Grayscale To Color Art Process ... and why I don't use it

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  • Опубликовано: 28 сен 2024
  • Full Workshops Available! bit.ly/2wCVX2U
    Learn about the grayscale to color digital painting process and important art fundamentals along the way! Technique talk and painting fundamentals.
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    Website: www.marcobucci.com

Комментарии • 1 тыс.

  • @marcobucci
    @marcobucci  5 лет назад +1883

    I hate to admit this, but that 'bat' pun at 15:40 was not intentional. But talk about your happy accidents!

    • @kushkungvivo744
      @kushkungvivo744 5 лет назад +34

      Marco Bucci you're a genius

    • @pitrek121g
      @pitrek121g 5 лет назад +62

      My happy accident was finding your channel! So helpful, cheers!

    • @JPR4Y
      @JPR4Y 5 лет назад +9

      Marco Bucci Sooo Beaurifuuulll The only man who never makes a mistake is the man who never does anything.

    • @MusicalRaichu
      @MusicalRaichu 5 лет назад +9

      don't worry, i didn't even bat an eylid.
      while i agree that it's best to consider colour from the outset, you did remind me that values play a significant role which i kind of forgot--i should watch your earlier videos again.
      hey i never knew about gradient map. i wouldn't use it to colour an image, but it might come in handy to achieve interesting effects.

    • @thatlolou6967
      @thatlolou6967 5 лет назад +7

      lol xDDD I rly love your way of talking tho, it motivates a lot, somehow!! ^^ and your lessons are soooooo helpful, tysm~!! x3

  • @i5anna1000
    @i5anna1000 5 лет назад +2986

    I have another suggestion: While working in Photoshop, go to: Window--> Arrange --> Another window for (your image). It creates an identical image beside it, in another tab. You can turn that image into grayscale by going to: View --> Proof Setup --> working gray. This way, you're painting in colours while watching your values. It's the best way I've found.

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +505

      Just tried this. Works great! Thanks for the tip.

    • @Szczurzyslawa
      @Szczurzyslawa 5 лет назад +13

      OOOOH I was searching forever how to do that in PS, thank you! (I've seen it before but totally forgot)

    • @soulcatproductions
      @soulcatproductions 5 лет назад +55

      Oooh yes! And for people on the iPad (like procreate), go to settings -> shortcuts, and turn on triple click home button for instant greyscale switch!

    • @alexiz0013
      @alexiz0013 5 лет назад +2

      That's an awesome tip!

    • @EchoOfTheVoid
      @EchoOfTheVoid 5 лет назад +74

      and if your software doesn't have a function like this, you can add a black fill layer on top, and switch it to color. then just flick it on and off to check values from time to time. its what i do in krita :)

  • @Blacksunshine2802
    @Blacksunshine2802 4 года назад +105

    I'm amazed! This guy is not your average "how to draw" youtuber. We got some clean and analytic explanation useful for even professionals. Not to mention the incredible illustrations and real time examples making it so easily understandable. I wish you were my mentor. Hats off!

  • @a.krishna3924
    @a.krishna3924 5 лет назад +2791

    I actually...find gray scale - color more difficult, I don't get how ppl do it, because the color afterwards never turn out how I want it

    • @SFingaz_Fo20
      @SFingaz_Fo20 5 лет назад +260

      the most important thing to have is the correct greyscale values when using blendmodes. and use multiply not soft light overlay etc unless you know what ur doing. simply turning down saturation doesnt give you the true values. instead make a black n white adjustment layer and set everything to 100% to get the correct values. painting in this way give the exaact same result as if you where to glaze and oil painting

    • @zorro727
      @zorro727 5 лет назад +17

      Cause u are noob

    • @a.krishna3924
      @a.krishna3924 5 лет назад +61

      StickyFingazFO20 I mean I can make a solid painting if I start grey scale but I feel like it won't be as good if I start with color right away. I do photography, if I'm planning to take BnW pics, I wouldn't take pics with color settings and then turning it BnW digitally later, because I won't aesthetically see it in bnw..if that makes sense.

    • @a.krishna3924
      @a.krishna3924 5 лет назад +8

      NPC Pika96 i know

    • @izzyr9590
      @izzyr9590 5 лет назад +67

      I think its mainly for people that thinks about gray scale and values first before colours. Some people find it really hard to decide what colour they want to use. Its easier to switch colours around this way. For example, if im designing a character with complex clothing and I dont know if he or she should wear black or red sweater, I would do gray scale first. and then try on these colours.

  • @autumn3432
    @autumn3432 2 года назад +31

    a lot of people say grayscale to color is very easy to beginner, but I think, its work only for artist that already has a very good understanding about color

  • @Novanim
    @Novanim 5 лет назад +108

    Marco Bucci just single-handedly saved thousands of dollars worth of art classes to most art students in the worlds with this amazing video.

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +19

      haha, thanks for watching! This video is presented with a hefty bias (even attached that in the video's title) so do be sure to further explore the grayscale technique, both on your own and from artists who favour it, so you may ultimately come to your own decision(s)!
      All the best with your work,

    • @jimshoos5272
      @jimshoos5272 Год назад

      😂❓

  • @thiagoolive28
    @thiagoolive28 5 лет назад +366

    it's amazing how you get straight to the point of the topics that we students want to know (but nobody explained) ... just THANK YOU very much!!! (your book is unbelievable)

  • @starfart69
    @starfart69 4 года назад +82

    "I kinda feel like I'm painting on glass or something"
    Artists who paint on glass: I will pretend I didn't see this

  • @leileaves4947
    @leileaves4947 3 года назад +53

    I watched this years ago and as a result, I stopped trying to push grayscale to color method. Now we're here and found that it's the best method for me! I agree with the reasons why grayscale to color doesn't feel right like about controlling the edges. So what I did was I just added my own twist in the technique. Instead of rendering the drawing in grayscale, I apply the color layer first (I use soft light instead color layer mode), then I make a new layer where I render the values + colors. That way I have more control! I do have a video of my digital art process so if you're interested you can check it out. You just really need to find a way to make things work sometimes. I struggle a lot with colors that's why I chose to give this method another try!

