Pixel Joint Forum: trying some dithering

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   I kept the colors to minimum and wanted to most depth etc with dithering.

Most of the time i used the simple pattern, none of the complex patterns. when is best to use those (like that circle or cross pattern many people use). Any general advice on dithering?

Thanks a lot.

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800 Seaman Joined: 20 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Topic: trying some dithering Posted: 31 May 2012 at 6:25pm
	I kept the colors to minimum and wanted to most depth etc with dithering. Most of the time i used the simple pattern, none of the complex patterns. when is best to use those (like that circle or cross pattern many people use). Any general advice on dithering? Thanks a lot.
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toxotes Midshipman Joined: 27 April 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 14	Posted: 31 May 2012 at 6:53pm
	Dithering implies texture and noise. Large clusters of solid colors read much more clearly than trying to blend everything with dithering. If you place the colors carefully, the eye will do the blending for you. I'm not saying don't use dithering, that would be ignorant. Just use it in reserve, and make sure to make the transition between dithered colors smooth by carefully choosing your colors (i.e.: using neighboring hues and values). If the colors cant stand as hard-edge shading and look good, dithering isn't going to fix that.
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800 Seaman Joined: 20 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Posted: 01 June 2012 at 1:35pm
	So you think I should rather block the colors of, say pants, shoes, and dither only the trees and the headlight, where i want some noise? I tried to use very few colors and get something extra by checker boarding two colors. Maybe I should have used grey tones rather. Also, i really need to figure out the color business, so i will look for some tutorial. Thanks for the input
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Friend Commander Joined: 01 April 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 710	Posted: 01 June 2012 at 2:38pm
	you want to dither where it makes sense, and in a way that makes sense artistically. Dithering in itself is an art, and most of the time, people do it terribly. Looking back on your entire piece, you want your piece to look as good as it can. It is up to you to decide if dithering is necessary or if it will hinder the style you are going for, but if you decide you want to dither, you can't just simply do it. You need to be artful with it. Make sure the colors you're dithering dither well together, make sure you're using the right pattern and the right amount of dithering. My best advice is to browse the gallery for well dithered pieces and study them. I'll repeat, dithering is an art, and you can't just do it and think it'll add to the piece, because chances are it's ruining it
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r1k Commander Joined: 01 April 2014 Online Status: Offline Posts: 336	Posted: 02 June 2012 at 6:04am
	right now I think you should work on increasing the readability because I couldnt really tell what was going on until I zoomed in. heres a not so great edit I did the idea was basically to make the background dark so it sits back in space more, and put some highlights on the legs to the are easier to see. maybe a more graphic approach could help readability with the low color restriction. I think the space between the foot and suitcase right now seems flattened like they are on top of the same space. the leg on the right also seems better drawn in general than the leg on the left.
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800 Seaman Joined: 20 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Posted: 02 June 2012 at 11:41am
	All that makes sense. I'll check out the gallery and also use the edit to keep working on the other. It is true, it is hard to really see what is going on without looking at it for a while, knowing that and clearing things up, to make the points stand out better was a way I had trouble with. Is there a rule of thumb what colors go well together, or they just "feel" right? Also, I thought dithering can be used to blend two colors, say you want to make a cylinder, could you not use two colors, one left, one right, then checkerboard dither in the middle? As I had so few colors I wanted to work with, I also thought I could create more colors by blending them that way.
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Friend Commander Joined: 01 April 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 710	Posted: 02 June 2012 at 11:53am
	I think typically you want to dither with colors that are close in value. Like you don't want to dither with black on a very light green, for example. I think it tends to work best with colors near each other on the color wheel, but making good and creative use of dithering can sometimes be achieved with seemingly uncoordinated colors. Have you taken a look at Cure's section on dithering in the Pixel Art Tutorial? Here's an example of dithering done rightly. http://www.pixeljoint.com/pixelart/69502.htm Edited by Frost Butt - 02 June 2012 at 1:04pm
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800 Seaman Joined: 20 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Posted: 03 June 2012 at 9:21am
	Ok, i think I got the idea. That picture is pretty impressive, and I see what the different patterns etc are capable of. But I think I have to work on the palette as much as the dithering. I will redo most of what I had before, taking all that into account. Thanks for the help, always good to get stuff cleared up.
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