Thread:Lawful Realist/@comment-4080775-20160605193626/@comment-27339186-20160619182807

First off, the most important thing is setting all the tools to the proper settings – if any of the numbers are off by even 1, they won't work right. So, for the line tool (straight and covered), you will want 1.0 for size, 100% density, min size of 0 and color black. The bucket tool will be the next important and for that you will want Transparency (strict), transp diff. 149, target: all image and anti-aliasing checked. If any of these are off in the slightest, the lines won't work right and the bucket will fill the whole canvas, if it will work at all. These settings will remain the same for the duration in which you use the program, so setting them once will suffice.

Next up is the size of the image – before you start drawing lines, you will want to make the base picture much larger than it actually is. To do this, select “Canvas” from the very top of the program and select “Change Resolution” when it drops down. Here, adjust the pixel width and height to a desired length: I like to start with 3000 or 3500 width for Infobox sized images and 4500 height for Fullbody style images.

Once these steps are all done, you are set to start drawing your lines – remember to make a line layer by select “New Linework Layer” from the work tray at the far left of the program. After you finish all of the lineart, be sure that all lines are connected to each other for the coloring and that all colors are under the lineart. It is also important that all colors each get their own layer – putting all colors together on the same layer will cause the edge of one color to “bleed” on to the other. Inspect your image thoroughly after coloring and, if this happens, adjust the color layers accordingly until the colors do not “bleed.”

The final step, and perhaps the most annoying and time consuming (tied with the lines themselves) is the shading. Shading requires not only a new layer for colors, but a new lineart layer for each and every different color in the image: hair, skin, shirt, pants, accessories, weapons, shoes...EACH AND EVERY COLOR. When doing shading, the base image and the base color should both be invisible/hidden: only the linework should be visible while working. Use the linework to draw the borders of the shading and then use the blank layer to fill the shade lines in with the shade color. It is important to note that, unlike the base lines, the shade lines will vary depending on the base color that you are shading. Once done with the shading lines and fill color, merge both layers together into one single layer and leave it until the end.

Lastly, when everything is finally done – the linework, the color and all of the shading – you can begin merging everything together into one singular image. Keep a separate file on hand, just in case you mess up or need to fix something after you start adjusting the image. Once everything is merged together, you can delete the base image (the image of another character that you used as the “base”) and select “File,” “Export as,” and then “.psd” – this will export it as a Photoshop file. Once this is done, close out of SAI and find the .psd file on your computer and open it in Photoshop to mess around with it. You will want to shrink it down and use the blur tool, if necessary, to make it look more Naruto-esque.

Last but not least, find a nice scenery background from Naruto on the internet that you like and, in Photoshop, put your character on the background to make it look like a real Naruto character. YOUR DONE.