro. At the time of writing this book, the brush is available at http://my.smithmicro.com/manga-studio-ex-5-free-content.html, as Dry Bleeding Flat Watercolor. This brush will need to be installed in order to get access to the material. Download the brush from the Smith Micro website. Then, click on the icon circled in the following screenshot (found in the Sub Tool palette) and click on Import sub tool…:

Getting ready

Navigate to the location of the downloaded brush file and click on Open. The Dry Bleeding Flat Watercolor brush will be installed and the material will be added to the Material library.

How to do it…

These steps will walk us through the process of creating a new inking brush with a gritty look:

  1. Under...

Breaking out with a broken glass brush

One of the great things about working digitally is that you can save time by utilizing the features of the software you use and making them work for you. In this case, we're going to add some broken glass around the falling figure in this drawing:

Breaking out with a broken glass brush

How to do it…

This recipe will walk us through creating a custom material and then using it to make our brush:

  1. Open a blank canvas, preferably of 300 to 600 dpi resolution.
  2. Using your preferred drawing tools on an empty layer, draw the outlines of several jagged shapes. These will be our shards of broken glass.
  3. Create a new layer beneath the outline layer. Select the glass shapes and fill them with solid white.
  4. Lower the opacity of the white layer to 50 percent.
  5. Merge the outline layer with the 50 percent transparent white layer.
  6. Make sure that the background of your image is transparent. Your image should look something like this:
    How to do it…
  7. Go to Edit | Register Image as Material.
  8. In the Material property window...

Creating a cracked detail brush

Our next brush will make drawing ruins, rubble, and general scenes of devastation easier.

Getting ready

To start off, open a new blank canvas of at least 300 dpi resolution. We will use this canvas to draw our new brush tip shape in order to make our cracks. Make sure that Basic expression color is set to Gray and not Color. Refer to the screenshot given here to know where to change this option while creating your new canvas:

Getting ready

How to do it…

These steps will walk you through the rest of the brush creation process:

  1. With your new canvas open, navigate to View | Grid to turn on the grid lines.
  2. Find the grid line that runs down the center of the canvas vertically.
  3. Use this center line as a guide for the cracks, but do not follow it exactly! Make the cracks branch off and go away from the center. This creates a more convincing effect. Check out the following screenshot, and note that the crack pattern touches the center line at the top and bottom of the canvas:
    How to do it…
  4. Once...

Making a foliage brush

A foliage brush is an adaptation of a free brush that is available from Smith Micro. At the time of writing this book, the brush is available at http://my.smithmicro.com/manga-studio-ex-5-free-content.html as Leaf in middle distance.

How to do it…

For this brush, we'll need to make a material and then use it to make a brush that "rolls out" like a ribbon:

  1. Open a new canvas with at least 300 dpi resolution.
  2. Draw a row of leaves, similar to the top of a tree or a bush.
  3. Fill the leaves with white color. Use the following screenshot as a guide to create the leaves' shapes:

    Note

    The dark fill around the leaves is simply for showing the shape of the white fill.

    How to do it…
  4. Turn off any visible Paper layers or other fills.
  5. If needed, combine the leaf outline layer and the fill layer. There should now be only the leaf outlines and the white fill visible on the canvas. The background should be transparent.
  6. Go to Edit | Register Image as Material.
  7. Name the material using...

Creating a cross-hatching brush

Hatching is the term used to describe the shading of a drawing achieved using groups of parallel lines. Cross-hatching is a group of parallel lines crossed by another group of parallel lines moving in another direction. Hatching and cross-hatching can give a lovely look of depth and texture to monochromatic illustrations. Let's explore how to create a brush to make our hatching and cross-hatching go a little faster than doing it completely by hand!

Getting ready

To start off, open a new blank canvas of at least 300 dpi resolution. We will use this canvas to draw our new brush tip shape in order to make our cracks. Make sure that Basic expression color is set to Gray and not Color.

Refer to the screenshot given here to understand where to change this option while creating your new canvas:

Getting ready

How to do it…

These steps will walk you through the rest of the brush creation process:

  1. Select the Figure tool and then the Ruler subtool.
  2. Next, select Special ruler...

Introduction


Brushes in Manga Studio 5 can do a lot more than just making a pencil mark when you use your stylus to draw. By customizing your brushes, you can speed up your workflow and create special effects. Spend a little time now making a brush that imitates ruffled fabric, and save time later when you introduce a character with a penchant for wearing ruffles!

