Building a STICK FIGURE into a SPRITE

[@KyleSzklenski]

This is massively helping me with my "noodle appendages" issue on my sprites. Thanks!

[@BJGpixel]

That's great to hear! I'm sure there's room for some noodling from time-to-time, but especially for more 'accurate' anatomy it's great to plan out those sharper changes in angle :D

[@justacake2548]

@@BJGpixel never heard of voxels Voxels are the version of 3d pixels

[@emmettbrown3463]

spriter man :D

[@Thy_Vomp]

This needs atleast 100 likes

[@lordwillibur438]

Genius!

[@MagioGaming22]

YAAAAAA🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 :D

[@BreadGinger-f7e]

@@Thy_Vompit did 🫡

[@gamingmostly7244]

W comment

[@gamedevmanti4578]

It's wild to see how well you can capture those posed at such a small resolution! Yiu managed to capture the art style from that X-men game really well.

[@BJGpixel]

Thanks dude, there's something really fun about trying to figure out those poses in such a limited space :D

[@erikjohnson1137]

Although I have a pretty good grasp on these concepts at this point, its always useful to be reminded of the fundamentals because fundamentals are everything

[@Ryan_Thompson]

What I learned from this is that 32px superheroes are bloody hard to draw. I usually work with bigger sprites, so I tried this resolution and while I ended up with something decent at the end, it was painful, and the result was a bit messy.

[@ronomgenuff]

I like the idea of leaving gaps in the silhouette, that's so good for helping remind myself of the form... I feel like I often loose some dynamism in the street between the pose and the coloration. Very cool!

[@saultoons]

This approach is really neat, and spiderman is my favourite superhero so double win :D I can see a lot of similarities in these approaches and traditional media too. This stick figure approach is a lot like drawing, where you construct a line of action, define shoulders/hip lines, and add in the body/limbs to correct proportions. Like you mentioned in the video, it gives a solid foundation for the rest of the piece. And in difference, starting in silhouette seems more like painting, where you are sculpting away or add to the overall blob, fixing proportion as you go. You can arrive at the same final point too which is super cool, no matter your starting preference. I personally prefer silhouettes as a start, but I will definitely try this in the future to see what it's like. Awesome, insightful video as always! :D

[@BJGpixel]

Woo Team Spidey! :D Thanks dude, that's an insightful assessment of the approaches! I kinda flip between stick and silhouette as a starting point depending on the context, but I always find myself questioning the underlying anatomy of the latter approach. That's probably just a matter of experience using that approach, or how complex the pose is. When you're doing a series of the same character sprite, will you chop up an existing silhouette to reposition pieces, or just blob out something new entirely?

[@saultoons]

@@BJGpixel Now I know Spiderverse was missing a pixel version! :D Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. I think you're right in that it depends on the context of the character design, the complexity and the intended usage. If I'm designing a new character I will typically do a bunch of different blobs as quickly and loosely as I can to explore ideas and maybe even find a direction, if I don't have an idea in mind it can be nice to surprise myself. Once I have one I like, the shapes feel right, etc, I will copy-paste that one, moving things around to see, and just keep iterating. I actually have a recent example I will send you. But I think that process comes from my more 2D background, working in animation where shapes/silhouette was drilled into me for design. For something more realistic, or something that needs a set base, I may create 1 pose in standard proportions, and then just copy-paste that adding little details or whatever. But I'm like you, if I skip the construction, the anatomy can look janky and I usually end up doing a construction overlay to fix things up. Like you say, it changes per project and per context. It's also fun to try new stuff out, like drawing a blob and trying to create a character out of that no matter how weird it looks :'D Sorry for the essay haha!

[@BJGpixel]

@@saultoons Ooh interesting, thanks for the detail here; that's an interesting tidbit about the shape/silhouette from the perspective of 2D animation. I can see how that'd tie together the character creation and the animated considerations of preserving volume in a form, working with squash/stretch (depending on the stylization), etc. Gotta try that random blob thing one of these days; I've seen people do that before and it can lead to some interesting character designs that never would have existed otherwise 😂

[@saultoons]

​@@BJGpixel Yeah, the simplicity in shape/silhouette plays so well to animation. The more complex the longer it will take and the more of a headache it will be. For me anyway, I'm sure some people prefer the alternative, perhaps that's why I always prioritise simple shapes. Too much brain hurt :'D YES!!! I'd love to see your blobs hahah!