  • @corylcreates
    @corylcreates 5 лет назад +89

    "The way your process feels to you has a significant outcome."
    I think this sums up why some people love this technique and others don't.
    I struggle with value and identifying value (maybe I'm just a bad artist), so taking the time to focus on shadows and light helps me to improve my sense of form in a painting.
    It also helps me to not use flat colours in a cel-shading style. I get the option to practice blending edges, paying attention to light and shadow, and focusing on form and shape. When I move to the colour, I don't use Overlay, Multiply, or Color; I use Light layers (soft light, hard light, etc.) and those act different as well. I get the chance to see how the colour works in the value and adjust based on my eye. My process doesn't take a saturated colour, smear it over the values, and then call it done.
    I have a very different way of painting than you do. Your art uses lots of textured brushes to add accents, and that's not how I paint. I don't need to add colour to a halftone brush or a broken glass brush, because that's not part of my process. I use fewer than three brushes in my art.
    Your technique, however, relies on those splashes of coloured texture for the "expression" in your image. The techniques you demonstrated to do colour are glazing, and that's not everyone's process either.
    I'm paused right now at 12:18 just because what you said really made me want to say all this. :P
    It's very interesting to see your process and how different it is to mine.

    • @blankflank3488
      @blankflank3488 4 года назад +14

      I pretty much completely agree with you. I only JUST started with digital art, so I'm a noob, but I would like to at least try grayscale to color. I totally understand what he's saying about it being extra work, but I don't think it's too bad if you use a different style with fewer colors, and a different approach to adding the color. I just watched a Draw with Jazza video where his grayscale-to-color image looked great and seemed really fast, becuz it was relatively simple and stylized. Bucci's style seems to be replicating that of real life paint, while I like a more... I dunno, artificial feel to my work? Like a cartoon with rather simplistic colors and values, but with realistic proportions and stuff. However I'd like to branch out to make not a "real" painting, but practice more with realistic shading instead of, as you said, cell-shading style, which I think will also help me branch out to not needing to use (often bold) lineart when I feel like giving that a try.

  • @hazelhen5401
    @hazelhen5401 5 лет назад +26

    colour is by far the most daunting aspect of a picture for me. Maybe its because I'm colourblind.
    I often run into a wall where my colours don't look quite right, even to me, when I start greyscale - but I can actually finish an image without stressing so much haha

  • @anima94
    @anima94 5 лет назад +20

    Another thing you didn't mention (I think) is drawing straight with color but having a pure black layer on top that is set to saturation(this turns it into grayscale without changing the values like desaturating normally does). Then you can enable this layer from time to time to see your values and disable again to continue painting in color.

  • @titus9303
    @titus9303 3 года назад +17

    I feel like the greyscale method works great for drawing focused artists for more comicbook type work, and can really help them get exposure to the color world if they are lacking. The non greyscale methods would obviously be more appealing for those painter focused artists and of course the work style that goes with it. There are all kind of hybrids and thats great. Just do what fits you. its just amazing to have to many options and styles, just keep creating 👍

  • @SleepyMatt-zzz
    @SleepyMatt-zzz 5 лет назад +11

    I wish I had teachers like you in university. Your audio book gave me a lot to think about. Especially the "art is not academia" line.

  • @shawn.m.schmidt
    @shawn.m.schmidt 5 лет назад +15

    Both approaches are correct to the purpose of a particular piece. The benefit of the grisaille technique, when done traditionally, is it can let an inner light created in the monochromatic layer come through the glazing that just isn't quite possible when working with opaque color. That being said I haven't been able to work out the same effect when working with digital paints. The commentary is a valid perspective. But, so is working in value first, in the right setting.

  • @RalvinTY
    @RalvinTY 4 года назад +53

    I'm at the beginner stage. That is why I am using values for now. Since back when I was a total noob. I just pringled colors into my art like a maniac. So, I just wanted to understand values much more. So, I chose to work with values.

    • @ratulebah3497
      @ratulebah3497 3 года назад +6

      Me too I'm a beginner when I color my painting it looks ugly cause I don't understand color theory so that's why I learn about values first then the color theory

  • @a-carvalho8751
    @a-carvalho8751 5 лет назад +2

    Dude, I gotta say you have some of the most eloquent explanations I've ever heard about actually almost anything, not just related to art. I'm in love with your channel content. Keep it up!

  • @SEGAClownboss
    @SEGAClownboss 3 года назад +5

    I never used the grayscale method and I had such a hard time with it cos it seemed like every concept artist used it. I always just splotched colour right from the beginning. These are the very flaws you brought up here, and you also gave me some other useful tips. Much obliged, Marco.

  • @sarahkturner8862
    @sarahkturner8862 5 лет назад +11

    You can always make even the smallest things about painting really interesting to learn about! Starting off immediately with color definitely gives more expression and energy to a piece, and I like the multiple options you gave in turning grayscale into color. I still personally prefer to start off with a grayscale sketch in my paintings, but I know I’ll start to think of how to preserve shapes and edges with the opaque color layers from now on!

  • @Lambda12357
    @Lambda12357 5 лет назад +303

    "Right off the bat" while painting Batman, I hope the pun was intended!

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +99

      It ... was not.

