19/03/2012 [DMFA #1293] - But what better way to die?!

[Zidane]

Arf? :-)
Hey. I'm a shy new face and I hope it's not bad form for me to be posting this thread, but I'm excited to do it 'cause frankly, YAY for seeing Regina again after so long!
Also, I'm really digging the almost "bonus feature" aspect of getting to sneak-peek at partially finished strips if one is up late/at lunch in a different time zone/serially checking for updates around the projected time. Amber is a fantastic colourist, but it's amazing to get a look at how intricate the lineart is when it's at the forefront of the comic's detail. I mean, look at them guns on Aliph... wow. (Chika wow-wow.)
Good thing he chose such a low-profile beach to be all low-profile up in, because I bet Large Quantities Of Muscle-Enamoured Young Ladies (And Interested Gentlemen) could definitely be on that gargantuan list of things that kill. ;B

I'd kill for Kria's outfit. Fordamnsure. <3



Edit: Forgot to title thread. I so smooth. ;B

[Ignuus66]

I also love the partially colored comics thing.
On a side note, I think that even when partially colored, DMFA is one of the best looking comics I have seen.

[Alondro]

*Charline de Lyon shows up*  HEY!!  This is MY private beach!  *kills DP!*

Apparently, not having fun can also be deadly!

[Ignuus66]

*Charline de Lyon shows up*  HEY!!  This is MY private beach!  *kills DP!*

Apparently, not having fun can also be deadly!

To be frank DP is a very powerful pure blood demon, and could probably wipe the floor with a 'Cubi (non tri-wing of course).
I take things too seriously

[Arcblade]

To be frank DP is a very powerful pure blood demon, and could probably wipe the floor with a 'Cubi (non tri-wing of course).
I take things too seriously

Very powerful, yes, but he's been killed by a Being (Dan, before cubification) at least twice.  That's bound to make him cautious, and not unfairly so, I think. 

Personally, I don't know why Regina's whining.  I'd much rather a deserted beach.  No shrieking children or excess noise.  And at least half the sand in the area is my personal toy.  Massive sandcastle, ahoy!    

[Naldru]

The complaint about Photoshop struck close to home because I just found out the version of Photoshop on my computer didn't survive the last operating system upgrade.  Of course, I had decided to upgrade soon anyway since I was running Photoshop Elements 4  (The current version is 10.), and I had already known that it wouldn't survive the next upgrade.

[joshofspam]

Funny thing is, it makes it sound like DP might have been killed more times then Dan was responsible for.

Though that might not be so surprising considering he has to keep a watchful eye out for one entire race.

[justacritic]

Apparently it DP has died around 7 times. From the Clan leader letters, resurrection magic degrades the soul with every revival and around 7 times (need to confirm) the soul is noticeably deteriorated causing alterations to personality as Kria has noticed DP is not the same as he was before. 

[Zidane]

I also love the partially colored comics thing.
On a side note, I think that even when partially colored, DMFA is one of the best looking comics I have seen.

Wisdom. Even in the days of DMFA's "normal state" being black-and-white with the occasional special coloured strip, I was still impressed. When I was a younger thingy and starting highschool, it became apparent that art was not considered an interest with a reputable career path and "was for degenerates" (womp womp womp!), so since nobody would teach me to draw I learned from artists like Amber. Also, mostly from Amber in the first place. ;P And that she's still doing this comic all these years later is something all kinds of badass to behold.
Okay, gushing over.


I bet that if one lived as long as DP has, death would probably become so pedestrian and (horribly ironically) simply become a part of life. I have to wonder if maybe DP has died more times than even he remembers, especially considering Kria's comments about him being less of himself each time he's revived. One day revival-shock has to bear some similarities to dementia, right?
:wonders if dementia is a thing on Furrae.

[Amber Williams]

*rolls about*

I just wanted to thank everyone for putting up with my slow-derp self.  I have been kind of worried about posting partial coloureds, and it isn't something I intend to make a trend. But I figured people would rather have an update on the day of update rather than fully finished but late.  That folks actually find the base colours interesting to compare up to the finished was not something I expected...I honestly was expecting a lot more irate messages. 

