I have created a book!

My Photoshop tutorial book Digital Manga is currently available in the Shop.

It primarily covers Photoshop CS6 and CC, although most if it can be applied to earlier versions such as CS5 and CS4. I'd imagine a large chink of it could technically be applied and translated to other software such as Paint Tool Sai or Clip Studio Paint.

It details every little trick I've learned and implemented over the last dozen years of producing digital artwork by demonstrating a practical use on character art.

It's something I'm proud of and hope it can be as useful to aspiring digital artists and my other how-to-draw books have been for manga enthusiasts.

"Why Photoshop? It's such expensive software compared to alternatives"

Beginners might opt for cheaper software as their digital tool to start, and I wouldn't blame them. Something like Sai is great! I like it for inking and I've seen incredible results achieved with it.

Although alternative software tends to have limits, and it's hard to argue a case against Photoshop's power and versatility.

It's a tool students will eventually need to get to grips with once they go to Uni and Adobe programs are set up on their university or college computers. Then after graduating, you'll find most in-house film, animation and game studios are still favouring PS for 2D art creation.

If you want to be a professional and aren't taking advantage of PS's blending modes, Plug-ins and brushes, you could be doing your artwork a disservice or making things harder on yourself in the long run.

Also, once you get to grips with PS, learning other software in the Adobe family becomes a little easier. Illustrator, InDesign or even Dreamweaver share a similar interface and are designed to be cross-compatible. Learning PS for my manga art later allowed me to get employed as a full time web and graphic designer for several years. Other art or comic design software wont easily allow that kind of transition.

Why should I buy your book and not a different digital art guide or just find online tutorials?

1. I have a lot of faith in my book, Photoshop skills and breadth of knowledge. I'm experienced and confident with what I'm talking about. I've been using Photoshop since Version 4 back in the late 90s and experienced close to a dozen versions of the software. Don't take my word for it- check out my portfolio. The colour work is smooth, clean, detailed and expertly rendered. I'm teaching readers how to achieve a similar deep, vibrant and professional look to their artwork.

2. The book covers the latest version of Photoshop- books published several years ago may cover out of date software. I've tried to make Digital Manga backwards and forwards (as much as is possible) compatible.

3. Digital Manga's tutorials covers a lot, and in-depth. The aim is to bring a novice up to a similar level to myself as quickly as possible. Art still takes a ton of time and practice to get better, but if I can bring a reader's colouring and rendering skills up a notch or two for a reasonable price, I'd like to think that's worth it.

4. Online tutorials can be a bit hit and miss. Before writing Digital Manga, I spent a long time researching what's already online. While there is some excellent stuff out there, it can be hard to find everything a beginner might need. There's also a lot of confusing, poorly written instruction to contend with. Where as I'm able to draw upon my years of teaching experience from tthe previous how-to book's I've had published in order to deliver detailed, yet concise information.

5. Online tutorials are scattered across the web in various locations while Digital Manga houses 160 pages of info in one place. - That info has consistency. It's written by the same author, so you know you wont be getting confused by trying to follow different terminology or a different way of doing things from a variety of different teachers. With digital art, there are multiple ways to achieve the same result so I'd say be consistent and get the basics down before exploring other methods.

6. Even if you read a lot of tutorials and have other art books, there's always room for another. One should never stop learning. And I'd be very surprised if a reader didn't learn at least one new, useful technique from the book.

7. Line art and assets contained in the book can be downloaded for readers to practice on and follow the rendering tutorials Step-by-Step.

8. I want you to become better! I'm happy to offer assistance with any aspect covered in the book, so feel free to email me if you're having difficulty with something and I'll do my best to assist.

And if you've read it, let me know what you think in the comments below.

I'll be attending MCM Comic Con in Birmingham on 21st-22nd of November. Second time having a table in the Comic Village and looking forward to it :) I'll be selling original art prints and copies of my book Digital Manga. It'll be interesting to see how the smaller 2 day event compares with London's 3-dayer last month.