    • @dizeart
      @dizeart 5 лет назад +20

      @@marcobucci this is so disappointing

  • @chrantheman
    @chrantheman 5 лет назад +6

    You pronounce everything very clearly, have a nice tone of voice and explain everything so even a very novice painter like me understood your process, thank you very much for this video Marco.

  • @milksweet6038
    @milksweet6038 5 лет назад +2

    You have a wonderful radio voice! Thanks for the video I’m a gouache & watercolor painter who doesn’t really understand how to paint digitally but have been trying to wrap my head around what ppl are doing when I see a painting start in greyscale & end in color & not understanding why it looks off to me personally. Love the way you paint!

  • @CosmicLeche
    @CosmicLeche 3 года назад +3

    In the past few years, I've started painting digitally a lot more, and not too long ago, an art teacher of mine held a intense, five day traditional painting workshop thats focal point was working with colours. It was like acrylic bootcamp. I learned a lot during the whole thing, and I basically modelled my digital painting technique after it. Then, during a feedback session, I had that same teacher tell me I should use the greyscale to colour technique. Lots of mixed messages in that school.

  • @rainbowfox1934
    @rainbowfox1934 5 лет назад +3

    I understand what you are saying. I have focused almost entirely on color. It is like learning a language. Focusing on color language gives you fluency. Then, learn to do a griselle with color in mind from the beginning. Complete.

  • @eiwaMovies
    @eiwaMovies 5 лет назад +95

    Thank you for this very good video. Still I think that you missed one major point: You ARE already a professional. You know how values, shapes, light and so on work. The problem is, that everybody starts out with colors and gets into this "Microsoft Paint" style with the colors, because they get easily confused and they often spend many years to figure out what is wrong in their art. Seperating colors from the other aspects is something I highly recommend everyone who starts out with art. You should focus on the fundamentals first before trying to get to expression. I totally agree with you on that point, throwing in the colors more quickly is mostly more expressive but nothing we should start with if we really want to improve. It helps me a lot, to leave out the colors first and I learned a lot about, why my colors did not work in the painting. Greyscale to color IS a very hard thing to do, because we often don't understand the connection between colors and values as you have shown in this video. But by using this technique we will learn from it and understand how this all works together until, if we prefere it that way, start painting directly in color.
    Greyscale is also a way to figure out compositions much easier, btw :)
    Also you should consider, that you have a very painterly style which is really not fitting for the greyscale technique. I think it depends also much on what you want to paint and what style you are doing :)
    Have a nice day and looking forward to your next video!

  • @bldaugh
    @bldaugh 5 лет назад +8

    I like grayscale to color pieces, but only if they're used to convey a certain atmosphere in a painting. For instance, it works really well to me if the artist is trying to convey a sad, detached/eerie emotion in a piece or is trying to portray early morning/evening light. However, I don't like it when it is used in pieces that are attempting happier, livelier imagery because the grayscale creates too many desaturated tones that express the opposite of what is intended by the artist, which confuses the viewer. I think grayscale to color is fine as long as it is used appropriately and can have some really cool effects.
    This was a really great and informative video. You're really good at explaining art processes in a simple but effective way, which is something that I think most art channels lack. I tend to get lost when people try to explain concepts like this. However, I easily understood your message here. : - )

  • @KaidaYukiFan
    @KaidaYukiFan 4 года назад +3

    Thank you so much, this video literally instantly changed my life. I’ve painted more pieces I’m happy with in the 24 hours after watching this + your other videos on color than I have in the past three years, it’s like you flipped on the switch in my brain enabling me to paint with color. So glad I decided to click on this

  • @jujucatjuca
    @jujucatjuca 5 лет назад +9

    Oh wow, I never really liked the grayscale to color technique. Your points on how it makes it harder to incorporate color later helped me figure out why.

  • @xuanxh
    @xuanxh 5 лет назад +6

    Even though I find it rather hard and I still struggle, I try to go directly with colors as well. If I start with greyscale, I tend to get "stuck" when I start applying the colors, it just looks dull and washed out.
    When starting the colors, I add a black layer on color mode to check my values from time to time. It's not easy, but at least I look at the pros: the more I work that way, the more I get used to starting directly with colors :)

  • @thewicca6896
    @thewicca6896 5 лет назад +6

    Gosh that painting is beautiful. I wish I had the patience to work on something that massive.

  • @erym7483
    @erym7483 5 лет назад +9

    The "gateway" version reminds me lf what my traditional painting teacher had us do. We never went into a full grayscale painting but maybe 30% and painted ontop. Enough to get the main shapes, because doing a full grayscale and then color feels like painting it twice.
    Coloring ontop of grayscale digitally is tricky. You have to be a wiz at layer modes and picking colors. Most have desatutated tone and feeling because they go with the values. I think it works depending on the piece, but in general is pretty limiting due to how bright and saturated the colors can possibly look.
    So for me it's easier to learn grayscale > gateway method > full color

  • @addiowl8538
    @addiowl8538 3 года назад +8

    I tend to overlook my painting as a whole when I use color(and I can never do it correctly) so I guess doing value first makes is easier for me

  • @emil-9432
    @emil-9432 4 года назад +1

    I wouldn’t think of painting grayscale to convert it to color, just because it’s simpler for me to do it with color from the start. But I watched this video anyway, and I learned so much from it regardless! You are truly the best resource on painting, on the web, and off the web. So much pure knowledge - I grow as an artist after watching each of your videos. Thank you so much!

  • @syltmacka7355
    @syltmacka7355 5 лет назад +7

    That's exactly how i've felt whenever i do it! and i always thought i was just very terrible at comprehending value to color. It might be that some artists have a stronger desire for color expression which would make color first more important. honestly i think the method comes down to what the artist strives for most.