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

[Plotting]

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

I now have this mental image of Warp-Aci sitting at a computer, seeing the base colour image, pressing F5, and being totally amused by seeing the full colour version of the image!  

Not that I am saying that everyone is as easily amused as a Warp-Aci...

[MT Hazard]

I find in kind of funny than Dan is protected from retaliation by Kria or Aliph by the demon 'might makes right' belief, the fact he was able to kill him means that he deserved to be killed in their eyes, so no revenge plans.

[Daymond42]

*rolls about*

I just wanted to thank everyone for putting up with my slow-derp self.  I have been kind of worried about posting partial coloureds, and it isn't something I intend to make a trend. But I figured people would rather have an update on the day of update rather than fully finished but late.  That folks actually find the base colours interesting to compare up to the finished was not something I expected...I honestly was expecting a lot more irate messages. 

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

Shoot, Amber... I think I could speak for a few handfuls of us when I say that you could probably post a pencils-only version of a comic as a WIP, and we'd be happy with it and anxious to see how it develops..

But... I'd imagine that a penciled comic certainly doesn't even have lettering in at that point, so your likelihood of doing so would be low.

[Anri]

Wait a tick there, now that it's fully done... is Regina starting to regenerate her bone wing?

[Tapewolf]

Wait a tick there, now that it's fully done... is Regina starting to regenerate her bone wing?

Looks like it.  I heard Creatures tend to regenerate automatically so she might not have noticed or something.

[Plotting]

I doubt that the wing regeneration will go unnoticed for long. After all she deliberately keeps her left wing as bone beacuse she thinks it looks cool

Ah the joys of obscure biographic details that everyone soon forgets about

[Zidane]

*rolls about*

I just wanted to thank everyone for putting up with my slow-derp self.  I have been kind of worried about posting partial coloureds, and it isn't something I intend to make a trend. But I figured people would rather have an update on the day of update rather than fully finished but late.  That folks actually find the base colours interesting to compare up to the finished was not something I expected...I honestly was expecting a lot more irate messages. 

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

Oh, you. You know, I think you can cut yourself a minor break from the self-deprecation (gods, it's so hard, I know... I should take my own advice) in this case, at least, since I think you have a mature enough fanbase that while the bare-bones state of some premature updates may seem pedestrian-as-hell to you, your readers are instead jumping at the chance to see your art from a perspective that is more close to yours own as you're creating it. I'm willing to bet I speak for more than just myself when I say that I get really excited to see unfinished, "behind-the-scenes" or "concept" work by my favourite artists, so if anything the simplicity of the flat comics kind of piques my own personal fangirl-squeals. ;D And, again, I wouldn't be surprised if others agree.
tl;dr It's all good dude, you know we love it. Don't expect complaints from the people who are being spoiled rotten with the chance to read the story wide-eyed and un-jaded by the knowledge of who dies. ;P
By the way, NICE touch on the blurred grass in the foreground. I'm really digging the extra effort in the environments recently! I know it feels like it doesn't pay off because people might not notice it, but trust me it does, and good job.

I doubt that the wing regeneration will go unnoticed for long. After all she deliberately keeps her left wing as bone beacuse she thinks it looks cool

Ah the joys of obscure biographic details that everyone soon forgets about

You get so many fistbumps for this post. ;D Perceptive as hell and I like it. Also it was your 13th post, which is just a number and this is just the internet, but I'm allowed to be amused.

[Nyil]

*rolls about*

I just wanted to thank everyone for putting up with my slow-derp self.  I have been kind of worried about posting partial coloureds, and it isn't something I intend to make a trend. But I figured people would rather have an update on the day of update rather than fully finished but late.  That folks actually find the base colours interesting to compare up to the finished was not something I expected...I honestly was expecting a lot more irate messages. 