[@CKTDanny]

2:35 IC what u did there 🕸 Really good video on the process of building up a character sprites in different poses! I found myself more intrigued by the step just before the colouring than anything else - it's just so cool seeing how omitting pixels creates a cleaner look. That's never gotten old yet 😁 The final sprites came out great too! You really managed to capture the energy in those "dynamic" (and iconic) Spider-man poses. It's just a look that's always super fun and inspiring to look at! ✨

[@BJGpixel]

😆😉 Thanks!! Yeah the the pixel omission is kind of like doing a 1-bit approach; looking to get that readability just from the silhouette colour. It works great for showing where the prominent/main colour pixels should be when taking it through the colouring phase :D

[@cuboembaralhado8294]

its kinda fun how spider man has a cyclope face in the first two

[@AdamBarkerThe]

getting the body position right even with a reference is pretty difficult but this makes it way easier, thanks.

[@zenithgames5999]

I used you method in making poses and I've gotten better at having consistent character proportions when animating my characters. Sincerely thank you 🙏

[@angrypotato_fz]

Gold, precious gold! :D I enjoy these little comments (and window's headers / file names, Spriter-Man! ;)) a lot! And I tend to leave such comments in my project files - in case I or someone else reviews them later, it's always good to bring a smile :) The final effect with these poses and colors is quite impressive, nice work! (as usually :)) Good idea with shifting this dark-red/brown into more purple hue!

[@BJGpixel]

Hahaha thanks for catching those dude, especially the shift to the purple! I totally meant to mention that but must have been talking about squares or something 😂

[@fusingfrog23199]

This is what's gonna let me translate all of my current art skills to pixel

[@DirtRed]

I just started pixel art and this is perfectly timed tutorial thanks a bunch

[@czesionyo]

I love Spider-Man. He is one of my top 3 superheros along with Bats and Wolverine. IT is so amazing that U can create such high quality stuff so fast.

[@jacobharvey2946]

I watch all your new videos... but regardless, you had me at Spidey thumbnail.

[@CrusaderGabriel]

This is for sure one of the best resources I've found about character construction in pixel art, other of the best ones I've found is a blog from a game dev who explains the process making a 96 x 96 character... Aside from those, most pixel art tutorials i find focus mostly on super small pixels (like in the original Pokemon) or any size but basically undetailed (which is totally understandable if you're either an absolute beginner or a solo gamedev that has to do code, sprites, sounds, testing, and everything else i forgot to mention) Anyways thank you for the great video

[@Wimpiethe3]

For someone who's been taking basic drawing courses lately this method speaks to me. I have yet to take the plunge into anatomy proper but this sprite method seems the obvious way to go. Also, the sprites in this video turned out really well!

[@Bealzabub]

There's really is a lot of very painterly aspects to this method that I never really realized before!

[@ninsebas3676]

This is by far the best method to make characters I just started almost a month ago and this explanation and process was easy to understand and very useful This channel deserves millions of subscribers.

[@brandonjacksoon]

Thanks, Brandon! Always informative and useful videos!

[@BJGpixel]

Thanks Brandon! :D

[@themelonsoup]

This is so fascinating and I never knew how pixel artists shaded and outlined but now I get it

[@ulrickai]

I'm honestly really REALLY bad at starting from lines then making the silhouette. When I start adding more mass to the lines, I alway feel like the body it too cramped together or the angles just don't look as good then they were in their line form. I'm sure that's an issue with how I'm mentally visuallsing the use of the lines more than the actual function it's meant to serve. Though nicely enough this video kinda helps in letting me have a bit more visual understanding on the placement of the part of the body to get a nice form in the end. I might not be able to completely use the lines as a starting spot for my works but seeing how it can be used does help. Great video as always~

[@BJGpixel]

Thanks dude! Yeah I probably tended to have the opposite issue, where creating a silhouette from scratch was a bit unstructured because I wanted to know where those vertices of the shoulder/elbows/etc were underneath all that. So it's an extra step that also verifies whether or not the anatomy makes some kind of sense lol. Best of luck with your sprite work! :D

[@Harmony270]

I like how the sprites all look like an animation of him jumping and swinging

[@vader9133]

That's because they are!

