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Karijn-s-Basement β Adoptables Tutorial Repost
Published: 2012-07-16 13:23:02 +0000 UTC; Views: 32605; Favourites: 873; Downloads: 256
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Description
Reposted because dA has converted the original deviation into a text deviation.
Until I've found a way to fix it, we'll need to do it this way.
Adoptables Journals Series:
Adoptables, Basics for Adopters
Adoptables, Basics for Adoptables Artists
Adoptables Tutorial
Adoptables, Writing an Artist's Description
Adoptables, Customs
Adoptables, Design Tutorial
Adoptables, Buying Adoptables
Adoptables, Pricing
Original Species Tutorial
Adoptables, Auctions
Adoptables, Original Species Confusion
Adoptables, I sold one, now what?
Adoptables, Doing It Traditional
Related content
Comments: 424
Thx so much. Its so helpful
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You're welcome.
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thank you for making this 
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You're welcome.
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You're welcome.
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I wrote a series of Journals about adoptables, the second one is here: karijn-s-basement.deviantart.cβ¦
Feel free to read the ones that interest you most, it's not necessary to read all of them.
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ok thank you
im not sure if ill do them....ik still thinking
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Thank you for tutorialΒ I think I have some problems with picking right colours.. I'll do my best to improve!
P.S. I know it's too much to ask for someone who's made a tutorial, but would you mind taking a look at my latest adoptΒ nadinepokerface.deviantart.comβ¦ Β I would be really happy to get some feedback on it. Sorry if I'm annoyingΒ
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I don't know how to make line art smooth...>-<
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If you have a tablet it's easier, but if you use a mouse you might want to take a look at vectors.
This in digital art, in traditional art it's much easier, but colouring must be thought out before doing it or you could end up with a piece you don't like.
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I already use a tablet with a tablet pen. I can't do traditional because I don't have a scanner. Is there a certain technique or way of drawing lines to do?
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Check that the pen pressure option is on. Once you have that, try to edit the brushes settings to have a visible variation of thickness in the lines. If you have SAI you can also use the 'smoothing' settings to help you out.
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I'll try that, thanks!
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maybe you can try to setting stabilizer if you use the program paint tool sai (i dont know if there is stabilizer on photoshop)
good luck
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I may have a problem here because I never do line art in my drawing always a sketchy sketch then paint :/
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A painting still has outlines.
For me personally, painting is quite harder than linearting, because with linearts you have a very visual limit for your colour, while for paintings you need to use shading and highlighting. I addressed the lineart because most adoptable makers use linearts, myself included, and because to do a painting (or a lineless pic) you already have to have a good grasp of how to manage outlines.
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Hai I has a question!
How should I decide how many points to charge for my adoptables? ._. Like, what's too cheap and what's too expensive?Β
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Err, that's not really a question I can answer... I have done a Journal about pricing (you can find it in the links in the description) but it really depends on a lot of factors.
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Wow, you're still getting so many comments on this tutorial :3
I just wanted to ask about pricing, if you don't mind; what do you think are good prices for adoptables?Β
There's a lot of different types of adoptables all with different amounts of time and effort put in, but when it comes to points, I feel like people expect them to be 5-150 points. Definitely no more than 500. I have to use points because I don't have paypal yet, and I feel like pricing adoptables at $5-$15 doesn't have the same problem since people understand dollar amounts and will either like the adoptable or not.
I dunno if my adopts aren't catching on because they just aren't what people are looking for, because I'm bad at something outlined in this tutorial, or because of the point price discrepancy.
I'd appreciate any advice you could give me ;v;
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Prices are and will always be a ticky thing. I've done a Journal dedicated to pricing (you can find it in the links in the description) but it just help you realize what goes in a price, it doesn't tell you that 'if you draw this, you can ask that'.
The chasm between how people percieve the point amount and how much points are worth will always be there, but lately people are slowly starting to accept the fact that 1
Unfortunately, this tutorial here gives you the basic info to start with adopts, but following its steps doesn't guarantee success. Your designs have fair prices and the suggestions I have for you are mostly random things. I don't know if they'll help you but here you go.
