SleepDebtFairy wrote:

I finally figured out how to stroke the pen lines, and I'm embarrassed how long it took me to figure that out.. but, anyway. I'm confused about how to end the pen lines if I want to start on another section. Do I stroke it (haha), then delete the path, or will I need the path for later? Since I can't make a new path without ending the previous one, how do I go about ending it without messing up the design by making it a random shape... thingy at the end that disrupts the design I want?

You can make a new path and work on that same path layer.  Just hold down CTRL and click.  Release CTRL and click elsewhere, and you can start a new path.  Also, I would advise against stroking your paths until you're completely satisfied with your lines, especially if you delete your paths after stroking.  I've found it makes for much aggravation if you end up deciding on changing something, only to find that you have to start over.

In any case, good idea for a thread.  I'm in the coloring stage of a vector based off of a rather rough sketch in one of the artbooks.  It's been fine when the lines and shading are clearly established, though Juri's hair has been an enormous nightmare.  I've had to create it from scratch, really, and it's been quite hard as it's forced me to design outside of my accustomed style.  Once I'm finished with it, I'll post it here for C&C.

For who's interested, let me talk in detail about how I do it.

- I work completely in vectors. I never draw directly. If I want to, I can just resize the image, spend a couple of minutes stroking and filling (double meaning not intended), and I'd have the image on a resultion.
- The lines are sorted in several paths by thickness and usage.
- I make the lines by first choosing the location of the anchor points, using the "V"-like tool to set the direction of the line at each point, and then I drag the segments into place with the selection tool.
- I have a special layer on which I draw all lines with the 1-pixel pencil tool, and then I use the magic wand to select an area. It's important that your lines leave no gaps for this. I expand the selection by 1 (so there are no gaps) and use this selection for a fill layer's mask. This makes adjusting colours easy.
- Making sharp points at tight corners is a tricky subject, one for which I'm trying out a new technique. If anyone's interested, let me know.

SleepDebtFairy wrote:

Also, this is frustrating.. if you're not done making all of the pen lines on your vector, what do you want to do if you want to save it and get back at it later? I saved it as a psd but I just opened it and the lines are gone.

You know that window in which the layers are displayed? It has 2 more tabs: "Channels" and "Paths". Go to Paths, use the buttons at the bottom to make a new path, and then make sure you have one of those selected as you plot a line. Otherwise Photoshop might go to a temporary path, or it will try to make a shape layer out of it. This way, you can stroke multiple disjoint paths at the same time, by putting them into one "path".

Right now I'm pseudo-actively working on this. Game screenshot here.

But because I have too much free time on my hands, I decided to do a little experiment and see how well I transition from Photoshop to Adobe Illustrator. I have to share my new discoveries with everyone: Remember kids, the Help section is your friend. Even when the explanations are more complicated than the task you're trying to perform.

Maarika wrote:

Would someone vector something on GIMP just to show me it's possible?

I'm actually about to start to attempt such an undertaking, though I am a notoriously slow worker when it comes to detailed projects like that, so I can't even say if I'd be done by the end of the year.   If I do get something done sometime in the near future, though, I'll have to remember to post something here, even if it's just a start... though it would probably be in General Discussion since it's not an SKU image that I want to vector...