4 good reasons to make a webcomic

[@stagelinedpro]

A hand painted webcomic? That's dedication.

[@jackmrowan1967]

Your character looks great! You can tell you’ve put in a lot of time and effort

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks, I love the process, love the materials and love the end result. Thanks for watching

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks I really appreciate that.

[@JacksonTaylorandTheSinners]

@@dionhamillillustrationsyou’re an absolute savage. Alex Ross, ain’t got nothing on you, bud. I really enjoyed watching that process. 🙏🏼

[@lepapercastle]

Not for some of us. I HATE digital art for the sake of convenience. I was trained traditionally, and it's all I know, and it's the only way I can work. It's slower, but paper and medium have something like a soul. It's pleasurable to feel them. I do understand using a PC for color correction or to fix small mistakes your eye couldn't see, but aside from that, I have no idea how people can enjoy using an iPad, laptop, or computer to make art from beginning to end. It's beyond me.

[@dr.neymoi8859]

I’m a doctor, but in highschool, i also thought i would make movies.. even after my medico graduation, i thought i would find the time… but as years went on it seems more and more of a wishful thinking. I have a story, have been working on it for a decade now. I think, since i won’t be making a movie out of it, why not make a manga/web comic… so that’s what I’m doing now. Started making a web comic out of it in my free time. If the world is still intact, and I’m alive.. will probably release it in 10 years 😌

[@dionhamillillustrations]

I know that feeling.

[@Be_Nice_To_Dogs]

You got that right. There's no romance in freelancing, it's a job, and like any job is can wear you down. And when you do it, you're an illustrator as opposed to an artist, bringing to life the visions of others. Up-and-coming artists need to understand that if they do make it - and that's tough enough, trust me - then 99.9% of the time they choose between making a good living or realising their full creativity. A tiny percentage will achieve both, comparable to the number of actors who get lead roles in Hollywood. The biggest financial rewards come with IP, as you say. BTW that's a great character. - industry veteran

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for leaving your great thoughts on the whole thing. And glad you like the character😁🙏🏾

[@portobeIIa]

i have been a lurker in the comicfury comminty for as well as 6 years now. before that, I had been creating my silly little story for 3 years. i keep waiting for the perfect time, for me to get the best computer so i can draw, for my art to be good... it's suffocating to feel like what i expect and what i am is so, so ar apart. your video is the sign for me to say screw it and do what i want, not caring about expectations... my own expectations, the hardest to ignore. im gonna go have fun and by the end of the month have a page posted!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

This makes me very happy to hear. Go for it!!!! 🔥💪🏾

[@MainAcc0]

My comic is still in the pipe dream stage since my art skills are nonexistent, but this video made it seem possible. Funnily enough, the story's protagonist is a monster hunter with a sentient sword (such a good trope, I NEED more sentient weapons in media). Also, your style is AMAZING. Straight up astonishing. You're an inspiration!

[@ruffethereal1904]

What's the story behind the sword? I can't help but think of Wuxia, with tools becoming sentient after absorbing enough magical energy over time.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

The sword is inhabited by a 1000 year old demon. I've got a whole back story for his character which I'll explore as the story progresses. Thanks for watching!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks so much for the comment. I didn't want him to have just an ordinary sidekick, the sword seemed like a fun idea.

[@ruffethereal1904]

@@dionhamillillustrations Was he stuck somewhere this entire time? Or did he have previous owners? It would make for great worldbuilding and describing how alien he is, when he casually namedrops historical events and being instrumental to paradigm shifting points of history like an old grandfather talking about his bygone youth.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

It's kind of a curse and the 2 of them are bound together, so each needs the other one to survive. I'm planning on putting some character bios into a special PDF version I have planned😁

[@r0BCEN0]

Just enjoying the process of the panel coming together then at 4:46 the pull back to see the thumbnail that is being referenced and I'm like, dood the thumbnail alone looks way better than anything I've done recently

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hey, thanks for watching and the compliment! I've been working at my craft a long time, I still have a long way to go. But I'm sure your work is fantastic in its self. But I really do appreciate your words 😁 Hope you also found the video useful.