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

I don't know if it's out of place for me to suggest this, but I wonder if there could be a place where Amber posted the flats for the comics? Everyone seems so taken with them, and I can't think of a reason to blame them - sometimes figures get lost amidst the speech bubbles and foreground details. Not only that, but I think many of the artists in here would love to have a better chance to check out your process - hell, it might even interest the non-artists. The comparisons are always interesting to look at. And there would be a place to post the flats if an update's deadline is -juuuuuust- out of reach.

I don't know, I think it would be pretty neat.

[Tapewolf]

I'm not sure she keeps the flat version...

[Ignuus66]

I'm not sure she keeps the flat version...

Most artist keep sketches and rough drafts (as far as I know atleast)

[Anri]

I doubt that the wing regeneration will go unnoticed for long. After all she deliberately keeps her left wing as bone beacuse she thinks it looks cool

Ah the joys of obscure biographic details that everyone soon forgets about

Nope, didn't forget. That's why I even brought it up. Could she be getting over it being cool? Could she just be not noticing yet? I doubt she's maturing yet so we'll tentatively rule that one out! Maybe she wants to be able to fly.

[Tapewolf]

Nope, didn't forget. That's why I even brought it up. Could she be getting over it being cool? Could she just be not noticing yet? I doubt she's maturing yet so we'll tentatively rule that one out! Maybe she wants to be able to fly.

Or DP nagged her into it.

[Nyil]

I'm not sure she keeps the flat version...

Most artist keep sketches and rough drafts (as far as I know atleast)

Well, I meant as a future type thing, not something that needs to be done retroactively! With an archive this huge, that would be really painful, I could imagine!

I'm not sure what kind of process she uses - every artist has a different method - but many artists keep shadows and such on a separate layer. If she has the PSD file, she probably has the flats. Although, it's understandable if she doesn't - I personally don't keep sketches and rough drafts, as they get mangled and destroyed during my coloring process, and I tend to shade on the same layer I do flats on. I just think it would be pretty neat, to be able to do an almost side by side comparison!

[Zidane]

I'm not sure she keeps the flat version...

Most artist keep sketches and rough drafts (as far as I know atleast)

Well, I meant as a future type thing, not something that needs to be done retroactively! With an archive this huge, that would be really painful, I could imagine!

I'm not sure what kind of process she uses - every artist has a different method - but many artists keep shadows and such on a separate layer. If she has the PSD file, she probably has the flats. Although, it's understandable if she doesn't - I personally don't keep sketches and rough drafts, as they get mangled and destroyed during my coloring process, and I tend to shade on the same layer I do flats on. I just think it would be pretty neat, to be able to do an almost side by side comparison!

Yeah, theoretically if her layers of shading each have their own respective layer above the base colour, reducing a finished comic to flat colours could be as simple as going through and toggling off the eyeball-icon besides a bunch of layers, especially if her method for colouring is "Let me make a darker red by using the same colour on a separate layer above the base colour, but changing the layer opacity to 20% and blending style to Linear Burn, then I'll do the same for the next sarkest shade of red, making it a 40% burn of the original".
Not to suggest that she undo any hard work, but this could mean that she could re-use old coimc images (I.E., the gorgeous full-body shot of Kria flying to work) and do screencaps of them on a transparent background and at various stages of completion, to possibly use as art tutorials. If an art tutorial were as simple as a few screencaps of Photoshop menus and gestures overlayed above images that she's already completed, then art tutorials could be cranked out as yet another kind of filler comic that imparts useful and interesting knowledge on readers. And Amber's filler tends to be good for that already.

[Tapewolf]

I have actually seen some of them, and typically the colours are baked into to a single layer.  Maybe they were coloured like this in the first place, I haven't asked.

Usually I've seen there's a copy of the original lines as well (decimated to B&W) and occasionally some of the eyes in the colour layer are transparent to the line-art.  Video effects like Mink or Jakob waving their hands are done as extra layers on top (e.g. 1259).

I'm not sure how the captioning is done, those aren't in the files (which is the main reason I was after them - for one, it will be a godsend for the Radio Project video thing when I finally get my behind in gear and finish it off).

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

All in all, I'm glad folks have been finding the base colours amusing and have been enjoying click F5 to see the full versions take the place of the previous images.

*click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click*....