Had an idea about drawing a robot holding a dying woman in her arms, so sketched out a quick doodle:

A few days later I was thinking about 'Quake 3 arena' - many hours of fun had playing that one on the Sega Dreamcast with friends, or solo when I was in my teens. Wanted to try sketching something up without starting with a line art like I usually do so did this:

Exciting times

It's now official. I'll be attending MCM Comic Con in London on 23-25 of October. It's the first time having a table in the Comic Village and I'm looking forward to it :)

I'll be selling original art prints and copies of my book Digital Manga. If it goes well, my plan will be to attend others and will use this blog to report how it went and perhaps give a few tips to other artists interested in exploring the UK Comic Con scene.

A big deal for me

I've seen or heard of many artist I know attend and sell at comic cons over the years. In my early 20s, some of my online artist buddies would ask when I'd be attending so they could meet in person. I never mentioned that due to crazy amounts of social anxiety and doubts about my own ability when I was younger, I felt I could never join in and be a part of it. It took me several years to get to a point where I felt more confident in myself and my art. So, to just show up and have a table at one of these things is a pretty big deal for me. 

Whether it goes well or not, it'll be chalked up as an achievement either way.

For future reference, here's my ad for local art tuition in Kent:

One to One Tuition using Adobe Photoshop to create and colour character artwork by experienced anime and manga style artist and author Ben Krefta.

Ideal for art university students, anyone interested in digital art, video game art, manga, comics and traditional media illustrators. Students are expected to have a minimum basic understanding of computers and Photoshop. Students will also need to have their own computer or laptop with software and a graphic tablet. To practice techniques in their own time.

Location: At his private art studio in the centre of Chatham, Kent (or can travel to student at an additional pence per mile rate).

Cost: Lessons are £60 per 3 hour session. There are 3 sessions to complete the 9 hours worth of demonstrations. Students are expected to take notes during these demos.

For further information, please contact Ben Krefta. You can Google him, to see further examples of his artwork, or visit benkrefta.com

Here's a little walk-through of me discussing the artwork currently on my website, as of 2015/2016. I'll no doubt update the gallery with newer pieces over the years and take down older artworks. It'll be interesting to see which pieces stay and which get removed over time.

Designing something a bit different

Most designs you find at local retailers are boring, ordinary, common or look cheap and tacky- especially this recent craze for rectangle prints on the fronts of t-shirts which look like an uninspiring ink-jet transfer paper job. A design on shirts, any other clothing, or even tattoos on skin need to be placed properly. A top-heavy shirt with a design covering just the shoulders and chest or an a-symmetric piece of artwork can look great, but most companies just churn out the same, basic, small to medium sized square or round design slapped in the centre with no consideration to flow, composition or just trying to do something a bit different.

Recently I designed a full-print shirt with one of my doodle-mech designs after stumbling upon a UK company who can process full-coverage 'dye sublimation' shirts at small quantities. Check out www.sublab.co.uk for more info. I designed the shirt to fit the provided template, then sent it back as a PSD Photoshop file. Wanted a dark purple tee with contrasting orange for a while, so here's my opportunity to get one :)

All-Over Shirt printing

There was no mention of shirt dimensions other than chest size on site at the time, so did a little research for "American apparel t-shirt" to get a fairly good idea of the size I'd need. Being 6'1" male, with a 40" chest and 35" waist, I went for a medium and it fit pretty well. Some sizes hinted at a large being more appropriate for me. Although I prefer a slightly tighter fit, so wonder if a 'small' (described as a 34-36" chest size) would have looked better on my frame? I wondered if it would be possible to find and supply your own shirts for printing to guarantee a better fit? If spending over £30 for a t-shirt, you'd hope for it to fit well as well as look good.