The Cepas have a nice design, but in both front view and side view you have the same lineart, which means that the side view is useful only for the body and not the face. I saw you have a Ref too, but there's a difference between having a generic ref for your character and having a side view of your character. Plus, I suggest you use darker colours for the linearts because I had to squint to see the outline of both #2 and #3.
The Tokas are a nice idea too, but written descriptions are not very indicated for adoptables. This is because people tend to skim through descriptions, if they ever notice the description. So you must give them a visual aid so either make another deviation with the examples or do a complete batch with all the possible variations to use as reference in the future.
About Shaiprixes... The first thing I noticed are the frowny faces, which kind of clash with the cuter appearance of their bodies. I don't know if it's a species characteristic, but it's a bit off-putting, if I have to express a personal opinion. Another thing is that some designs are hard to see, especially #2 and #3 of the second batch. Blurred edges are an awesome thing, but not when they make it hard for the markings to be seen. And, at cost of making it seems like I have something against them, there's the problem of the watermark.
Putting a watermark is right and don't think about taking it down, but perhaps you should think about making it smaller, or converting it to a written one... Because in both #4s of both batches, I thought they had a penis bow. Which is fine, penises can have all kinds of shapes and accessories, but it confuses a person who has to distinguish between the adoptable markings and your watermark.
These are the only suggestions I can give you, I wish you good luck with your adopts in the future.
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Thank you so much! This is super helpful ;v;
I really do need to redo the Cepa. I did the weird semi-side-view first and instead of making it into an actual sideview, I made another front view. I don't know what I was thinking, but I'll be uploading the fixed version soon :3
I'll work on a reference for the Toka--I do think I started confusing myself when I wrote the description.
Hmm... I see what you mean about the faces; I'll have see if I can come up with something less pouty, some variation.
Penis bows are a very interesting idea xD
My first version of that watermark was in color, so that was definitely a problem. I'll probably will be switching to a written one soon.
Thanks a lot and good luck to you, too! <3
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You're very welcome.
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I read a ton of your comments from one of your journals and my question was answered as well as it could be, I think .3.
If you could though, it would be great if you could take a gander at my adoptables and critique them? They aren't that old, but I'm still curious about how they're perceived. And if you have time to look, don't worry too much about my "Cepa" species adopts--I've improved the way I draw them and the way I draw/color in general, so I plan to redraw them. I also don't plan to reuse bases if those sheets ever sell.
Btw, I love all your adoptables <3
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AHAHA I love you omg. thanks for this amazing tut! c:
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Haha, happy you liked it.
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Indeed things people can think of for themselves, but no less amusing.
Glad I clicked, cheers for the giggities.
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Happy you enjoyed it.
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hi there! your tutorial was great! thanks for that, but i need to ask you something: if i submit my adoptable OC and someone want it and pay for it, what should i do next? should i send him/her all my works of that character or just the one i submit??? sorry for my stup*d question and sorry for my poor english! hope you understand!!!!!!!!!!!!
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It's ok, I understand the problem but it's not like you need to send them anything, unless you plan on taking down the deviation. But yes, you should link them all the art that you have on that character, it's theirs now, after all.
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Could you take a look at my adoptables? Just keep in mind that I have to draw with a mouse, so the lineart on some is kinda crud XP and I don't like to use bases.Β beaniebabypsycho.deviantart.coβ¦
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They look nice, maybe it would help if you submitted them to some groups, to increase the people viewing them.
You might also want to consider sites like www.colourlovers.com/ for new colour palettes.
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Thank you very much. I'll look into both of those ideas
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I know a lot of people have asked you to do this, but would you be so kind as to tell me what I'm doing wrong with my adoptables? My friends and I have been trying for months to sell our adoptables, and I for one have sold maybe 5 since August.
inside-our-mind.deviantart.comβ¦
My only thought is that I might be under-pricing, but I don't see how that would be an issue.
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Sorry about the late reply. T_T
I am not in the MLP business, so please take no offense with this comment, but the problem to me seems to be the design. Now, from what I can see on the front page, MLP are done with sparkly colours and a mark on the hind, so this doesn't give you a lot of room to work with, if you want to stay within those limits. The problem is that your last sheets of adopts are done on a very basic base (also small, but that's because of pixels) and are made of solid colours, no shading, no highlights, nothing but colour.
