Ice Cube, Character By No_Kangaroo_8762 On Reddit

Hi hi um you helped me with one of my drawings on the criticism club, tysmmmmmm for that, I've fixed it a lot but I'm not done colouring so I won't be posting it yet :) your advice was insanely helpful, because I realised the arm wouldn't be there,and a BUNCH of other things

I was just exploring your posts and OMG HOW YOU RENDER SKIN AND HAIR IS SOO PRETTY AND GORGEOUS OMG!!! AND I LOVE THAT ONE DRAWING OF AN EYE U MADE AHH!

Sooo while i was looking at my fav post of yours, I was reading the description and you were talking about the new blend brush in magma! So, I'm assuming you use magma? I've been using it for like, half a year, but im not a pro at digital art so I don't really know what all the layer settings and whatever are. I did watch a video but it was a bit confusing. I know about like opacity and whatnot but I'm still a bit confused on mainly the layer settings. Also, I can't find any tutorials on magma apart from blending :(

I was wondering if U could maybe explain a bit, just the basics like multiply and add and most of the layer settings a begginer would use :) I'm sort of stepping out of my comfort zone because I don't usually bother with colouring and stuff. Any tips U recommend for magma would also help tons! Omg I just realised that this is kind of a stupid request because you probably have to explain a lot... Sorry!

idk how to end this ┐⁠(⁠ ⁠∵⁠ ⁠)⁠┌

ok ok this will be a long post!!

i made this graphic a long time ago for my friend @mythology-lover, this is using all layer blend modes with the colour bright orange, so you can see what each one does. most of them are self explanatory, I hope. there is no "add" in magma, but colour dodge is similar. I'll go over how to use the blend modes below!

not sure if you want to know how to use the blend modes to render stuff but i'll show you anyway lol

this was a drawing i posted, and i actually detailed my step by step process for my friend again, but I use multiply or darken for shading, its the best way to shade and personally I use dark red for shading but this can change based on lighting. obv I also lower the opacity cuz I don't want bright red. my tip for using multiply is to use a colour more saturated/brighter than you think you would use, cuz multiply ends up darkening the colour anyway.

i recommend using blend modes for shading because they have some "transparency" to them, if you put on shading in a block colour with no blend mode it'll just cover up things you already drew like blush or makeup. i also just create more multiply layers to build up darker and darker shadows.

also, when it comes to more dramatic lighting, ill just put a multiply layer over the WHOLE drawing since in real life in a dark scene there will be a shadow over everything including darker shadows for the actual details. after I add the multiply layer (this one is blue because its supposed to be a nighttime scene and the sky is dark blue) I just erase parts where light is hitting the object

(this isnt well done because im making this quickly)

and when it comes to lighting i like to use overlay, it creates this really nice saturated glowy effect. you can use colour dodge too but it creates these weird artifacts of pixels that are a completely different colour, at least for me

with overlay

also maybe you already know this, but the little square icon next to the opacity bar is alpha lock its useful if you don't wanna have to make a whole layer and clip it to the layer underneath

also... my BEST advice for magma has got to be to use filters, they save my life, and I frequently use them when my colours arent looking too good. and I specifically LOVE using the "curves" option when you click filters.

they let you control how bright the drawing is, and specifically the amount of each colour (red, green, and blue) in your drawing

here i reduced blue, increased red, and reduced yellow, plus reduced contrast and increased saturation plus made it a bit brighter. looks a lot better in my opinion, filters can really save a drawing lol

random tips: use lasso selection its basically necessary! if the paint bucket/fill tool isn't working that great, increase tolerance and turn on anti-alias, you can also try using the smart option. although I gotta say generally I don't use fill tool as it only really works if you have very clean, sharp, and connected lines. usually what I'll do instead to save time on colouring is make a layer below the lineart, and then make the target layer "above," and then fill it, then fill in the gaps manually. i also recommend using the full mode layout option, unless you have a small screen then it's most optimal, because then you can see all the tools and options.

i also use this layout thing, idk what its called, and have each one be a different brush with different settings (for me, one will be a soft brush with hardness and density lowered, another a hard round (default) brush, another a textured lineart brush, a brush for stars, freckles, or other scattered dots where I just turn up spacing, scattering and jitter for size variation)

also... make sure you flip your canvas to catch your mistakes, you wont notice them until you see it from a different perspective, and the flip canvas button is up top

its this one

this is for colouring, but periodically go to "view" and click "show in greyscale" so you can see the contrast between your colours. if everything's the same shade or similar shade of grey, you need to make some parts darker or lighter to make them stand out

ngl i think that's it, unless there's something else you need to know. just realised I've been using magma for like 4 years at this point, time really flies by. hope I helped!