The design came out very nicely with colours nearly as vibrant as my RGB computer screen. Tonal contrast was lacking a touch in certain areas, which is worth taking into consideration when designing my next shirt. There wasn't enough contrast with the subtle greys on the inside neck logo, so would also look to make that darker for next time. Very fine lines don't show up so well- keeping things a little bigger and bolder is the way to go.

The biggest problem was the inevitable white creases around the seams and armpit areas. Patches, nooks and crannies where the print doesn't reach. I knew there would be a strong possibility of this happening and they looked pretty bad if the arms were raised. I manually filled these areas with a black Sharpie, which over time fades out to a grey tone. Took some effort but now looks A LOT better than it did upon arrival, and probably not noticeable unless pointed out. I'm hoping it'll hold up in the wash. I may need to try other permanent ink or fabric markers if not.

The Result

I like the idea of selling full front and back print shirt designs, but with my mark-up on top, I'm not sure people would be willing to pay £40-£50 for a single t-shirt? It may not be everyone's cup of tea, so for now I'll continue to create my own custom shirts from time to time for personal use and leave it at that. Many thanks to Sublab for providing the opportunity to try this. The shirt looks awesome!

Apologies for the poor photo quality of on my phone, but you get the idea :)

Selection of screen shots featuring some of my web things...

'About me' https://about.me/benkrefta also covers most of my web presence.

I Did a thing

Here's a little compilation of characters I'd created from my tutorial book 'Drawing Manga - Step by Step'.

It's a relatively short how to draw guide book I worked on years which and had been re-released more recently. The idea being to create a cast of characters, teaching how they can be drawn. For those still learning how to create a character artwork, this book offers initial guidance and step-by-step instruction.

I get nostalgic looking back at previous projects I'd worked on :)

Learning to draw (Manga and Anime)

Learning to draw anime and manga characters is both useful and fun for several reasons. Firstly, it provides a creative outlet for self-expression. Anime and manga styles allow artists to convey emotions, tell stories, and create unique worlds through distinctive character designs. This fosters a sense of accomplishment as artists bring their imagination to life on paper.

Moreover, mastering anime and manga drawing techniques enhances overall artistic skills. Artists learn proportions, anatomy, and dynamic poses, honing their abilities to capture movement and expression. This foundational knowledge is transferable to other art forms and styles, contributing to a well-rounded skill set.

The anime and manga community is vast and global, making it a shared cultural experience. Learning to draw in these styles allows artists to connect with a diverse audience, share their work online, and participate in a vibrant artistic community. Collaborating with fellow enthusiasts, attending conventions, or even creating fan art fosters a sense of camaraderie and belonging.

Additionally, drawing anime and manga characters is a gateway to understanding Japanese culture and storytelling. It provides insights into different artistic traditions, narrative structures, and character archetypes prevalent in Japanese media. This cultural exchange broadens perspectives and enriches the overall learning experience.

In essence, learning to draw anime and manga characters is a fulfilling and enjoyable journey that combines artistic growth, cultural exploration, and the opportunity to connect with a global community of fellow enthusiasts.

Commission for Tegan

This was made as a gift for a Dad's daughter, Tegan. She's a fan of Japan, Dragon Ball Z and Card Captor Sakura, so it was cool to get a few references in there with her portrait.

I think this must be one of the few times I draw a seated pose, and I like the colours with this one. Looking back, my only regret is that the shoes should be closed-toe, but like with every picture, you do what you think is right at the time.

Commission for Jessica

This commission was drawn for a friend of Jessica. She needed to look like she meant business and went with a foreshortened perspective with this. I don't know what the dinosaur bone is about? I'm sure it has some significance.

I'm not a caricaturist by trade so adapting the art I do to look like someone specific but with a manga vibe is always a challenge. Is it possible to convert real people's features into a simplified and stylized manga form (such as Pokemon, Dragonball) while managing to retain a likeness?

Birthday cake

This anime style portrait illustration was created for a a young family's twin daughter's Birthday. Made with the intention of being printed on a birthday cake. I wonder how it looked in the end? Or how it tasted?