PHEiichiro Oda’s interview on drawing characters
Q: How did you decide on the characters’ positioning in the drawing?
A: First I drew Luffy, then I thought about who I’d have Chopper wave at, so I drew Nami, and well, after I drew Nami, Sanji just had to rush in, and then I also had to draw Zoro and Usopp. That was basically my train of thought while drawing, and [the characters] just keep on appearing like that. This is how I always draw, I jot down what comes to me.
Q: So when do you decide on your color scheme? When you’re inking?
A: Not at all. It comes to me while I’m painting. I only want to draw things I think of at the moment that I’m drawing or painting (laughs). This time around, I first decided on colors I wanted to draw, then I only put in the colors I knew I wanted, and from that point on I just added more and more colors. Because I can see the overall layout of the drawing, I’d say I generally color along with the characters, depending on their particular situation…
Q: Why did you color in multiple layers?
A: Copic is a drawing material that, even if you add one layer and think it looks good, when it gets printed in Jump, it comes out very, very uneven. So if you don’t add a second layer it’ll be hard to look at once printed in the magazine.
Q: And why do you use colored pencils?
A: They’re the ones that are easiest to use and I have used them for many years. I used to use white-out way back when, but then I found out that colored pencils can also be used on top of the copic ink, so yeah. Well, there’s colored pencils that can be used to draw on top of the copic ink, and others that cannot be used in that way. I found [a brand] that does work, so I use those from time to time. It’s a useful tool to use when you want to add in some light highlights [to your drawing].
Q: How did you decide on the characters’ positioning in the drawing?
A: First I drew Luffy, then I thought about who I’d have Chopper wave at, so I drew Nami, and well, after I drew Nami, Sanji just had to rush in, and then I also had to draw Zoro and Usopp. That was basically my train of thought while drawing, and [the characters] just keep on appearing like that. This is how I always draw, I jot down what comes to me.
Q: So when do you decide on your color scheme? When you’re inking?
A: Not at all. It comes to me while I’m painting. I only want to draw things I think of at the moment that I’m drawing or painting (laughs). This time around, I first decided on colors I wanted to draw, then I only put in the colors I knew I wanted, and from that point on I just added more and more colors. Because I can see the overall layout of the drawing, I’d say I generally color along with the characters, depending on their particular situation…
Q: Why did you color in multiple layers?
A: Copic is a drawing material that, even if you add one layer and think it looks good, when it gets printed in Jump, it comes out very, very uneven. So if you don’t add a second layer it’ll be hard to look at once printed in the magazine.
Q: And why do you use colored pencils?
A: They’re the ones that are easiest to use and I have used them for many years. I used to use white-out way back when, but then I found out that colored pencils can also be used on top of the copic ink, so yeah. Well, there’s colored pencils that can be used to draw on top of the copic ink, and others that cannot be used in that way. I found [a brand] that does work, so I use those from time to time. It’s a useful tool to use when you want to add in some light highlights [to your drawing].