[@ninasepulveda5667]

huh this was really helpful, i've been struggling sm with such small sprites i avoided them forever, why can't i be flawlessly perfect at the first time??

[@pixelpunkzYT]

This is super helpful! I go about creating sprites in a slightly different way - blocking out a whole silhouette first rather than a stick figure. But your approach to colour, and exaggerating anatomy where possible is really helpful :)

[@dropkickedmurphy6463]

Ive been struggling with proportions on ALL my art, not just pixel art. This sort of gives me an idea for an approach i can try. Also, this may just be me, but i think your use of the orange on Spidey looks a tad... off. I think it is too different from the red, or needs to be distributed more across the sprite. To me, it reads as exposed skin in the suit.

[@wj11jam78]

I've always really struggled with drawing pixel art of characters. I've got weapons, and landscapes, and tilesets down, but people have always eluded me. This video makes me wanna give it another go. The third pose, the swing with his arm down, looks really excellent. The first couple sprites didn't really seem to have a defined light source to me (don't get me wrong, they still look excellent), but that third sprite's shading is just great, and really helps the pose pop.

[@kblyr]

This is so relaxing to watch!

[@EndoScorpion]

I remember playing a Spider-Man game back on the Sega MegaDrive. Might be cool to do a sprite study of that game and compare to what you did here.

[@jonahcoffman3078]

This is going to be extremely helpful for that new Nintendo Garage Builder game coming out in June

[@ezzo622]

I copied every move step by step and only took me about 5 hours xDDD trying to revert the video to see what you done whilst it's sped up was agony but worth, I feel like I've done something I can look at for reference, and doing it step by step kind of made me understand a bit more why and how you do everything

[@DillioGherkin]

This is a very helpful video. I think I can use the tips for my vector art when trying to do something less basic for standing pose. maybe after work, I'll try and do a hero in an iconic pose. I know for sure that I am going to start adding the palate right to the screen so there is no guesswork on flow.

[@leonsteinbach215]

Great job in capturing the details on spiderman. Looks freaking awesome. Also thanks for the idea of reducing the pixel count of the leg in your final pose. I will try to implement this in my next piece

[@Skarzx]

Would love to see another one of these or he'll even a series ! Love your videos man keep it going!

[@sanstheelumbu]

Seriously , you telling the size of character you create or make helps me a better to understand

[@pablocamacho7755]

Thank you so much! I have been trying this technique and finding it useful. It is great that there is a detailed video on it now.

[@regisdrift]

This is exactly what I was looking for! Thank you

[@JuneBugSammy]

I might practice this.

[@lilid704]

Dude your techniques have been very helpful for me and my pixel art thx bro

[@klarsen91]

Great as always!

[@adibrahman9297]

Most helpful pixel art tutorial ❤️

[@BluShiGuy]

Wow that was really cool

[@jonathanspangenberg1563]

Your videos are solid; very helpful and encouraging. Thank you for your effort and hard work. I really appreciate your time and work. I am inspired to start my own work. I am looking forward to see more.

[@shaunm6383]

Spider-man! Spider-man! Does whatever a pixelated Spider-Man can!

[@Ibbys_space]

haha, came back to your channel after a really long time for exactly this! Only 2 weeks old too! Thanks Brandon!

[@Norber2007]

Awesome :) i think i use this way for practice with selective outline i feel not good himself with it.

[@DestusG]

This is really impressive

[@krystawisner6043]

Your intro song is sooo good!!! It gets me so excited for the video

[@rednbloo5796]

Thanks for inspiring me to make pixel art

[@redrenegade566]

Amazing truly amazing

[@pinkajou656]

The thumbnail is fantastic!!!! I can’t wait!

[@Yui714]

Been gaming since 1991 and always wondered how more complex spritework was done. I still want to know more!

[@SamiTheAnxiousBean]

this is despite me using way larger resolutions extremely helpful to me do thank you once again for being amazing at being amazing (and also drawing pixel art I guess)

[@Skeffles]

Really awesome approach! I've got a few sprites to make soon so I'll be returning to this as a guide.

[@inventorel1232]

Beautiful!!

[@Lukasandsomenumbers]

Your vids are so amazing. Even the the thumbnails are helpful

[@johnangelotenorio]

Spidey sprites reminds me of the Spider-man & X-Men game from the SNES.

