I'd rather gnaw off my arm than draw another background...

[Tentoumushi]

So yes, I hate hate HATE doing backgrounds, like a whole lot. Despite this I know i really should have them in my comics becuase, well, the viewer needs some perspective and environment is important.

For those of you who either love or hate to do backgrounds, what are your cheats, tips, and tricks to making very quick but very nice looking backgrounds?

I myself am a huge fan of minimalistic backgrounds. I ONLY put what's necessary and I'm a fan of organic shapes. Cityscapes usually get lots of lines and hatching lines as well.

[Td501]

The greater the detail in the drawing, the harder it is to finish up and get out on time. As such I’m not a big fan of backgrounds, either, though I do realize their importance. Good backgrounds can really bring a scene to life, and the perspective they can provide can really help the reader to stay with the flow of the story. But because of the time constraint, I have to pick and chose what is included in the backgrounds.

So I consider each frame and try to determine what kind of information the reader needs to keep from being derailed from the story. Might be able to do a few frames with minimal background before drawing a detailed ‘reminder’ frame to ensure the reader is keeping the setting and object relationships in mind. If it’s been awhile since a decent background’s been shown, it’s probably time. Likewise if a part of the scene is to be interacted with later, may want to ‘foreshadow’ the event now by including that aspect of the scene in the present picture. Like if a character is walking through the woods and is about to enter a cabin, it’s probably a good idea to show the character approaching the cabin in the distance before you show him opening the door.

An up-close background means you only have to draw a small part of it. A distant background, on the other hand, requires less detail. Manipulating the frame focus can invoke these tricks, provide the necessary detail is still conveyed.

All in all, I try to simplify my backgrounds as much as I feel I can get away with. Though shaking things up with a ‘Wow, that’s a lot of detail!’ frame every once in awhile is probably a good idea. I’m definitely still learning how best to handle backgrounds, too.

[Dranxis]

I'm probably unusual in that I love drawing backgrounds. =) I do believe they're important, but only in so far as how important the environment is to the story. For example, if you've got a webcomic about high-school, some very basic backgrounds of lockers and desks can probably get you by, since the comic is focused on the relationships between the characters. But say you've got this fantasy adventure, then you'd need detailed scenery and landscapes to create a compelling world. Backgrounds don't necessarily need to be detailed to look good, but it certainly helps!

Personally, I have no problem spending hours on the same background, so it's not a big issue for me. But for those who want to draw backgrounds in less time, then photo references, drawing from life and a good foundation in perspective can really help. Just like with drawing faces and figures, drawing backgrounds will become easier and faster as you practice.

If you have trouble with perspective, the book "Perspective! For Comic Book Artists" is super-helpful.

[[geoduck]]

This only (easily) works for CG-generated strips, but I sometimes draw just one large background pic, then show bits and pieces of it in each panel as the characters move around in front of it. (Elf Only Inn used to do this as well..)

[Jessi_B]

My backgrounds depend on what I need for that scene; it also depends on the way the comic looks. Sometimes, I'll sketch a room and refine the linework; sometimes, I'll do the whole background on the PC; and sometimes, I'll incorporate bits and pieces of stock images or textures.

Be careful of the photograph method - it's more than just putting in a photograph and applying a Photoshop filter. If it doesn't look like it fits in there, then the picture flops. There have been plenty of good comics that just ruined themselves by making it obvious that they were using photographs (especially when it's painfully obvious that it took a five-second Google search to find an image that they shouldn't be using, since it's copyrighted...). It takes a good deal of manipulation to get the picture where it needs to be in order to fit with everything else.

Maybe I'm just picky, but a background should either establish the setting and/or fit aesthetically in the rest of the comic. There are plenty of times when all I've needed are blocks of color or a few props for the background.

[Tentoumushi]

I work with mostly high contrast black and white. they really presents some dynamic effects but it also poses a problem with backgrounds in that they can sometimes be competing with things in the foreground. I love this style becuase it DOES give me an excuse to keep things simple in the background. I only ever provide the viewer with enough information to give a sense of location, and nothing more. Heavy contour lines help keep things separate though.

[KWill]

I suppose I'm a bit cheap when it comes to backgrounds, since my comic doesn't really use perspective and takes place in the same locations. I end up stuffing a lot of time in some backgrounds, knowing that I'll be using them over and over again.

[Warofwinds]

I love making backgrounds! They're my favorite part, in writing AND in drawing. Nothing sets a scene like great scenery I admit though, they are quite time consuming. I like to spend a page or two on very detailed scenery, and then bring in simpler panels, oftentimes reusing backgrounds (I make them big, so I can use different parts at different times), sometimes using gaussian blur on those reused backgrounds, or create very simple bg's per panel like hallways/doors if the characters are inside. I once did an entire chapter reusing the same background scene over and over. But the characters never moved from the same place, sooo...that's my rationalization.

The one thing that I hate are gradient backgrounds. I try never to use those.

[Guyford]

My like/dislike of backgrounds is proportionate to the amount of time I have left to get an update done.

Normally, I like to draw that stuff. If I didn't have any time constraints on updates, I'd add as much detail as I could. But since I try to get stuff out once a week, I usually aim for one establishing shot panel where you can get your bearings, and then something a little more sparse in the other panels to save time.

[Lance]

In some ways I don't even get the concept of defining a drawing's environment as the "background". It's an essential part of the art, and shouldn't be merely a chore or afterthought. Time consuming, yes, but essential to mood, aesthetics, and storytelling. And oftentimes I find it the most fun part of making the image.