i think i've mentioned this before... but here is the FIRST depiction I've ever made of puma guy. i kid you not this is his original first design (I always intended him to be a human but I feel like a lot of the design elements for him make sense once you see this lol)

it's... its really bad ok theres a reason i draw instead of sew, obv pattern is not mine but I made this in a sewing class so if anyone knows the original pattern let me know, mine def looks warped compared to the original tho

honestly it was literally just for fun I just chose cloth patterns I liked, but who would know it would lead to this..

literally dont look at the stitches its all hand sewn I didn't use a sewing machine so its really uneven and janky

his shirt is literally a square piece of cloth that's kinda folded on the edges I didn't put any effort into it

i literally finished making this plushy and then I just had a vision flash in my head of him looking super cool... literally all my character designs come from just... images that pop into my head spontaneously

imagining his reaction lol

this actually looks fine even though i literally played badminton for 1 and a half hours straight and my arm hurts and is so weak rn

sigh... i'm afraid my doodles don't make sense once again

don't judge my atomic model

genuinely this is insane without context

Joel, character by Meowica_ on Reddit

finally a DUDE lmaoo ive only been drawing girls or non-guys

erm we dont talk about the japanese characters the person who made the OC doesnt even know (still love their art tho give them a follow), and i did ask 😭 hopefully it doesnt say something embarrassing, i only know chinese, not japanese

<3 high contrast and COLOURS

sacrificing my dignity cuz i had to draw a catboy (its a fox i know but still)

rocks!!!

found a SUPER COOL rock today its green and red and striped and has some quartz crystals and white stripes i love rocks soooo much

also i have cinnamon bread its so yummy

oc lore dump pls

bruh I can't explain things in words, this is gonna sound awful

so jayden is a silly little guy (he murders on occasion) who can turn into a LION MADE OUT OF FIRE and it's really cool and big and strong. He has black nails but it's not emo!!! its from the demon 😈who's super evil (and there's a number 2 demon that looks like a weird spiky creature thing) but this demon basically looks like satan but not red, instead its blue and black. Jayden doesn't have real horns guys!! its part of his hair, he just got weird cowlicks man don't question it, it's just how asian hair be sometimes (I literally have a picture with cowlicks that look exactly like horns bro)

jayden is super happy all the time it's technically one of his flaws, he's a bit too trusting at times, he's had multiple bad experiences with people close to him, but he values honesty so much that he just assumes other people mean what they say. Nothing really brings him down, and he only gets serious when people close to him are at risk. you KNOW you messed up when he stops smiling lol. His hair is basic af idk why NO ONE can draw it istg its just an undercut that's kinda swept to the side! ngl I don't wanna explain much about him plot-wise so I'm keeping some stuff a secret until later.

His chinese name is 尊强 (zun qiang in mandarin pinyin) and it literally means "honour strong" and his last name is huang (like the colour) which is lowkey a basic af southern last name but it's literally a name in my family soooo... Jayden as his English name is just smth I made up cuz no one in the kingdom can say his name right let alone with correct tones. Speaking of southern he's from Zhongshan in Guangdong!! southern Chinese food SLAPS man I'm hungry just thinking about ittt also jayden is a massive foodie ofc he loves snacks and BOBA (the lore of the unreleased boba IV and I love anime girls gangster story goes crazy)

Family trauma also go crazy but again i dont wanna spoil but his dad and grandpa did some evil things... but somehow jayden pushes on? I'm literally the writer but his resilience surprises me sometimes bruh.

his story is kinda goofy (and by goofy I mean literal tragedy with a large dose of comedy) but like I GOTTA include the colourism and racism arcs bro the kingdom so mean to him for NO REASON

also what if i said that the whole concept of my comic that I've literally structured my whole life around came to me in a literal dream. like it was enlightening bro it just came to me idk my dreams are crazy.

omg i forgot to mention Levels, he got a star in his eye bro, he's Level 10 he sees spirits real good. Also his eyebrows are goofy I know, but like... it's just an exaggeration, irl there are eyebrows with a sort of "tail" like that. he's really strong did I mention that yet? like even without powers, he's very skilled in combat that's why he's ripped lol, his sifu is literally based on a real sifu I've had before, sifu's also so silly!! i think it's so funny to have a character who looks tough but is super nice and not scary at all.

also he's got sharp upper canines, he literally looked demonic before the demon (there is an explanation for this but again no spoilers)

i gave him bellbottom pants cuz i like bellbottom pants. if anyone asks me why i chose specific fashion/clothes for characters ima just say "cuz I like it... lol"

also he's 19 although he acts quite young, it's just how he is.

he's kinda dumb but the reason for this is pretty sad (systemic issues go crazy) he just don't take in information that well and he just thinks in a very black and white way.

his biggest motivation gotta be JUSTICE (omg he's an SJW) what he cares about the most is that people get what they deserve, whether its good or bad. cuz he grew up poor even when his parents work hard, so he know what "unfair" means.