Choosing a lineart/base is very important. You can easily see that you sold more adopts with the first base you used, thank this pixel one. And this, despite it having always the same mane style. Also, in the earlier ones, you had some colour changes, something you could call design, instead of just solid colours.
My suggestion is either to find a more suitable base, if you don't want to work on the one you have, or fix up the one you got now. Here's one of your adoptables in comparison to a work I did on the same lineart: sta.sh/010osf2iwjsf A little shading can do wonders, and you just have to do the job one time. Also, changing colours a bit also helps, even some white socks can make the difference.
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Part of the reason I used the simple pixel bases is because they were quicker to color, and few seemed interested in my original pony sheet, but I can try your suggestions. Also, I'm not sure if you saw them, but I have some other species up for adoption, and I'm currently working on individual adopts of some OCs I'm getting rid of.
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Sorry, I just browsed the Adoptables folder in your gallery and saw just the ponies. If you send me a link to the deviations you mean I'll take a look.
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inside-our-mind.deviantart.comβ¦
inside-our-mind.deviantart.comβ¦
New:
inside-our-mind.deviantart.comβ¦
inside-our-mind.deviantart.comβ¦
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They look quite nicer.
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Thank you.
It means a lot to hear that.
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Hello ,Β
thank you for you tutorial ; But ... um i spent working on an adoptable like 3 days and it didn't work xc ?!
Β 8amyemo8.deviantart.com/art/adβ¦
^ that is my adopt , what can you advice me ?Β
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The adoptable is very nice and I can see where the three days' effort went, but there are a few things that could be improved.
The first thing is that the background is too strong compared to the adoptable and she kind of loses importance, so try lowering it's opacity to at least 70-80%. The adoptable should pop out of the BG, not viceversa. 
The second thing is that you didn't submit it to any group. Now, I don't know what base of watchers you're working with, but if you just started making adopts and maybe never did commissions before, it's a bit hard that people will flock you with bids. Try submitting her to adoptable groups, that should help.
The last thing is to fix the description. I'm not sure if you read my Journal about writing descriptions, but yours is a bit messy.
I tried to fix it a bit for you:
BUBBLY RABBIT ADOPTABLE AUCTION
(Paypal Only)
Starting Bid:
Current Highest Bid:
Minimum Raise: $1
Closes on: 9th December 2013
BONUS :
* If your bid is higher than 30$ you will get a free full body from me.
RULES:
* Bid on the comments below.
* Only bid if you have the money on hand and if you are really willing to pay. I will note you if you win the adopt. Please pay within 24hrs, or I will move to the 2nd highest bid.
*Β After purchasing, you are free to develop the character however you want to, give her a personality and such. You can change the design a bit (though I'd rather you didn't). You can also give her new outfits. 'Bubbly Rabbit' is a temporary name, after the purchase you can change it, if you want to.
* A larger file with no watermark will be e-mailed to you after the purchase.
Β *You can not resell, nor claim the art/design as yours .
(This is my first adoptable and I spent a lot of time on this, I hope it works.)
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Oh MY HOLLY GODΒ
THANK YOU SO MUCH TTuTT //cries
this just made me so happyyy //bowsbowsΒ
, so should i take it down and fix it , or ... ?! .
THANK YOU SO MUCHHHH REALLY //thank youu TTuTT
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You can simply fix the file and then edit the deviation, but if you think it's easier for you to delete and re-upload it, do that.
And you're welcome.
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whaaaaaaaaaaa thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ^^Β
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Do you wanna take a look at my adoptables and see if they're good enough?
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Your sunset cat is a more interesting design than the other two you have, because while it has simpler markings, the colour palette is more catchy. Pastel colours are fine, but only pastel adopts with a full pastel palette can be a little... Faint? Some stronger tones might give your designs some extra strenght. Plus, spots and stripes are common patterns, so the colours might help to catch attention if the design itself is simple.
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Can you go check my adoptables account ?
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