Copic Markers Process

In this post I will write about Copic markers and my coloring process.

 

 Information 

Copic Markers are considered one of the finest markers for all the designers , illustrators and comic artists. This brand was produced in 1987 in Japan with 71 colors (Classic type). In the past 20 years, Copic has been developing new marker types and adding more colors such as:

•  Copic Sketch (1993) with 144 colors.
•  Copic Ciao ( 1998) started with 72 colors. (Affordable markers for beginners)

 For more information you can visit their website here.

Copic markers official chart is designed to show the Copic markers' system as shown in (fig.1)

(Figure1: Copic marker chart)

The main family (Color type) or (Hue) are Violet , Red , Yellow , Green , Blue , Earth , Grey collections = ( Cool Grey, Toner Grey, Natural grey , Warm grey) and Florescent.

 As for the rest of the color types, they are a combination of two single hues:

Blue + Violet = BV        Red + Violet= RV           Yellow + Red = YR etc. 

There are two digits next to the color type which refer to the color's saturation (Left) and brightness (Right). Both digits have a level scale from 0-9 , when the number on the left is higher the color becomes more saturated. As for the right digit , the color becomes brighter when the digit is near to 0.

(Figure.2)

The best way to blend the colors is by :

• Having the same color type (Hue).
• Keeping the same saturation level.
• Using two different bright levels.

Copic markers are expensive and following the method above for blending process could be costly , however it's not necessary to buy all the color types by following the chart, you can skip some colors.  For example as shown in (Fig.3) you could have BV01and BV04 to create smooth blending without BV02. 

(Figure.3) BV chart

It's important to know these information about the markers especially if the artist has a low budget or  would like to try them for the first time.

Collections 

 It took me five years to collect my Copic markers (125 colors) as shown in (Fig.4). Most of the artists who use Copic markers talked about their experience when they bought them. Some of the artists can afford the markers so they managed to buy them within a short time , but it took other artists around 4 to 10 years to have all the 350 colors. If you are a beginner , it's preferable to read more about the Copics and start with 10 markers or a small set as shown in (Fig.5). Experiment with them and make yourself aware of how to use them before buying a big set. 




 

(Figure.5) Skin tone collection

(Figure. 4) My Copic collection, 2019

Coloring Process 

Here is an example of my coloring process using Copic Markers

I usually begin by coloring the skin using either E00 or E51. It's just  my personal preference. Other artists prefer to use E000 or E21.  Choosing the colors for the skin depends on   the character's skin tone and they belong to the "E" family. 

I wanted to color the hair with a brown marker, but I usually  add a basic light color which  helps me with the blending process later, also it applies a watery effect. I've used E00 to color the hair and to add more shades on the face.

R20 is my favorite color. It gives the skin tone and hair deep shadings   This color goes well with the "E" family.
There is also E02 which is similar to R20 , but less reddish and more pinkish. 

I've used C3 for basic shading on her scarf, a bit on her face and finally on her dress. The dress will be colored with darker tone of the C family "almost black", but as I mentioned before using light colors for basic coloring is better for shadings and adding gradual coloring tones later.

Note: I like to use the grey value especially the Cool grey on everything in my drawings. It emphasizes the depth and the shades on the illustration.
Also, I use C0 and C1 as blender tools. 

RV42 resembles R20. However, it's brighter so I've used it to  add more shading on the skin as well as the hair where needed.

I've colored the inner design of her dress as well.

Y32 is the yellow marker which I used to color some parts of the dress's design.

B60 is the BEST marker for shading and for reducing the colors saturation . Comparing to the above image you can see the difference between the yellow color on her dress. In this image I've colored with B60 over the yellow color because I wanted to reduce it's saturation (Since I don't have a yellow marker with low saturation effect, also it's effective when I don't have enough budget to buy another yellow marker).

This method usually works with bright colors and high saturated ones.

Y32= 3 High saturated because it's close to 0

       = 2 High brightness because it's close to 0

YR02 is Light Orange. This color is perfect if you are a fan of highly bright colors . I used this marker to color the inside of her scarf. Also I've added some highlights on her dress's design. 

I used the same color on the edges of her dress (Shoulder area) and the scarf as well. Also I added a dark line to emphasize the illustration.

Finally I colored the hair with E71 brown color. It's not too dark nor too light which could be useful if you are not sure of which brown you want to go with.

YG42 is the green I chose to color her eyes and the cat's eyes as well. 

I've used  C5 marker to darken her dress to add more shades on the scarf.

Finally , I've used RV42 on her scarf as well as on the cat's body. White gel pen (Sakura brand) was used to add few white dots at the finishing illustration.