Lineart to Coloring - Photoshop/GIMP

[PsychotixxFoxx]

So I've just acquired Photoshop and GIMP, and I'm ready to start some projects on them both (so I can test each out for my own comfort.) I only have a mouse, so I figured I could scan in some black/white line art (in sharpie) and proceed to color in the program. I have a book cover that's to be published at the end of this month, so I have to be able to quickly and proficiently produce the picture and have it look as professional as I can. Unfortunately, my first try at it was a complete traditional piece (sharpie pen, colored pencil, charcoal) and it scanned out so badly that I have to try it again. I've already started the line art.

Does anyone have any particular techniques that:
a. clean up the lines until they are smooth and even,
b. which tools to color with and how,
or c. give it an overall complete feel with simple backgrounds I can produce within the program?

[Jet]

Lineart for me comes out bad too. I scan what looks like a nicely drawn, smooth lineart of a character. But when the computer scans it, it picks up all these little "Fray marks" I call them. To solve this, I just set the image in Photoshop and pulled up a new layer above it. Then set the image to a low opacity and traced over it in my new layer using my graphics tablet. Since you dont have a tablet appearantly, you could use the pen tool. It seems tedious, but once you know how to use the pen tool right, you can get the same effect as a tablet. Thats all i have now, but I hope it helps some.

[Mylo]

a) Using a mouse, lines should come out the same width every time.  If the ends are too long, I just use the eraser tool carefully. Like Jet said, you can sketch your line art on paper and then take a picture of it, open it in Photoshop, and trace over it.

b) As for colouring, I use the brush tool. Since you can change the width of the brush, you can colour wide areas very quickly and small areas with great precision. The fill tool is cumbersome to use because of the selections you have to make, at least for me.

c) I don't understand what kind of background you're going for. If you want a simple solid background, you can use the fill tool to fill in a solid colour or the gradient tool for well...gradients.

Since you've already started the line art, I think it'd be best to post what you've got so far and then ask for help on specific things. Then we could give you more specific help Of maybe if you don't post it, outline the specific problems that you're trying to overcome.

[Amy]

If you get Illustrator, Live Trace gives you super clean lines in a snap.

[kuroneko jusan]

you could also use Inkscape (opensource program similar to Illustrator or corel draw) and do a bitmap trace of your line art then port it to photoshop or gimp for the coloring... you may also be able to bitmap trace in photoshop/gimp, I'm not sure. (I don't currently have gimp and my version of PS is about 10 years old and no longer functioning)

[Brunn]

I use Paint Tool SAI and used a feature called 'Linework Layer' for the first time last night. It's got lots of tools that let you adjust the line weights, colors, tools fro drawing curves and straight lines. It made doing this line art http://brunn-bear.deviantart.com/art/Bounds-and-Leaps-Lineart-329558513?q=gallery%3ABrunn-Bear%2F34346693&qo=0 a fairly quick thing. I'd imagine those other programs would have a similar feature, or tools at least.

As for coloring, that's really just preference. I have photoshop, but haven't used it... There are an alarming number of buttons in there!