  • @ClashixTV
    @ClashixTV 4 года назад +2

    that ballroom painting is one of the best digital art pieces i've ever seen. the colours are just amazing. I love the windows and lights. and that dress holy crap. how on earth do you do this. :D ;(

  • @grenader6409
    @grenader6409 5 лет назад +46

    Old masters were using grayscale underpainting and their paintings aren't inexpressive. Just use it correctly and then paint over if you wish with color glaze layer or thick normal layer. Grayscale helps to achieve more realistic "Rembrandt" type of painting where you can show form and light interaction with its surface. For cartoon style paintings it just adds complexity.

    • @ButchCurry
      @ButchCurry 5 лет назад +26

      The old masters didn't have much choice. A lot of the oil paint they had access to weren't as opaque as the ones that came along later. White is usually the most opaque of all the colors, and the lead white they had wasn't nearly as opaque as the titanium white that came later. They didn't master grisaille + glazing because it was better, they did it because they didn't have a choice.

    • @Ryanin2D
      @Ryanin2D 5 лет назад +12

      Also, you have to consider that grisaille involves layer fat over thin, in which modulating your paint per layer is a technique in and of itself. Marco wasn't putting down grisaille, just expressing why he doesn't use it. With advancements in technology even not including digital painting, grisaille is now a niche that focuses on achieving mood rather than as the predominate tool at the time.
      Also, Rembrandt spent a shit load of time painting fat over lean on his painting, which is an arduous process that isn't a feasible workflow in most industry pipelines today due to the massive time restraints on projects

    • @kullenberg
      @kullenberg 5 лет назад +10

      Pretty sure the old masters didn't use photoshop.

    • @LAOK242
      @LAOK242 5 лет назад +8

      So they did an B&W underpainting and then went over it and painted normally on top? They didn't have access to "special layers" so they could've just skipped the underpainging and went straight for it. Their colours look expressive and natural because they were painted straight forward just as you would painting with colour to begin with.
      The problem with PS is that you end up trying to clean up its mess as the special layers colours look far from natural and you'd be just better off painting in colour to begin with.

    • @thashai.a
      @thashai.a 5 лет назад +3

      The old masters used earth tones for underpaintings and grisaile. They didnt strictly use black and white they always used red, brown, orcher and earth tones.

  • @leporidae-art
    @leporidae-art 5 лет назад +1

    i dont paint greyscale, tried it once and hated it from the start. BUT!!!! ALL THE HELPFUL BASIC COLOR THEORY AND PAINTING THINGS MADE ME SUBSCRIBE TO YOU AND IT WAS SO SO SO NICE THAT YOU MENTIONED THE PROFESSIONAL WORLD OF ART AT ALL IN THE VIDEO
    so yeah
    youre great
    thanks for this

  • @Hugop_arts
    @Hugop_arts 3 года назад +3

    Really interesting topic. While I wholeheartedly agree and believe in painting with colors, I think for beginners, grayscale painting is an important step for speedier learning.
    When you still don't have all the fundamentals down, when you have a finished artwork and decide to evaluate it to realize what you need to keep improving on, it might be a bit hard to distinguish if it's a value problem, a color problem or anything in between. Keeping it grayscale allows for less variants and for beginners to take one step at a time. Even though it's a lengthier process at face value (no pun intended) it helps to learn faster because pinpointing your mistakes is easier. The idea though, is to eventually graduate from that and start painting straight with colors.

  • @scribbles1440
    @scribbles1440 5 лет назад +1

    I just want to say thank you for including a transitional/introductory way to start painting directly with color. I'm still not 100% comfortable with color, but I'm really great with values. So I've been doing the initial process and playing to my strengths. But I'm glad you included a way for me to start experimenting with color.

  • @Sky-de7oy
    @Sky-de7oy 5 лет назад +4

    Exactly! It always felt weird to me to color like that, like it's lacking something and you said it.

  • @flipChoco2283
    @flipChoco2283 5 лет назад +2

    this was really helpful!! ive always heard that greyscale to colour was so much easier but after seeing this, id rather not change. using colour first is way more fun and less daunting.

  • @amylunden8246
    @amylunden8246 2 года назад

    This is such a superb video in so many ways. I’m r/g color blind and have been researching grayscale to color after getting back into working digitally. It’s so much easier for me to separate out the value stage without having to deal with color and then using a gradient map followed by direct painting over it with fresh brush strokes. But this video shows how with a little more confidence I might be able to move on and get comfortable working directly in color. Painting on paper or canvas, I can limit myself to three colors and use color theory to confidently mix what I need, but that is much harder to do digitally when you don’t see color well. So thank you so much for this extremely helpful take on the grayscale process!

  • @UmouMais
    @UmouMais 5 лет назад +220

    I totally agree with you Marco. Everytime I begin with color I feel that my art gets a better result. I think this is related to what you said about joy and fun while painting, because lets admit, painting in grayscale first is really boring. And another thing I was just wondering... I dont know any traditional painter who does grayscale technique, so why would we do that right? It is unnatural...

    • @RubyLime1
      @RubyLime1 5 лет назад +60

      I don't think that what traditional painters do is what you should be going off - digital art is a very different medium.

    • @buttbuttyawn3280
      @buttbuttyawn3280 5 лет назад +36

      @@RubyLime1 Shapes, Value, Edges and Colour (as well as brushwork and a decent amount of other choices) are just as important to consider in both digital and traditional painting. To say that you shouldn't learn from the process of of traditional artists because the medium is different is not something I can agree with at all. Sure, the nuances of your medium are different, but if you go back and watch any of Marco's process videos for traditional art (his watercolour boat painting, for example) he's still employing exactly the same decision making process as he does digitally in a lot of the earlier structure stages and the overall composition of a piece.