[@grownradish]

This is literally the coolest thing I’ve seen

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks so much for the comment, It's made my day😁

[@grownradish]

@@dionhamillillustrations your video and art was amazing it made me want to buckle down and create a webcomic like immediately 😭😭

[@celestepalm6949]

Your webcomic looks fantastic, Dion! 💪🏾

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you so much

[@ChrisOSemrik]

Watching you create is amazing! Your work is so beautiful 😊. Thank you for sharing your art and experience with us!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

[@KodiSketches]

Great work and advice. Hope the web comic does well for you. Always good to see fellow artists from Perth.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for watching! And from one Perth local to another, thank god this heat is over, right?😆

[@jackfinn8514]

I'm speechless after watching you put that work in! Phenomenal skills, sir👍👍 just subscribed. Cheers

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks so much!

[@EmilienDev]

I love your character Manly disco dude Big YES

[@dionhamillillustrations]

He definitely could get a spot on Soul-train😆. Thanks for watching

[@EmilienDev]

@@dionhamillillustrations Ha ha indeed x)

[@dummysalami]

I love the use of airbrush here

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks so much for your comment and watching!

[@bobbobby475]

Signed up and started reading. Excited to see where you go

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much!😁

[@Sylandre]

I'm glad this video reached a wider audience allowing the algorithm to make it pop on my feed. Your channel is filled of nuggets. Congratulations, I'm sure it will keep growing!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you so much. I appreciate that a lot!

[@DennisWoodyard-DragonflyEnt]

I just tumbled upon your video, and enjoy watching you work. I liked your commentary and insights on creating your own IP. As a retired professional artist, it's a subject that constantly was discussed with my Boomer peers. You are definitely on the right track. All the best.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much. I don't think there is enough training about these topics for artists, especially when I went to art school. I hope that is changing.

[@king_koby9591]

Great information and reasoning, loce the art process too definitely gotta see more

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you for watching, and so glad you found this info useful. More on the way🔥

[@Kio-x9z]

You have convinced me to start a webcomic. By the way that drawing looks amazing!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks so much. And good luck, you won't regret it 😁

[@Marianaillustration]

The artwork is beautiful!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you, I really appreciate that🙏🏾

[@markbay9275]

Bro youre super talented! Props!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much!

[@BigDadNRG]

Cool! I thought I was one of the last people using gauche and airbrush. :-) Good advice and great work.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Oh man! Gouache! Hell yeah. Back when I worked in an art supply shop I used to tell everyone to use gouache as a starter, rather than watercolour. That stuff is so versatile. As for airbrushing I don't think it could ever die out. Its a bit addictive really😆

[@timz9862]

Love your Drew Struzan kind of style for this.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you. He's one of my biggest inspirations when it comes to illustration. So that was a really nice comment😀

[@Lï-Santana-DrácûL]

I lost the words and drifted off in the art process...sorry, I'll watch it again.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

It's all good! I really appreciate it that you watched my process😁

[@Lï-Santana-DrácûL]

@dionhamillillustrations it's phenomenal to say the least. You make it look effortless.

[@sketchsmith21]

Your art is phenomenal!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you for the comment, I really appreciate it :D

[@AMProSoft]

Your artwork is super amazing / super inspiring.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you for your kind words :D

[@jswanljung]

Gorgeous work!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much 😁

[@WifeWantsAWizard]

You should do a video on which sites can publish a weekly web comic.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

That's a great idea! I'll do that, thanks🙏🏾

[@MicahBuzanANIMATION]

Lovely art and words of encouragement.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thankyou!

[@neototem4110]

Dude is that a Paasche VL with a #1 needle/nozzle?! I have still have my chromed out snub cap VL w/ a #3 and smoothed roll button trigger on my secret laboratory shelf from it's glory days TWENTY SEVEN YEARS AGO lol I just knew out of the workhorses I had (Paasche, Vega, and Badger) this was going to be the one still rocking in the future lol, good stuff man!!!😂😂😂😂❤

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Yes it is! I've had mine for about the same amount of time. The nozzle on this one is actually stuck, has been for about 25 years but it works just fine. These things just don't seem to break down if you treat them right. Great piece of equipment. I'd heard so much about Badger and originally that was what I wanted, but nowhere in the the small city I live in sold them. Settled on a Paasche but haven't regretted it. Thanks for watching and leaving a comment.

