• • 4/3/14 10:05 am • 2 logs
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Added CreditThe sprite was obtained from www.pokemonelite2000.com.
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Hello, everybody! It's your favorite pixel princess redJAZZangel with some hints and tips about making pixel art statues. I'm going to run through a tutorial of how I made my Pokemon G/S/C Kangaskhan statue. Hopefully these tips and tricks will help you be able to make some awesome pixel art as well!
I generally get all of my Pokemon sprites from www.pokemonelite2000.com. However, some of the other sprites can only be found on www.spriters-resource.net, so I use both of these sites. If neither of those websites have the sprite you're looking for, turn to Google or deviantART. Load up your sprite in Windows Photo Gallery or Microsoft Paint, and zoom in on it. This is how I usually have my computer screen set up when I'm making a pixel art statue.
This is only a concern when you are building next to other objects that might get in the way. I have had it happen frequently where I will be looking at the outline of a sprite, and think I am working on the bottom row, only to find out that there is a row that goes lower than the one I'm at. This is an easy fix with World Edit, but not too easy when you're just in creative. A helpful trick is to pinpoint the corner of your sprite. Make sure you're looking at the bottom row, and then count the spaces from the corner.
Kangaskhan's foot (the bottom row) starts ten pixels from the corner, so you count out ten spaces from your nearest object, and then on the eleventh space, you place your first block. If you decide to start at a shape that isn't on the bottom row, you'll have to count out the spaces vertically and horizontally before you start.
This can be very hard depending on what kind of sprite you make. Pokemon G/S/C sprites are very easy to palette because they only have four different colors. I picked Kangaskhan because it's slightly harder to find a good palette. Place out four blocks that you think will match up to the colors in your sprite. I have created some different potential palettes for Kangaskhan, and I'm going to explain why I chose the one I did.
I picked the top palette for my pixel art. I felt that the wooden colors blended together. I would also potentially use the third palette if I wanted the lightest areas on the sprite to appear whiter- such as the eyes. I wouldn't use the middle palette- I feel like the brown wool is too dark compared to the birch planks, and they wouldn't blend very well. It's always best to look at a palette in advance, so that you don't have to scrap a sprite because Minecraft doesn't have the proper colors for it.
(On an unrelated note, the hardened stained clay in the 1.6 update is going to make pixel art so much better).
After checking your space requirements and making sure you won't hit any obstructions, start building the outline. Follow the shapes as they go around the sprite. In my Pokemon sprites, I usually do the entire black outline before I start messing with other colors. If you can't tell how long a part of the outline is, use other pixels to tell. If it's too hard to tell with other pixels, try to avoid doing that part until later, and go another way. I decided to avoid doing the part to the left of the foot I started on because it was a little harder to count, so I went up from the foot and started building the leg.
Sometimes in a sprite, there will be more than just one color in the outline. When building the outline, feel free to use other colors as they appear in the sprite if it helps you avoid making mistakes.
Speaking of mistakes, I made a few while I was building this sprite for the tutorial! I fixed them, but figured I could explain how I spotted my mistakes, and how I went about fixing them.
This might be said a lot, but it's true! As you are building the outline, double-check your work. There's nothing worse than getting to the very end of your outline where everything's supposed to match up, and nothing does. Constantly compare your outline to other parts of your outline. Ensure that things line up properly. Count pixels carefully, and keep your eyes peeled for mistakes. Eventually you will finish your outline!
I consider everything after this to be fairly simple, but I'll continue with the tutorial, because it might not be so simple for everybody.
The different shapes of your sprite now need to be colored in to complete your pixel art. Really, you can start anywhere that seems good! I started down at the left foot, because that's where I happened to be when I finished the outline. I looked at the colors in the foot, and noticed that there was less of the oak plank shade, and more of the birch plank shade, so I start with the color that there is less of, to make sure that I have the shape correct, and then will fill in what is missing.
I will then move on to the next shape, usually starting with the lines between colors, so that it's just as easy as filling in the colors. In Kangaskhan's tail, I started by doing the spruce shade in the shaded area, so that I could just easily fill in the rest of the shape with oak planks.
Pixel art can be hard for some people. Maybe picking a sprite that is 150 x 150 is a bad starting place. Start small to practice so that if you mess up, it's small and not hard to fix. Be patient- mistakes are common in this trade, so if things continue to not line up, go back to where you started and try to find your mistake. And most importantly- have fun! If you aren't having fun doing what you're doing, then what's the point?
I hope that this tutorial is helpful to players who are interested in making pixel art. I know that pixel art tutorials have been done before, but I'd like to give my little words of wisdom on the subject matter. If you have any questions, or if there's any part of this tutorial that you would like to see me cover with more detail, feel free to let me know in the comments, or send me a private message!
If you like my tutorial, diamond, favorite, and subscribe to show your support!
Step 1: Find your Sprite
I generally get all of my Pokemon sprites from www.pokemonelite2000.com. However, some of the other sprites can only be found on www.spriters-resource.net, so I use both of these sites. If neither of those websites have the sprite you're looking for, turn to Google or deviantART. Load up your sprite in Windows Photo Gallery or Microsoft Paint, and zoom in on it. This is how I usually have my computer screen set up when I'm making a pixel art statue.