    • @Pegaite
      @Pegaite 5 лет назад +29

      Finally someone who likes to start with colors! My art teacher is always talking about grayscale and putting the colors afterwards, but it really takes away the fun with art...

    • @RubyLime1
      @RubyLime1 5 лет назад +38

      @@buttbuttyawn3280 Oh no don't take it the wrong way; I was referring to him saying "I dont know any traditional painter who does grayscale technique, so why would we do that right? It is unnatural...". This is kind of close-minded thinking if you approach digital painting.
      I very well know how important traditional painting is to digital painting and how they bridge between each other, but saying that because traditional painters don't do something that digital artists do is suddenly "unnatural" is what I had gripes with. I probably should have phrased my original comment differently :)

    • @buttbuttyawn3280
      @buttbuttyawn3280 5 лет назад +9

      @@RubyLime1 Ah, I see what you mean now! That makes perfect sense and totally agreed. Apologies, we'll meet halfway and say it was your phrasing and my lack of reading and misinterpretation too, haha.

  • @raf74hawk12
    @raf74hawk12 5 лет назад

    I really appreciate how you thoroughly explained why you don't like this process without making it some proclamation of judgment about how "if you do it this way it's wrong!"
    Great video!

  • @muskturtle8406
    @muskturtle8406 5 лет назад +8

    I find painting directly in color is easier, the hue and saturation also affect values, that means I only need to get the value at about 70-80% correct, the rest will be done by the colors once I get the colors right.

    • @tommie3700
      @tommie3700 2 года назад +3

      Learning greyscale to colour would be especially detrimental when you're painting skin. If you're so used to working with values _only_ you'll probably fall into the common mistake that shadows and highlights are just darker and brighter versions of the base skin tone, which is why skin ends up looking waxy, lifeless and flat. Skin is made up of at least 10 different shades, with different saturation and brightness. I think it's much easier to go from painting colour to painting values than the other way around.

  • @a13monkey
    @a13monkey 5 лет назад

    Always love your art tips Marco. They way you cut right to the point on the technical stuff, but then express your thoughts when making artistic decisions is exactly what I need to get my mind thinking creatively. I prefer painting with color first as well.

  • @DL-ty4cu
    @DL-ty4cu 4 года назад +2

    I completely agree with your assessment and feelings on this method. However, i am trying to do a preliminary value sketch before painting, because it helps me make a lot of composition and lighting choices. When I go to color, i start from 'scratch' again. But I have already though about the values, so the color choices come more naturally to mind.

  • @ClearAbyss
    @ClearAbyss 5 лет назад +1

    The one you did at the 15 minute mark with the gradient map looks so cool! I've never actually tried the grayscale method, but the gradient mapping looks fun to try out.

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад

      It's definitely a nice tool :) There are artists out there who take its use much farther than I did here, so be sure to search that out!

  • @agumaffione
    @agumaffione 5 лет назад +12

    what I do, as I'm still not so used to color, I open two windows of the same file but one in black and white. I hope that it would be useful to someone. Great video, thanks.

    • @noname-rj7dx
      @noname-rj7dx 5 лет назад +1

      Agustin Maffione I put a black and white filter over it whenever I need to check on my values

  • @motionwindart
    @motionwindart 4 года назад +1

    12:45 yes this is it, this is how I've seen everyone use this, this is the point, you just set it as a starting point, I've never seen anyone use it as you've use it at the beginning of the video. As a beginner this is great because you get to experience how things should look like, I mean as you get more experience it doesn't make sense to continue to use it because it's served its purpose, it helped you build knowledge, with that knowledge you can just go straight in color.

  • @rcrisroiu4420
    @rcrisroiu4420 5 лет назад +1

    Thank you for making this video! I thought I was rather lonely in not liking the process of going grayscale first and then adding color; it definitely has it's perks and I use it too! Although I much much prefer doing starting with color/painting in color; it makes painting truly fun.

  • @OverH19
    @OverH19 5 лет назад +53

    This isn't related to the topic but have anyone ever told you that you and YongYea sound almost exactly the same? Both in tone and the way you speak.

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +48

      The real question is: how can you know we're not actually the same person?

    • @ujtyhbfgtfsdxz
      @ujtyhbfgtfsdxz 5 лет назад +16

      @@marcobucci *x-files theme plays*

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +5

      @Lime lol. This is getting outta control.

    • @drkmgic
      @drkmgic 4 года назад +1

      Omg has I cannot unhear!!

  • @CelticBotansDigitalArt
    @CelticBotansDigitalArt 5 лет назад

    That's literally how I think about colors and all the reasons why I don't like to work greyscale to colors either. I've done it before though and it was instinctively exactly how you showed in the end (defining values on a sketch, introducing the colors and painting everything merges from there). Excellent video as usual!

  • @Nyajinsky
    @Nyajinsky 5 лет назад +41

    I never understood how to make greyscale to color and was planing to learn it because everybody was saying how better it is. now I don't want to anymore. and I don't even draw the color-y way you do. plus I use color picker too much. that would be impossible in that way.

    • @reportaccount474
      @reportaccount474 5 лет назад +6

      a lot of the time, greyscale is just used to find contrast. if you need help with contrast, you might use greyscale. hope this helps :)

    • @yurei8004
      @yurei8004 5 лет назад

      Color picker is an extremely bad practice just saying

    • @g.mcdonald3356
      @g.mcdonald3356 5 лет назад +8

      @@yurei8004 Or....everyone could just finds what works for them...

  • @Xeikkeiu
    @Xeikkeiu 5 лет назад +2

    Definitely agree on this - and I think my art improved when I stopped using greyscale to color as a crutch. BUT! One thing I like to do for bigger, more planned illustrations is value thumbnails. Basically, after deciding and sketching down the composition, I copy the picture and place many small versions of it in a new document. I then test out different lighting scenarios on them, and try to figure out the rough values for different parts of the picture. Then, I just use those thumbnails on the side as a help, while I go in directly with color on the real illustration.