[Blackhole]

In some ways I don't even get the concept of defining a drawing's environment as the "background". It's an essential part of the art, and shouldn't be merely a chore or afterthought. Time consuming, yes, but essential to mood, aesthetics, and storytelling. And oftentimes I find it the most fun part of making the image.

Very often, you don't see characters feet touching the ground. Mostly you see from the knee or waist up. In these common situations the environment seems to be nothing more than a backdrop. It's also very common for the "meat" of a comic to revolve around character interaction and dialogue to a point where the setting is almost irrelevant. The characters often fill up most of the panels, and word balloons and text boxes take even more space, leaving little room for backgrounds except for a few bricks, something that looks kind of like a tree, maybe a window, or a blank wall with a picture hanging from it.

[Deca]

The only joy that I can get from drawing a background is reminding myself that if I do more backgrounds I will get better at it.

[RobertBr]

This only (easily) works for CG-generated strips, but I sometimes draw just one large background pic, then show bits and pieces of it in each panel as the characters move around in front of it. (Elf Only Inn used to do this as well..)

I've done that with hand drawn stuff, and Inverloch certainly used to do it using painted backgrounds (I think there is a tutorial on Sarah Ellerton's site).

[Largopredator]

I used to put fully rendered backgrounds in every frame, but I've stopped doing that, because it took a little too long, and it kind of distracts from the characters, makes the panels all cluttered (unless you make the outlines(if any) a lighter color than black).

Now I try to stylize them, using as few lines as possible. Mostly I just use a solid color that reflects the mood/setting of the scene as backdrop. And things like windows you can simplify down to white squares for instance. I like how Penny Arcade handles that sort of stuff.

[Raye Gunn]

I come from an animation background, so I've been doing some stock backgrounds of common locations (which could be modified if necesary) and re-using them.

[BeefotronX]

One thing I started doing that I thought would save me time drawing backgrounds was to model the location in a 3D program.
Once you have that, you can just pick a camera angle, perhaps adjust the direction of the light, and render.

The only problem is that it only starts becoming a time saver after about 6 to 10 strips using the same location.
And typically, the first panel in a new location should be a wide establishing shot, meaning you have to have the whole thing done to at least a certain level of detail from the start. Indoor scenes are more forgiving on this point, since you can shut off a room until it's done.

Potential problems with this technique:
1. You have to start working on future locations as soon as your current ones are finished off. If you are trying to maintain regular updates, you can 'stall' for a new location by throwing in any kind of scene that takes place in an already finished location.
2. It makes for a more complicated workflow.

[Darkflying]

It's interesting that I only like to draw certain aspects of the background. For example, I'll enjoy drawing a line of trees getting further away but I won't like drawing the trees themselves. I like grass though. I think I will end up having to construct a location map since a fair bit of time will be spent in the middle of the ocean on a ship, it really shouldn't change too much apart from the weather. Adjusting the way things move in the background because of the wind is a bit frustrating admittedly...

What may be a bit daunting is drawing a bustling city. That, I will not look forward to.

[Datachasers]

One thing I started doing that I thought would save me time drawing backgrounds was to model the location in a 3D program.
Once you have that, you can just pick a camera angle, perhaps adjust the direction of the light, and render.

The only problem is that it only starts becoming a time saver after about 6 to 10 strips using the same location.
And typically, the first panel in a new location should be a wide establishing shot, meaning you have to have the whole thing done to at least a certain level of detail from the start. Indoor scenes are more forgiving on this point, since you can shut off a room until it's done.

Potential problems with this technique:
1. You have to start working on future locations as soon as your current ones are finished off. If you are trying to maintain regular updates, you can 'stall' for a new location by throwing in any kind of scene that takes place in an already finished location.
2. It makes for a more complicated workflow.

ugh - tell me about it - in my strip the "throne room" took over 4 days to build - and the poor computer was chugging with the figures and textures - ( i use High rez ) i couldnt get away with shutting off the room but i did have to break the sceae into 3 parts with diffrent charcters and use camera angles to make it "seem" like they were all there - and Not shoot the "empty" areas where people should have been...

[KWill]

One thing I started doing that I thought would save me time drawing backgrounds was to model the location in a 3D program.
Once you have that, you can just pick a camera angle, perhaps adjust the direction of the light, and render.

The only problem is that it only starts becoming a time saver after about 6 to 10 strips using the same location.
And typically, the first panel in a new location should be a wide establishing shot, meaning you have to have the whole thing done to at least a certain level of detail from the start. Indoor scenes are more forgiving on this point, since you can shut off a room until it's done.

Ah, yes! For one of my shelved projects I modeled rooms that I would be using often. And I regret not being able to for lack of a computer of my own. It's especially useful for rooms, since the outdoors are less likely to show that something is shorter in one panel than in another. I hate being inconsistent, and having a 3D copy of a room sitting around was always useful.

[Ninjashira]

I may not enjoy drawing backgrounds very much, but I can't bring myself to ruin a perfectly good picture by slapping a shoddy background behind it. In most cases, I like my artwork too much to degrade it like that, you know? I can never just throw a photoshop gradient in the background and call it finished. Like half the artists I know, I'm not a huge fan of drawing the detailed backgrounds, but I know that once it's done, I'll appreciate the picture that much more, and it always, always, always looks better to have an in-depth background in artwork, I think.