[@ultradius7]

You are telling me that each panel of your comic is made like in the video?... Daaaaaamn, gotta check that comic now. Also, i want to make my comic too, currently working on the characters, story and lore 🙏

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Its all by hand, no tricks, just focus. That's excellent news, making your own webcomic is well worth it. Thanks for watching and Best of luck!💪🏾👍🏾😃

[@Larimuss]

Man i would pay for this web comic just for the pure dedicatiob and skill put into it. You should do books too.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hey, thanks for the comment. I'm actually looking into this. Your comments given me the boost to do it😁👍🏾

[@Sammy_47]

You made a valid point and I love the piece 😊

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks very much for watching and taking the time to comment. Appreciate it😁

[@Sammy_47]

@@dionhamillillustrations you're welcome...keep up the good work 😊

[@letym2271]

Geez that's a lot of work. Respect.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you for watching. Truth is I've done it so often now its not as hard as it looks ;D

[@tparker8946]

Excellent Work!😂 I love it! Your style has a charm of its own! Good luck!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you!

[@apaintedpage]

Great artwork and tips!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much for watching!

[@booster-b3568]

Thank you for making this video!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

My pleasure! Thanks for watching!

[@jazzlehazzle]

I LOVE what you're doing here, but my gosh a lot of work! Fully rendered painted??

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for watching. It's really not that hard. I've done it for so many years now it comes easy.

[@gggfx4144]

Very cool vid. I remember a web comic way back when about Captain Vanderbeam, and 'Real Life Comics' back in the day too. I really like your character colouring - are those ordinary coloured pencils or something else like pastel? How long did the artwork in this video take in real time?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

The pencils are polychromos colour pencils by faber castell. They're not dusty like pastel so they sit really tight on the paper surface. I'd probably make too much mess with a pastel pencil 😆 Each page takes about 6 hours from sketching it out to final painting. All depends on how many panels there are and characters, faces, details etc. Sometimes I can bang out a page in 3 hours if it's more atmosphere than details. Working out the composition and the initial sketch probably takes the longest part. Once I have that in place adding the colour goes very quickly. Thanks for watching and leaving a comment. Feel free to ask any questions, I'll do my best to answer.

[@strongworldtonight]

Yo! Just subscribed man this video helped me out a lot! I'm also developing a comic but was uncertain if I should gather all pages for publication or release as I go along as a webcomic! Thanks!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hey, glad this helped. Just don't give up is the main thing. Good luck and I hope to see your work out there soon😉

[@NA_49erFan]

Wow, great work👏

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks!

[@DennisCNolasco]

Fantastic, just subbed to your channel and website!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you!

[@cosmicfxx]

Great vid. What type of pencil crayons you use .. wax, water soluble, ...? TIA

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Polychromos pencils by Faber Castell. They are a combination of oil and wax so they don't budge if I use any water soluble paint on top. I've dabbled with the Albrecht Durer watercolour pencils but found I couldn't get the same amount of control. Plus I can get a really sharp point to the leads when sharpened. Feel free to ask any questions and I'll do my best to answer.😉

[@AandA697]

Nice, respect for doing real art

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you!

[@gosuhenke]

Wow incredible

[@dionhamillillustrations]

😊 thanks

[@Aronmasonarts]

such a treat to see a fellow comic creator making real art without any darn AI

[@dionhamillillustrations]

AI would take all the fun out of it for me. It's the creation process and putting ideas out there that really give me a buzz. Plus being able to show people what is possible with tools that have been around for a long time. Thanks for your comment.