  • @baldeaglesarentbald1921
    @baldeaglesarentbald1921 3 года назад +1

    I use grayscale as a guide, but I hate working with it Soo much that I actually create another painting and using the reference with grayscale, and not in the same painting, because it feels Soo nice to use colors

  • @marek_tarnawski
    @marek_tarnawski 5 лет назад +8

    My solution for this problem has always been the like presented in the video. Stopping on grayscale image as early as possible and then and then moving with color till the end.

  • @AmanaHB
    @AmanaHB 5 лет назад

    I'm really impressed with the explanation you provided about not being able to associate the colors with their correct value in this method. It is probabmy the core of the problem yet I've never heard any other artist addressing it before !

  • @Outpost67
    @Outpost67 5 лет назад +579

    BUCCI GANG BUCCI GANG BUCCI GANG BUCCI GANG

    • @lunehowls
      @lunehowls 5 лет назад +2

      this got 69 likes XD

    • @bellenesatan
      @bellenesatan 5 лет назад +3

      Pussy gang is what I've been mumbling reading this.

    • @ashleym.7233
      @ashleym.7233 5 лет назад +13

      🅱ucci 🅱ang

  • @CelesteTM98
    @CelesteTM98 5 лет назад +2

    You are so expressive and articulate, I am so amazed. Thank you for uploading!

  • @wzrdpwrs4426
    @wzrdpwrs4426 5 лет назад +23

    For its like most things in the world, starting with values is a tool for certain medias. Being a painterly artist worried about strokes etc then ya starting with values makes no sense at all. If your a concept art using say a digital matte painting style then starting with values make way more sense and works. Different media and styles utilize different tools.

  • @exploding_snail_
    @exploding_snail_ 5 лет назад

    This is the best photoshop/color/value/shape/painting/etc video I’ve found anywhere, and it’s something I’ve needed desperately as someone who has worked with strictly grey with a pencil and paper and wants to start painting with color digitally. So great, I’ve subscribed

  • @ericakilbourn9716
    @ericakilbourn9716 5 лет назад +1

    This is the video I've been waiting for. 👍 A lot of famous artists use the b&w to color technique and it looks fantastic. But side note. They still scumble and glaze semi-opaque colors to finish the piece. They still end up using solid colors.

  • @ragecandy
    @ragecandy 5 лет назад +29

    idk for me it's the opposite, I prefer having a desaturated look and then paint a few highly saturated areas on top

  • @oilonpaper
    @oilonpaper 5 лет назад

    Oh wow, I tried a grisaille-to-color approach with traditional painting not too long ago, and couldn't figure out what bothered me about adding color later on, and thanks to you I finally understand it! Thanks once again, Marco, for an enlightening video! 💙

  • @JEQvideos
    @JEQvideos 5 лет назад +62

    I disagree. If anyone wants to jump right into color from the get go because it's fun or more expressive for them, great. Whatever works for you as an artist.
    For me, reducing the complexity of the work by doing a greyscale first allows me to get the structure of the image down quickly. Then doing the color in a non-destructive manner allows me to explore my color choices and make major changes at pretty much any stage. You associate converting greyscale to color with glazing on another layer-which is basically you coloring the greyscale with whatever tones you pick in the moment. So yeah, I can see that leading to a disconnected feel. But you don't have to do that to convert.
    I use the gradient map method you mentioned but not as an "automatic" thing. I would lay one down over the entire composition to tie everything together and then blend in additional ones as needed. You could have one for each object if necessary. These will allow you to explore options very quickly and can be changed at any point until you flatten them. And that is in addition to all the other options you have--other types of adjustment layers, filters, direct painting, etc. The ease and flexibility of doing it this was are immense. Starting with color just looks like hell. Even if I was working in traditional media I would do greyscale and color studies before committing to a major painting.

    • @marcobucci
      @marcobucci  5 лет назад +26

      Thanks JEQ - these are all good points. As with any video presenting a bias (mine being the opposite of yours on this, it seems), people will come in on either end of it. Hopefully nobody views my video here as a blanket condemnation of the grayscale technique. I did my best to not present it that way - rather, as things to simply think about. And I hope people read comments like yours, are prompted to explore beyond just this video, then make up their own minds.
      All the best,

  • @HimekoDai
    @HimekoDai 5 лет назад

    Thank you very much. This really helps me because I was frustrated with how I would do a good job in greyscale to later ruining it with placing color. This brings me a solution and gives me courage to start straight away with color :)

  • @sociallyresponsiblexenomor7608
    @sociallyresponsiblexenomor7608 5 лет назад +6

    Greyscale is used frequently by concept artists though remember. If you did a design for a company, and they tell you to change it's colors....

  • @mauiimakesgames
    @mauiimakesgames 3 года назад

    Been doing the spiral through RUclips recommended videos on digital painting after ordering a new tablet this week. This was fantastic, simple, and incredibly helpful. Thank you!

  • @XtianApi
    @XtianApi 4 года назад

    I love finding these new-to-me art RUclips-ers. I'm skeptical about how much I shoild listen to what they're saying, then comes the "when I painted this for the Disney's The Nutcracker book..."
    And there it is. Lol
    The nutcracker scene looks great.

  • @unsupervisedbum2153
    @unsupervisedbum2153 5 лет назад +14

    you painting straight on the background with no layers gives me so much anxiety

  • @Julie-qd5hk
    @Julie-qd5hk 2 года назад

    fascinating. i never thought of light as shapes! this was a great way of visually communicating that idea!

