{"id":542,"date":"2015-06-01T02:37:51","date_gmt":"2015-06-01T06:37:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/makingcomics.spiltink.org\/?p=542"},"modified":"2015-10-02T06:37:18","modified_gmt":"2015-10-02T10:37:18","slug":"analog-lettering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/salgoodsam.com\/mc\/analog-lettering\/","title":{"rendered":"Analog lettering & Photoshop?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ballon\"<\/a>For some of my own work, most of it really,
\nI don’t use digital lettering.
\nNot the way demonstrated
\nin my last post on this topic<\/a>.<\/h2>\n

I DO often shape\u00a0my balloons the same way, using the expand selection trick after scanning hand-lettered\u00a0text. But despite a fondness for the LOOK of hand done lettering, I still composite the text and balloons\u00a0digitally most of the time, rather than writing it directly on my physical artwork.<\/p>\n

And while\u00a0I like lettering by hand, I’m not good at doing it in the formal tradition either, I’m no\u00a0Todd Klein<\/a>. And I don’t want the feel of anything like that really either – nothing against it but I don’t always like the way that looks with my art the most. The main reason I do it by hand is to try to capture the same sense of line my art has. So that the words in form, blend with the art itself.<\/p>\n

You can see from the two double page spreads out of “Honolulu Lorie\u2019s Lava Love Lounge and Poodle Emporium”\u00a0–\u00a0the colour story here – that I also like to experiment a bit with different ways to integrate the lettering that reflects the nature of the text. The Poetic narration of\u00a0Lorie\u2019s was done in the disembodied white text, that generally had a shadowy translucent ‘balloon’ framing it. I felt this was key to making it read somewhat like Tom Waits.<\/p>\n

\"page <\/a>
page from Revolver Two\/Popgun 4 <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"page <\/a>
page from Revolver Two\/Popgun 4 <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"page <\/a>
page from Dream Life <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"page <\/a>
page from Dream Life <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

And likewise the way I draw my speech balloons, is meant to evoke\u00a0the spoken word more than the read. So while it’s possible for computer lettering to appear more organic, I find this approach much more subtle and nuanced in effect.<\/p>\n