[@zaqareemalcolm]

man if only i can hit deadlines im still drawing+coloring a single character from december and i have another painting i started since last year May

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Keep at it, I'm sure the finished product will be worth it. Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@jojojo3521]

Which are the best ways/sites/apps to publish a web comic? I know the name of a couple of websites, but I have no idea how the whole thing works and how many people actually read web comics. Thank you.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Webtoons and Tapas are the big 2 I can think of. They make it very easy to create an account and upload to. The best option I can think of is to host your own site. Maybe start with a blog or something to keep it cheap and simple. The key is to market yourself. There is a whole world out there waiting to read your story.

[@user-nd7rg5er5g]

Your art is fantastic, and I'd love to read your webcomic. :) But those tiny, well-loved coloring pencils makes me think that you would probably benefit from having a pencil holder so you can keep using those pencils no matter how small they get. ^^;;

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Yes!!!! You're right. Thank you for the advice. I'll be getting one soon.

[@piscesrisingpress]

Awesome video!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you very much!🙏🏾

[@sunburnfm]

I wanted to see the mask taken off at the end! That reveal is my favorite part.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Oh great! Thanks for watching the whole vid. I really appreciate it.

[@urzmontst.george6314]

So cool

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks

[@Sithwar777]

Art is beautiful.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you so much for your comment and watching!

[@christopherjohnston8407]

I was thanking about the same thing. For when I do my comics. Well it looks great! I guess I'm going have to do the same lol. I'm old school. But I'm in my 30s lol. Great job! I'm looking from more from you.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Old school never goes out of fashion, my friend. Thank you for watching!

[@mattlinkous4356]

Curious as to what size paper you use for your pages. Doesn’t look like the usual 11x17.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

I work on A3 Cartridge paper (roughly 12 x 16.6 inches) . As its a digital format I'm not bound to the standard comic book sizes. Plus if I ever decide to print this as a physical book I'd like it to be a larger hard cover. Something cool like that.

[@pezus_art]

What type of ink do you use to paint first layer?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

I'm using acrylic ink. The brand is Daler Rowney. I think its the best for what I like to do and the colours are great!

[@dummysalami]

Huuuh? Did you copy your linework on a watercolor paper? How did you do this? 😮

[@dionhamillillustrations]

It's cartridge paper with a coat of gesso over the sketch. Watercolour paper would do the trick but it's expensive here. So got to keep the costs down😅

[@Germania9]

What's your recommended scanner for scanning artwork into a webcomic?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Oh boy, scanners these days are waaay better than what I started with. I now just have a Epson Perfection V39. Was cheap to buy and hasn't let me down yet. Before that my ideal scanner was an A3 scanner by Mustek. As I usually do all my artwork at A3 size it would have been perfect for scanning a full page. And the quality was brilliant. HOWEVER, Mustek stopped making drivers for Mac (my operation system) so it just sits gathering dust until they update the drivers. If you can buy a A3 scanner because you like to work BIG, go with Mustek (just make sure it works with your computer first). If you just need to scan at A4 size Epson make great scanners. Hope this was helpful? If you have any other questions feel free to ask.😁

[@Germania9]

@@dionhamillillustrations One other thing: Webtoons. Is it possible to create scrolling pages of webtoons out of scanned artwork?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Yes, you could place each page onto a larger background. Like, make it a really long canvas in Photoshop, for instance. Then place each of your pages onto it. I've seen a few people do that.

[@Hadar360]

U have skills Bro ,wow

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you!

[@sdovas]

So where's the link to the webcomic? Nothing I can find in description...

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hi, try this - courses.dionhamill.com/courses/jr-pi and thanks for watching

[@MattHughson]

FWIW this video got me excited to check out your comic, but the website keeps referring to it as a "course" and seems to require me to sign up for a course to view the comic, so I skipped. I think it might be worth it to make the comic more accessible, but just my 2 cents. Best of luck!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hi, thanks for the comment, the platform I use also hosts my illustration courses and learning resources for beginning artists. But if you're willing to give the comic a shot you can sign up and read it for free!

[@blackinkdownart]

What are you spraying?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

I'm using Daler Rowney Acrylic ink through a Paasche double action airbrush.

