Manga School: Backgrounds as Characters

'You’ve read tutorials on designing and drawing characters. You’re also read tutorials on perspective and drawing locations. What happens when you combine the two? Can a location be a character? Let’s find out!'

'When characters are lovingly detailed, a plain old backdrop becomes glaringly simple, and fails to set the location your babies are in.'

'The Horizon Line (which is at the tipping point of the waterfall here) is your eye level, so try to look into your location like you were using a camera.'

'Let’s base the layout on what you’ll find (in your character's room) and how they’re arranged. (Is your character messy? A neat freak? A collector of strange tea mugs?)'

'The method I use is to draw the width of the closest plank first (1). I then draw a line (2) from the bottom corner of the first plank, diagonally through the middle of line 1, and up to the top. I draw a straight line down from that point (3)...'

'Treating our guide lines as just that – guide lines – we can then render this attic room with odd uneven shapes for flavour.'

'Objects and trinkets are placed around the floor, as well as evidence of interior decorating. It’s as if the character who lives here was interrupted, and left their mess on the floor.'

'If you want to draw scenery true to life, or with more believable elements, then by all means do some research and grab reference images to aid you in your designs.'