Step 2: Check your Size Requirements
This is only a concern when you are building next to other objects that might get in the way. I have had it happen frequently where I will be looking at the outline of a sprite, and think I am working on the bottom row, only to find out that there is a row that goes lower than the one I'm at. This is an easy fix with World Edit, but not too easy when you're just in creative. A helpful trick is to pinpoint the corner of your sprite. Make sure you're looking at the bottom row, and then count the spaces from the corner.
Kangaskhan's foot (the bottom row) starts ten pixels from the corner, so you count out ten spaces from your nearest object, and then on the eleventh space, you place your first block. If you decide to start at a shape that isn't on the bottom row, you'll have to count out the spaces vertically and horizontally before you start.
Step 3: Pick your Color Palette
This can be very hard depending on what kind of sprite you make. Pokemon G/S/C sprites are very easy to palette because they only have four different colors. I picked Kangaskhan because it's slightly harder to find a good palette. Place out four blocks that you think will match up to the colors in your sprite. I have created some different potential palettes for Kangaskhan, and I'm going to explain why I chose the one I did.
I picked the top palette for my pixel art. I felt that the wooden colors blended together. I would also potentially use the third palette if I wanted the lightest areas on the sprite to appear whiter- such as the eyes. I wouldn't use the middle palette- I feel like the brown wool is too dark compared to the birch planks, and they wouldn't blend very well. It's always best to look at a palette in advance, so that you don't have to scrap a sprite because Minecraft doesn't have the proper colors for it.
(On an unrelated note, the hardened stained clay in the 1.6 update is going to make pixel art so much better).
Step 4: Start on the Outline
After checking your space requirements and making sure you won't hit any obstructions, start building the outline. Follow the shapes as they go around the sprite. In my Pokemon sprites, I usually do the entire black outline before I start messing with other colors. If you can't tell how long a part of the outline is, use other pixels to tell. If it's too hard to tell with other pixels, try to avoid doing that part until later, and go another way. I decided to avoid doing the part to the left of the foot I started on because it was a little harder to count, so I went up from the foot and started building the leg.
Sometimes in a sprite, there will be more than just one color in the outline. When building the outline, feel free to use other colors as they appear in the sprite if it helps you avoid making mistakes.
Speaking of mistakes, I made a few while I was building this sprite for the tutorial! I fixed them, but figured I could explain how I spotted my mistakes, and how I went about fixing them.
Tip: Mistakes Will be Made
I made another mistake! And guess what? It's part of the craft. I noticed this mistake after I got to the shape in the highlighted part. My shape is touching those two black pixels on Kangaskhan's baby, and they aren't supposed to. So to fix it, I had to look back. I made my mistake in the shoulder, so I had to destroy the entire arm to fix it! But it happens. When I fixed it, instead of rebuilding it exactly like I did the first time, I made sure everything lined up in the highlighted part. After lining things up to Kangaskhan's baby, I realized that there was a gap in the outline, meaning that my mistake was in the arm somewhere. I destroyed the entire arm, realized my mistake, and then built the arm properly.
Step 6: Take your Time
This might be said a lot, but it's true! As you are building the outline, double-check your work. There's nothing worse than getting to the very end of your outline where everything's supposed to match up, and nothing does. Constantly compare your outline to other parts of your outline. Ensure that things line up properly. Count pixels carefully, and keep your eyes peeled for mistakes. Eventually you will finish your outline!
I consider everything after this to be fairly simple, but I'll continue with the tutorial, because it might not be so simple for everybody.
Step 7: Color it In
The different shapes of your sprite now need to be colored in to complete your pixel art. Really, you can start anywhere that seems good! I started down at the left foot, because that's where I happened to be when I finished the outline. I looked at the colors in the foot, and noticed that there was less of the oak plank shade, and more of the birch plank shade, so I start with the color that there is less of, to make sure that I have the shape correct, and then will fill in what is missing.
I will then move on to the next shape, usually starting with the lines between colors, so that it's just as easy as filling in the colors. In Kangaskhan's tail, I started by doing the spruce shade in the shaded area, so that I could just easily fill in the rest of the shape with oak planks.
Pixel art can be hard for some people. Maybe picking a sprite that is 150 x 150 is a bad starting place. Start small to practice so that if you mess up, it's small and not hard to fix. Be patient- mistakes are common in this trade, so if things continue to not line up, go back to where you started and try to find your mistake. And most importantly- have fun! If you aren't having fun doing what you're doing, then what's the point?
I hope that this tutorial is helpful to players who are interested in making pixel art. I know that pixel art tutorials have been done before, but I'd like to give my little words of wisdom on the subject matter. If you have any questions, or if there's any part of this tutorial that you would like to see me cover with more detail, feel free to let me know in the comments, or send me a private message!
If you like my tutorial, diamond, favorite, and subscribe to show your support!
2 Update Logs
Update #2 : by cirrus-mc 04/03/2014 10:05:23 amApril 3, 2014 @ 2:05 pm UTC
Fixed some formatting errors.
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