[@jonmahashintina]

i think theyre happier making the 45th iteration of the tmnt than looking for new IPs. you need to live in finland or korea to have a chance of them coming to you for publishing.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for taking the time to watch my video and respond. I just want people to understand that before TMNT everybody was making Westerns, then it was Start Wars's/start trekky stuff, Friday the 13th slashers... They all get remade again and again, But and the big BUT is, if nobody tried to add their own spice to the mix we'd all still have the same flavours.

[@shalock5]

How do you protect your creation from beign stolen and republish by some other people as its already published on internet?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Theft is sadly always a possibility. But I also think those who steal things are the lazy type. So if you make it even just that little bit hard for them to steal it they won't bother. I add watermarks to my content and I also put it behind a login page so the content is hard to download from that site. Thanks for watching and leaving a comment 😄

[@shalock5]

@@dionhamillillustrations thanks! Those seems good advices

[@solomonkane4254]

Похожая мысль давно уже меня терзает, но только никак не могу начать)

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Maybe think about a small project first. To test your idea. Even just a 1 page short story. This might give you the motivation to keep going😊

[@solomonkane4254]

@@dionhamillillustrations пожалуйста да. Спасибо)

[@EvoSchecter]

I can't draw... But I have some really cool ideas!

[@mrdarryljones1]

Good luck!

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thankyou. The journey is long but worth the trip.

[@HalkerVeil]

The entertainment industry does not pay you for your comic. They get "inspiration" from you and make their own spin on it. With their own IP.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for commenting and watching the video. Equally so we take inspiration from their IPs and make a webcomic. Its a bit of a crazy circle but so long as you're not down right copying (or stealing) someone else's work, that is okay.

[@HalkerVeil]

@@dionhamillillustrations Unless AI gets "inspired" by it?

[@Devmaycry2023]

Handpainted webcomic? Count me in bro. #Subbed

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thanks for subbing!

[@Devmaycry2023]

@@dionhamillillustrations yw!

[@powptastik]

powptastik!

[@Astromerc]

What are the name's of the webcomics in the 1980's?!?

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Eric Millikin's Witches and Stitches, which he started uploading on CompuServe in 1985. Crazy early. I can't even fathom how long it would take to download with the bit rates we had back then

[@adhdeity]

I never heard of a “web comic”. I must’ve been hiding under a rock😂

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Hey, thanks for taking the time to watch my video and leave a comment. There is a wonderful world of online webcomics that just doesn't get enough recognition or a look-in because its not mainstream publishing. The best part is the stories are usually written by people really interested in a particular genre. So the comics tend to be less same-same like you might get with your mainstream comics. What ever your interests are someone has probably made a webcomic about it😁

[@adhdeity]

@@dionhamillillustrations that’s dope! I had no clue about this. Great to see the art and also learn of this community! Appreciate the reply, you typed a lot lol 😎🙏🏽

[@fahadalghamdi9316]

"in short, don't make a webcomic! Why can't you just make a...comic.. everyone knows that putting the word "web" in front of things makes them crappier, think of what happened to "pages" and "cams" and "logs" ..and who could forget the fall of the mighty.."-isode" oh, so tragic!" - Strong bad, from H*R fame.

[@ibogggh2975]

I will never work for a company

[@kier1800]

IP = INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

[@Chropoles]

i dont think web comics was as early as 1980's, perhaps early to mid 90's.

[@dionhamillillustrations]

The first comics to be shared through the Internet were Eric Millikin's Witches and Stitches, which he started uploading on CompuServe in 1985. Compuserver predated the World Wide Web, or what we know as the internet today. It's kind of the first ventures into webcomics, nothing like what we have now. But pretty cool to think that someone had the idea and initiative to do it way back then with such limits. Thanks for commenting and watching.

[@miwe3719]

Too bad I suck at drawing

[@dionhamillillustrations]

I used to suck too. But you never know, with just a bit more practice...

[@JacksonTaylorandTheSinners]

Stunning work. 🫡

[@dionhamillillustrations]

Thank you!