  • @majamystic256
    @majamystic256 5 лет назад +42

    huh, for some reason for me grayscale to color is faster for me than going straight to color when i tried it myself

  • @kraftykatie55
    @kraftykatie55 5 лет назад

    This is the best art video I think I've ever seen on RUclips except for that sketching one you just did. Thank you so much for giving legitimate helpful advice that has revolutionized how I paint

  • @kamiko8021
    @kamiko8021 5 лет назад +18

    lol...showed us how to paint with grayscale while condemning it on the low. Good one

  • @raspberryjamus287
    @raspberryjamus287 3 года назад +1

    Tbh I really enjoy the sketch8ng in grayscale then moving to color, as im still new to values. It really gives me the chance to explore the values without thinking about how Ill work color into it, but I try to do it only for a few moments before I introduce color

  • @gottablast3964
    @gottablast3964 5 лет назад +6

    “color has been SEGREGATED” and i feel SO BAD BUT HAHAH

    • @jacobprice3079
      @jacobprice3079 Год назад

      Glad im not the only one who notices this lmao

  • @TheBoris178
    @TheBoris178 Год назад

    Well when you draw on paper or paint on a canvas is naturally to use colors is no such gray scale step so is difficult to jump to digital using this different style but I ❤️ and agree to using colors right away because you save time plus your colors always show the way you truly choose and visualize on your mind I was introduce using the gray scale and I wasted so much time with the values arrangement it will brake my spirit because at the time I was ready to color I was tired and frustrated with how the colors will display different than I was planning at the end I will go back to paper or canvas and abandon the digital project I appreciate this video I was thinking I was wrong choosing to paint with out gray scale lots of people always telling me I don't know how to paint the correct way digitally that keep me away from digital in to I start follow your video I appreciate your time and dedication you a great 👍 man I admire you thanks for your inspiration

  • @whatwouldjeebusdo377
    @whatwouldjeebusdo377 5 лет назад +76

    painting with value and then adding color is only a temporary state in an artists development, meant to help the artist gain a better understanding of value and color both. its not meant to be a technique . Bucci is way past that stage so of course he can now focus fully on his already honed understandings and wield those to shape his expression. many artists just arent at that stage in their development where they know their tools well enough to stand upon them and use them towards their fullest expression. Before you can run and even fly, you have to be able to walk.

    • @abandonedaccount747
      @abandonedaccount747 5 лет назад +2

      agreed

    • @brandy1999
      @brandy1999 5 лет назад +23

      Tell that to Bouguereau, Rembrandt and hundreds of other masters that used grisaille (aka starting with monochrome underpainting) all the time.
      Stop making posts about things you dont understand pls, no clue why this is upvoted so much.

    • @Apusays
      @Apusays 5 лет назад +18

      Sorry I had to disagree with you. If you actually worked with AAA company, you'll appreciate this technique as the client will ALWAYS wanted to change things, especially the colours.

    • @yellowspike3344
      @yellowspike3344 5 лет назад +10

      I dont think its a temporary state because if you look at other artist like one of the more famous one, ross draws he uses a lot of techniques like grayscale and bunch of other effects but it's the end result that matters to him.

    • @igors5637
      @igors5637 3 года назад

      @@brandy1999 Grisaille doesnt work in digital, the light scattering is not simulated.

  • @elllie3630
    @elllie3630 2 года назад

    This was very helpful and as you said I usually use greyscale roughly to know where the lights at darks are which is very useful in traditional art in watercolors

  • @mayap8191
    @mayap8191 5 лет назад +6

    I find it really difficult to blend colours naturally in digital and I Struggle with lighting. I'm also accustomed to pencil sketching, so greyscale feels more natural to me. I think greyscale works best it you have a clear image of the completed piece. ( I haven't actually watched the video yet though...so) ☺

  • @iAmNothingness
    @iAmNothingness 2 года назад

    I love the vibe that you can only get by use greyscale to colour!
    Yes it does take much more time and doesn’t look as vibrant but that special vibe is seriously good.

  • @agumgumelar3780
    @agumgumelar3780 5 лет назад +4

    you best teacher sir👏

  • @kit-kaboodii4050
    @kit-kaboodii4050 5 лет назад

    I use paint tool SAI, so we don't have a tool that allows you to color over grayscale like you do in this video. Instead, I've painted opaquely over the value study for an embarrassingly long amount of time.
    I never got anything done. Doing ALL THE WORK in grayscale and then having to go over in color is ... exhausting. I already have a short attention span so this killed my productivity. I also didn't get to experiment with colors very much because I was so tired at the end that I was just like "I'm not even gonna bother", which, like you said, took the fun out of art.
    But just using grayscale for basic values/form like you did? THAT works for me. I need that initial value study so I don't get too colorful and throw away all my shading, but anything more than a basic outline just doesn't work. Thanks so much for this video to help me come to this conclusion!! : D

  • @Skilital
    @Skilital 4 года назад +21

    Who came here after CD video?

  • @verazgonik
    @verazgonik 3 года назад

    You have no idea how happy I am to have found this video! I love love love colour and it's my strongest point - literally if I grayscale my coloured works they look way better than grayscale art (I am not good with values yet but it's funny the values are better when I paint in colour). I read everywhere I should start with grayscale and it was always so frustrating for me... I'm so happy to know there actually is another "legit" way and not just my stubbornness:D. I will still try to get better at the traditional approach but I'm so happy I can also play:). I have learned so much from your videos, thank you!

  • @rootyful
    @rootyful 5 лет назад

    I've been struggling for quite a while to make the grayscale to color workflow work for me and... it's nice to have some confirmation that I don't need to do that at all. My colors and values definitely still need a lot of work and I may want to do some grayscale only studies too, but I will definitely focus on more on going for color right away.

