Workflow for cartoons in the iPad
From top to down, left to right, the screen snapshots of the workflow I used in the iPad Air for the Housecleaning cartoon.
1. Scan pencil sketch in grayscale jpeg, save to Dropbox. Open iDraw in iPad, select Import from Dropbox.
2. Open file, add layers for panels, lettering and inks. The pencil sketch image is the bottom layer.
3. The file dimensions.
4. After the ink work is done, hide the image layer to make the pencil sketch disappear from view. Exit to iDraw's gallery, touch the Share icon, and select Save to Dropbox.
5. Select jpeg and 300 dpi, then Save.
6. Open Procreate, tap Import, Dropbox.
7. Open the file, select the image layer and change it from Normal to Multiply. That will make the layer transparent. Add a layer below the image layer and start painting.
The problem with the size of this 300 dpi file in Procreate is that layers are limited to 4 maximum. Also Procreate crashes now and then, but its frequent auto file saves means I don't lose much.
When I'm satisfied with a paint job, I merge it into a previously painted layer and start a fresh layer.
The file's dimensions and size are in Canvas Metadata.
8. When the paintwork is done, tap Share, Export to Dropbox.
9. Tap JPEG.
10. Dropbox shows the b/w file from iDraw at 2.3 MB; the painted file from Procreate is 8.2 MB.
If I'm going to email the cartoon, 1 MB or less is a better file size for sharing. To reduce the file size, I upload the file to my Flickr account using the app FlickStackr in my iPad. Flickr offers an option to download the file in different sizes. I pick one of the smaller sizes and download it to Photos for sharing.
Being the newest iPad to date, the Air runs the above apps pretty well with no lagging, other than Procreate's occasional crash and its 4 layers limit. The iPad 2 I still have would probably be slower, and it has a poor screen display compared to the Air's retina.
Workflow for cartoons in the iPad
From top to down, left to right, the screen snapshots of the workflow I used in the iPad Air for the Housecleaning cartoon.
1. Scan pencil sketch in grayscale jpeg, save to Dropbox. Open iDraw in iPad, select Import from Dropbox.
2. Open file, add layers for panels, lettering and inks. The pencil sketch image is the bottom layer.
3. The file dimensions.
4. After the ink work is done, hide the image layer to make the pencil sketch disappear from view. Exit to iDraw's gallery, touch the Share icon, and select Save to Dropbox.
5. Select jpeg and 300 dpi, then Save.
6. Open Procreate, tap Import, Dropbox.
7. Open the file, select the image layer and change it from Normal to Multiply. That will make the layer transparent. Add a layer below the image layer and start painting.
The problem with the size of this 300 dpi file in Procreate is that layers are limited to 4 maximum. Also Procreate crashes now and then, but its frequent auto file saves means I don't lose much.
When I'm satisfied with a paint job, I merge it into a previously painted layer and start a fresh layer.
The file's dimensions and size are in Canvas Metadata.
8. When the paintwork is done, tap Share, Export to Dropbox.
9. Tap JPEG.
10. Dropbox shows the b/w file from iDraw at 2.3 MB; the painted file from Procreate is 8.2 MB.
If I'm going to email the cartoon, 1 MB or less is a better file size for sharing. To reduce the file size, I upload the file to my Flickr account using the app FlickStackr in my iPad. Flickr offers an option to download the file in different sizes. I pick one of the smaller sizes and download it to Photos for sharing.
Being the newest iPad to date, the Air runs the above apps pretty well with no lagging, other than Procreate's occasional crash and its 4 layers limit. The iPad 2 I still have would probably be slower, and it has a poor screen display compared to the Air's retina.