The brush settings can look a little intimidating at first, but once you know what everything does, you'll be flying through the brush creation process! This chapter is a good introduction to some brushes that you may need in your drawing process.

For all the recipes in this chapter, it is advised that you have a page open to make test marks on as you make your new brush. This is the best way to test what each option in the Tool property window does and how tweaking the options can make a difference in the look of our brush.

Let's make some drawing tools!

Creating a gritty inking brush


Some styles require a line that isn't smooth and even. We're going to make a gritty and uneven-textured inking brush to add some flair to our lines.

Getting ready

One of the materials used for this pen is from a free brush available from Smith Micro. At the time of writing this book, the brush is available at http://my.smithmicro.com/manga-studio-ex-5-free-content.html, as Dry Bleeding Flat Watercolor. This brush will need to be installed in order to get access to the material. Download the brush from the Smith Micro website. Then, click on the icon circled in the following screenshot (found in the Sub Tool palette) and click on Import sub tool…:

Navigate to the location of the downloaded brush file and click on Open. The Dry Bleeding Flat Watercolor brush will be installed and the material will be added to the Material library.

How to do it…

These steps will walk us through the process of creating a new inking brush with a gritty look:

  1. Under the Pen tools, select...

Breaking out with a broken glass brush


One of the great things about working digitally is that you can save time by utilizing the features of the software you use and making them work for you. In this case, we're going to add some broken glass around the falling figure in this drawing:

How to do it…

This recipe will walk us through creating a custom material and then using it to make our brush:

  1. Open a blank canvas, preferably of 300 to 600 dpi resolution.

  2. Using your preferred drawing tools on an empty layer, draw the outlines of several jagged shapes. These will be our shards of broken glass.

  3. Create a new layer beneath the outline layer. Select the glass shapes and fill them with solid white.

  4. Lower the opacity of the white layer to 50 percent.

  5. Merge the outline layer with the 50 percent transparent white layer.

  6. Make sure that the background of your image is transparent. Your image should look something like this:

  7. Go to Edit | Register Image as Material.

  8. In the Material property window, name your new...

Creating a cracked detail brush


Our next brush will make drawing ruins, rubble, and general scenes of devastation easier.

Getting ready

To start off, open a new blank canvas of at least 300 dpi resolution. We will use this canvas to draw our new brush tip shape in order to make our cracks. Make sure that Basic expression color is set to Gray and not Color. Refer to the screenshot given here to know where to change this option while creating your new canvas:

How to do it…

These steps will walk you through the rest of the brush creation process:

  1. With your new canvas open, navigate to View | Grid to turn on the grid lines.

  2. Find the grid line that runs down the center of the canvas vertically.

  3. Use this center line as a guide for the cracks, but do not follow it exactly! Make the cracks branch off and go away from the center. This creates a more convincing effect. Check out the following screenshot, and note that the crack pattern touches the center line at the top and bottom of the canvas:

  4. Once you...

Making a foliage brush


A foliage brush is an adaptation of a free brush that is available from Smith Micro. At the time of writing this book, the brush is available at http://my.smithmicro.com/manga-studio-ex-5-free-content.html as Leaf in middle distance.

How to do it…

For this brush, we'll need to make a material and then use it to make a brush that "rolls out" like a ribbon:

  1. Open a new canvas with at least 300 dpi resolution.

  2. Draw a row of leaves, similar to the top of a tree or a bush.

  3. Fill the leaves with white color. Use the following screenshot as a guide to create the leaves' shapes:

    Note

    The dark fill around the leaves is simply for showing the shape of the white fill.

  4. Turn off any visible Paper layers or other fills.

  5. If needed, combine the leaf outline layer and the fill layer. There should now be only the leaf outlines and the white fill visible on the canvas. The background should be transparent.

  6. Go to Edit | Register Image as Material.

  7. Name the material using a descriptive title.

  8. Double...

Left arrow icon Right arrow icon

Description

Manga Studio is a software application for the digital creation of comics and manga. Manga Studio EX 5 has all the features of Manga Studio 5, professional story creation tools, and other special features that make it the ultimate illustration tool for serious comic, manga, and graphic artists. Made specifically for comic artists and illustrators, it has some of the most powerful digital art creation tools available. From digital perspective rulers to a library of screentones, Manga Studio 5 works for the artist with an intuitive, customizable interface and tools. With Manga Studio EX 5, you can create custom page templates, save commonly used designs, make custom brushes, mimic traditional media, pose 3D objects directly on the art canvas, and export all of your comic pages for print or the Web. The book starts with everything you need to know to set up custom pages for your comic or Manga project. These recipes will take you all the way through to exporting your illustrations for print or to display them on the Web. You will learn how to create custom brushes that you will use for inking, or for repetitive tasks such as drawing foliage or rubble. Next, you will move on to understanding Layer Modes and Layer Masks. Then, you'll learn how to finish up your illustrations with color, screentones, special effects, and 3D objects. Finally, you will be taught to export your hard work and share it with the world, either through the Web or in print. This cookbook will give you just the right recipes to turn on the power of Manga Studio EX 5 and get you creating more illustrations faster and more efficiently.