[@toxictincan]

That video hashtag is so clever I'm not sure if I should be mad or impressed.

[@oyjuk9192]

Ha, Spriter-man (look the layers) 10:29

[@JayJay-ki4mi]

If I could design sprites this well, I'd be a rich boy from all the games I could make.

[@rhyss5618]

this is Really helpful thanks

[@marcosadrian65]

Just could imagine how good will looks the spiderman game of the megadrive if you was the artist

[@Kyle29168]

Trying to turn a character into a skeleton like maybe for some damage animation where they get zapped, it’s basically doing this process but reversed.

[@stan0wska200]

Love your videos Brandon!

[@legends389]

Awesome video =D

[@davidgreen1236]

i have one question if you mind dont answering, what pixel art program do you use its very cool

[@orionlax626]

He just uses Photoshop.

[@zeleck3x]

Spriter-Man!! :D

[@brianfleming2801]

These are great!

[@samuelallen85]

Why have I never thought to use "stick figures"

[@jsprunger6246]

excellent

[@animazingkid7374]

11:19 Ha Ha Ha! Spriter-Man.

[@IamSamisMe]

petition to have Brandon do his on-camera intro?

[@IamSamisMe]

Signed!

[@LunienBrawl]

the SPRITER-MAN layer name kills me

[@niilokolehmainen]

canandian monke man knows his stuff

[@yaazarai]

Quality content.

[@Lerrby]

it's awesome

[@Zye1984]

Uuugh, I have the hardest time with the stick figure thing. I was wondering, do you try to follow the rules/limitations of the hardware the sprite would be used on? (8x8 tiles, 3 colors and 1 transparency color for example) I'm trying to do a project, though I've shelved it atm, and I'm running into roadblocks.

[@ColinTedford]

He does that sometimes, tho usually not the whole set of rules for a particular platform.

[@Gerardo_Ponce]

Insane!

[@mr_baa]

Good tips :)

[@Kasmironies]

hey i know a fun challenge try to make pixel art with hexagons instead of with squarse but now that i think about it finding a way to do that is going to be a challenge all in itself

[@Milchreiz]

Spriter-Man 😊👍

[@zaidthakur4117]

More sprite analysis videos please

[@splonko9788]

I’ve fallen down a rabbit hole on this channel

[@diegocrusius]

LOve it. This video is so good the dislike/like ratio is less than 0.2%

[@valleyboitelevision]

do you post your stick figure poses if so it would be a great help for reference

[@jedizombiekiller9065]

You should try the Donkey Kong Country Rendering style. It could provide a bit of a challenge

[@jedizombiekiller9065]

@@GAHAHAHH well the sprites are so small i feel like its possible to make them without 3d models. I think the hardest part would be shading, but its still worth a try

[@m4r_art]

The best retro-monkey to spiraling yellow background intro that ever was

[@okjoz]

I was just wondering, do you use just a mouse, or do you have a drawing tablet? Also, did you start out with regular drawing, or did you go right into pixel art?

[@orionlax626]

He uses the trackpad on his laptop.

[@Fighka303]

The hard part for me is to get the character to look right that small, anything lower that 160 pixels and it doesnt look right

[@adamk1325]

Hey there brandon and everyone! I'm new here. Just wanna to ask, is this method can be applied to bigger size character sprite too?

[@subwayz_qt5]

Now try making sprites for a late 90s fighting game. About 130-150 px long

[@icon8391]

Oh yes

[@kiddbusiness]

Idk I really like the look of that stickman

[@lurkathon]

haha, the layer is called spriter-man

[@brenoferreira7480]

Brandon, how much time did you spend on these sprites, man? The thing that is frustating me a lot is the time that I've been spending on my sprites. I know that ``rush is enemy of perfection´´, without a doubt, but in my case, I'm talking about 5 + hours. :/ (If you could make a video sharing your own experience with this, I would appreciate a lot.)

[@AlessandroCecconi]

the only thing bothering me is that highlight for the red, I think it's way too bright, other than that it's all really amazing lol

[@ArtisticallyAlex]

What software do you use?

[@worldcupishowspeed]

Sheeeeeeeesh

[@sammiller8925]

spriter man lmfaoooo