Question about Pixel Art definition
Printed From: Pixel Joint
Category: The Lounge
Forum Name: Resources and Support
Forum Discription: Help your fellow pixel artists out with links to good tutorials, other forums, software, fonts, etc. Bugs and support issues should go here as well.
URL: https://pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9115
Printed Date: 12 September 2025 at 2:11am
Topic: Question about Pixel Art definition
Posted By: architectus
Subject: Question about Pixel Art definition
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 6:05am
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When you guys define pixel art, you say no paintbrushes. Does this mean you can use a size 1 (1 pixel) paintbrush?
Must you use the pencil tool? This seems like an unecessary restriction, especially since you are allowed to use dithering.
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Replies:
Posted By: greenraven
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 7:49am
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Pixel art is whatever you make it out to be. We just have our own rules for submission. But generally yes, pencil tool only. And how else are you supposed to get dithering if not by a pencil tool? Filters? O_O -------------  "pwnage comes with patience, practice and planning." ~ Jalonso 
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Posted By: KittenMaster
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 7:51am
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Copy/paste tool or custom brushes can be used for dithering. And a 1 pixel brush with no anti-aliasing is the same as a pencil tool. You can hide a lot of what you did as long as the end result is still pixel art. |
Posted By: architectus
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 9:02am
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Okay, so it's basically the AA on the 1 pixel brush that is frowned upon.
Thx. |
Posted By: architectus
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 9:25am
| One more question. Sorry if I'm being a pain. What about using the erases brush with the opacity turned down? Or the pencil brush with the opacity turned down? |
Posted By: Hatch
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 9:53am
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Originally posted by greenraven
But generally yes, pencil tool only This is such bs. I wish people would stop spreading this around (not targeting you specifically, gr, you just happened to be the one who said it in this instance). Pixel art is about control and precision. Any tool which takes control away from you and puts it in the hands of the computer is frowned upon. A tool that does so and is also well beyond your capability to reproduce its effects is much worse. Now, there are tools and techniques which seem to take control away from you, but they don't really. Take the fillbucket. It makes the computer automatically fill in a large area with color out of my control, so it's not pixel art right? Wrong. It's a time saving measure. A monkey could fill in that same area. Doing it by hand is a pointless and tedious waste of time. Also take a rough early sketch. Even if done with only unantialiased brushes, the result can't really be called pixel art, but that's how a lot of artists begin their pixel art pieces. They continuously refine, using finer and finer pixel art techniques, until the end result is, no one doubts, pixel art. Any tool which adds a million colors to your palette takes control away from you and is frowned upon. The control inherent to pixel art extends to the palette. A thoughtfully managed and controlled palette is, to me, just as much a thing of beauty as the art itself. If your opacity effects do unexpected things to your palette, consider doing them by hand. Anyhoo, this is all obviously just my opinion. Gallery pieces are taken on a case by case basis. The most important thing is to be absolutely upfront and honest about your methods. If you use a trick that you're unsure about, say so in the description of the gallery piece. It may or may not get in, but your honesty will be admired and your credibility will be augmented. The next logical step is world domination. ------------- |
Posted By: jalonso
Date Posted: 12 September 2009 at 6:58pm
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Originally posted by KittenMaster ...You can hide a lot of what you did as long as the end result is still pixel art.  waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...------------- |