he's absolutely COVERED in scars (ngl thats my own stubbornness with details, I just can't stand it when mfs in shows get hurt and then a week later they're fine with no trace of injury???) he kinda throws himself into fights, obv he defends himself but he isn't afraid to take the force and not to mention he is very protective of others, so he'll get in the way of an attack just to save someone else or buy time.

his eyes (well.... one eye) are BLACK man they're not brown bro idk why people keep doing that "black eyes aren't real" idk if ppl colour his eyes with dark brown!! but his eyes aren't a medium brown, they're as close to black as possible! and his eyes arent slanted bro! his eyes just look like semicircles with the flat side on the bottom!

and idk why no one can draw his nose. his nose is STRAIGHT it don't curve down it don't curve up PLEASE just draw a straight nose!! and don't NOT draw his lips man... i hate to see it bro, it just looks ODD, it's like whitewashing but without the white IDK how to describe it. ain't NOBODY can draw his side profile correctly man, whitewashing of his side profile is even WORSE. like he don't have a nose that stick out that much man, you cant just slap a generic anime side profile on him and expect it to work. i see SO many people who cant draw east asians man, like GO OUTSIDE I sort of get it for people who live in places with like zero east asians, but a lot of people who have drawn my OCs live in like California?? idk man, but if you cant draw east asians, either learn how to do so or don't draw jayden

and his skin colour... bro it's like hot chocolate (yes I know its a little weird to compare skin colour to food, but it's the easiest way for me to tell people and what other people have told me his skin looks like) so PLEASE don't lighten it OR darken it! I've gotten a piece of fanart where he is literally super dark brown. like LOOK AT MY REF!! and I see SO many people who draw his skin really desaturated. I'm not asking people to draw his skin like the super saturated orange that I use, but you gotta have some colour man!

kinda turned into a rant but i have so much to say man I LOVE rambling about my characters. also jayden's eyes... another thing I see wrong has to do with how much eye whites are showing. when he has a neutral expression, there is no visible eye whites above or below his iris! his iris takes up a lot of his eye! when ppl draw his irises small af (or give him "dead eyes") it don't look like him! he also got the little fat under the eyes it makes him look like he's smiling I love it

jayden def lives in the moment. he's never too worried about the future or super anxious about things. he's just a chill guy lol. also his attention span is non existent if it's not about things he's interested in. he's not too shy usually, but he is quite shy with people he likes.

he initially was scared by the prince and thought he was gonna be a bad person, but turns out the prince just CLUELESS and very soon after they've been on "friendly relations" if you know what I mean lol. he gives up a little too much for the people close to him, it's quite a flaw that he wouldn't even hesitate to get hurt for the sake others, he never thinks about himself enough. speaking of, ofc he basically let himself get stabbed cuz to him, he'd rather lose an eye than for the prince to even get a papercut.

also he likes CATS!!! KITTIES!!! (well... ifykyk what happens)

his relationships with other characters is either silly and happy or extremely serious and begrudging in a way that actually really impacts the plot

the lore behind the scar on his neck is a tad bit insane

OMG this is so long i don't expect anyone to read all this

i am NOT gonna read this again man I guarantee its cringe AF

Estheriel, character by by Estheriel_14 on Reddit

CHICKEN JOCKEYYY

i cannot escape from the brainrot

cool metal hand thing tho idk what's up with that

Tumblr

Man with threatening note shot, killed by Oregon trooper at Salem airport

A man was shot and killed by an Oregon State Police trooper at an Army training center at the Salem-Willamette Valley Airport on Thursday mo

please share the linked post to spread awareness!! Matthew Walter Wong was unjustly killed by police on 27/2/25!

more OCs I created when I was 9 (these are a bit later than some of the first ones I posted, you can tell because the designs are more complex) these are all from a superhero team, except the blue hair skirt girl

i dont know whats with the yeti her name is devil apparently and she likes everything (actual note I wrote idk)

would you believe that the girl with the black bob is some sort of weird knockoff of... cleopatra idk how but I listed her weakness as romans??

OC by @xxcannot-do-mathxx (not sure the name)

erm i had a LOT of fun haha i kind of went over the top, I wanted to emphasise the expression and scariness lol

i'm really proud of the shading and colouring I think it looks great

I spent 4 hours on just this simple bust that's way too long but I think it was worth it I really like how fun this is

drawing is so funnnn

also i just figured out how to draw eyes I'm so happy

im so glad i was able to add funky colours to the skin without it looking weird and mucky like in the past lol

SPARKLESSS

love the colours it looks so juicy

seeing the improvement from just a month ago is WILD (anyone remember that old eye I drew??)

i think i've also just gotten more comfortable with the blend brush