  • @phantomrumpus
    @phantomrumpus 2 года назад

    i know this video was uploaded three years ago at this point but i still thought i’d vent my feelings about this. so i am a completely self taught digital artist. i’m a self taught artist in general. ive been taking art seriously for about a year now, so yeah everything that i’m about to complain about will probably just round out to my lack of experience but hey i’m still frustrated so i’m gonna go for it. i found this video while desperately trying to figure out how to paint digitally. i don’t paint traditionally as i don’t really have access to great materials. but no matter what kind of art i’m doing….the one thing that has always stressed me out the most and made me the most insecure about my art was colors. i have realized that colors are like numbers to me (i’m saying this as a person who hates math because numbers are fake. you get the idea), they are just so complex and i feel that i genuinely don’t understand how they work. i feel like i can never figure out how to use them in my art. my digital art started out as cell shading. i wasn’t satisfied. i had graduated from doing realistic monochrome pencil sketches to colored digital drawings. it just wasn’t working for me. so i wanted to figure out how to paint. i watched a video on here that was a step by step process of a persons painting process…..where they used this technique. now, knowing my struggles with color and the fact that i didn’t even know how people painted before watching this video, i was so. damn. excited. i realized that i didn’t need to worry about colors until later. i could just add them in afterwards. and yeah, i did a few paintings and they weren’t bad. but. but. but. i don’t know. there was always something off about them. ive realized that i’m afraid of colors. because i’m never being creative enough. or when i’m trying to be creative the lighting looks stupid because i don’t understand it. or whatever the issue. but i just don’t think this technique is helping me. i’m not sure where to go from here. i guess this is where being self taught sucks, because i don’t really have any way of knowing exactly how to practice to be able to improve and move on fro. my specific shortcomings. ughhhhh okay well yeah tldr i don’t get colors they’re like voodoo to me and i just enjoyed the aspect of this process because painting in black and white is fun for me :) but yeah adding the colors in later is weird

  • @nancydriessen594
    @nancydriessen594 5 лет назад +5

    Almost done with watching but thank you so much, this helps a lot!

  • @Ryanin2D
    @Ryanin2D 5 лет назад

    Thanks for being the best art teacher on RUclips Marco

  • @austinparrent395
    @austinparrent395 5 лет назад

    There's so much good information in this video. I'm probably going to have to rewatch it just to help it all sink in.

  • @1223santigato
    @1223santigato 5 лет назад

    Marco I have to say that you are a FUCKING BEAST, I get goosebumps at every video of yours and just by watching them I've been taking giant leaps as an artist for the past 4 months. Unfortunately my life history is complicated but finally I've been able to focus in art and your teachings have changed me a lot you are fantastic my friend and one day I wish I will be able to share with you what I've done as an artist, for now I am the typical struggling artist in the paycheck to paycheck financial club but once I get a little bit of money I will support you in the patron page or if you give classes I will like to be one of your students, for now RUclips and you are my teachers.

  • @nmlss
    @nmlss 5 лет назад +17

    I don't know why, but when an artist uses this process, it's very obvious. It rally looks like it was a greyscale drawing with color added, no matter how good the artist is. They lack something.

    • @OmfgHiii
      @OmfgHiii 5 лет назад +3

      not if they detail afterwards it's not just putting on a filter

    • @veronikatomsu6841
      @veronikatomsu6841 4 года назад

      Their colour lacks depth, that's what is off.

  • @LeoPlaw
    @LeoPlaw 4 года назад

    Marco, your videos are gold! So much information communicated clearly in such a short amount of time. You're an excellent teacher.

  • @Curryfishballa
    @Curryfishballa 5 лет назад

    I use greyscale method when I want a more eerie dead looking environment painting. Using the colors method makes it pop out more and its very expressive.

  • @AzkaNugroho
    @AzkaNugroho 5 лет назад +78

    I mean what the hell's wrong with people disliking this kind of video

    • @planetfrank1994
      @planetfrank1994 5 лет назад +8

      Lots of people butthurt that one man has a different opinion from them.

    • @Sammysapphira
      @Sammysapphira 5 лет назад +22

      Literally every video on RUclips has random dislikes. Are you honestly astonished by the fact that dislikes exist in 2018?

    • @AzkaNugroho
      @AzkaNugroho 5 лет назад +3

      @@Sammysapphira pretty sure some of it not totally random and I'm questioning those

    • @JadyLester
      @JadyLester 5 лет назад +10

      Nothing? But even when someone is using facts in their arguments about preferences, some folks take it as a personal attack when they do it a different way, I guess. Re: learning to draw anime before anatomy basics is a bad approach.

    • @goranpancevo
      @goranpancevo 5 лет назад

      I was gonna write the same thing!

  • @luckydr2623
    @luckydr2623 3 года назад +2

    It all really comes to preference though. I just stick to colors because I can envision my character's identity and personality just by the color itself and don't have to pressure myself with the shading (because I suck at shading lol). Thank you for the video btw.

  • @RealSuccessfulYouTubeChannel
    @RealSuccessfulYouTubeChannel 4 года назад

    Wow, your videos are amazing, you have a great way of expressing your thought process that not many artist have. I think many successful painters think like you, but they just don't have that conscious connection to what they are doing.

  • @sanigdhaya2488
    @sanigdhaya2488 3 года назад

    I agree with you. And honestly it's not even about the end result but I feel more involved in the process when I am working with colours and make active decisions about subtle changes instead of leaving it upto an algorithm. Though currently I am in the stage where I am acquiring different techniques and hence am learning about greyscale to colour

  • @nancydriessen594
    @nancydriessen594 5 лет назад +7

    Didn’t watch it yet but I know it’ll be helpful! Thank you!