Who is this book for?

This book is intended for competent comic artists working on Manga Studio who want to create more attractive comics by using powerful tools and features from software for digital comic creation.

What you will learn

  • Create story files and custom pages for any Web or publishing project
  • Customize brushes for special ink effects, hatching and crosshatching, and much more
  • Work with vector images in Manga Studio EX 5
  • Use the new Symmetry ruler and the new Line tools to create your illustrations faster and more efficiently
  • Make and save custom screentones, and add them to your comic pages
  • Punch up your illustrations with color palettes and special effects
  • Add 3D models to create or accentuate your comic scenes
  • Finish a project by exporting it for the Web or for a printed collection

Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Sep 28, 2015
Length: 300 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785881077

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Product Details

Publication date : Sep 28, 2015
Length: 300 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785881077

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Table of Contents

12 Chapters
1. Creating and Manipulating Pages and Page Templates Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
2. Customizing Brushes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
3. Getting a Handle on Vectors Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
4. Using the Layer Modes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
5. Making Selections and Layer Masks Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
6. Using New Rulers and Line Tools Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
7. Adding and Creating Tones and Materials Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
8. Playing with Color Palettes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
9. Creating Special Effects Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
10. Using 3D Objects Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
11. Exporting the Finished Product Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

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5 star 57.1%
4 star 42.9%
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Joseph W. Oct 12, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
You will love it.
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TERESA M. Aug 24, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
useful
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Byron Wilkins Oct 30, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Manga Studio 5 and EX 5 (also known as Clip Studio Paint) are powerful tools just in the penciling, inking and coloring tools. But, when you dig deeper into the software, you find an amazing, and sometimes overwhelming, assortment of tools.Elizabeth Staley's "Manga Studio EX 5 Cookbook" is the perfect stepping-stone for advanced and beginner MS5 users alike. There are eleven chapters full of helpful tips and step-by-step instruction on how to implement each "recipe" in the Cookbook. "Customizing Brushes", "Getting a Handle on Vectors" and "Using the Layer Modes" were the most useful for me, but each chapter has something for everyone to learn.I've seen a decided improvement in my workflow, and more importantly, my final product, since using Ms. Staley's book. If you've been feeling overwhelmed at all the tools and processes Manga Studio 5 has to offer, then this book is the ticket for you.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Dawn Griffin Jan 27, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
I'm a recent convert to MS, working in Adobe Illustrator previously. Let's just say MS feels familiar to Adobe's interface, but I wish I had a tour guide to show me around. Luckily for me, Liz Staley wrote this book. COMPREHENSIVE is about the best word for it. I turn to the ebook version (yay, keyword search) whenever I hit a "how the heck do I do this?" wall. Highly recommended.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Obtusity Oct 19, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon 4
A great addition to your shelf if you use Manga Studio 5.Parts of this book are pure gold, such as information showing how to create a custom fabric and transform it to the contours of the garment or its wearer. This is valuable information that you would otherwise have to struggle to find piecemeal, and which would be nearly impossible to adapt directly from tutorials for other software.It falls short of 5 stars because it suffers some confusion as to whether it is a cookbook or a user manual. Some chapters, such as making brushes or creating special effects, are presented as true cookbook recipe examples that provide insight and inspiration as well as adding to your repertoire of skills, while other chapters are presented as "how to use the tool" instructions or explanations with simple examples.Admittedly the information in the latter-mentioned chapters is valuable and presented with clarity, but (for example) showing every blending mode with the same two boring thumbnail layers of coloured stripes (which become a variety of greys in the print version) misses so much potential for providing recipes for how specific blending modes can be used for shading and lighting, adding textures, making white paper transparent in scanned line art, and similar effects.Apart from the impression that this is combined from parts of two different books, I would still recommend this book to any user who is not already at expert level of familiarity with Manga Studio 5 features.
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