Wikipedia defines "Inking" as:
Inking is work done by an Inker, one kind of commercial artist
The inker outlines, interprets, finalizes, retraces this drawing by using a pen or a brush. Inking was necessary in the traditional printing process as presses could not reproduce pencilled drawings. "Inking" of text is usually handled by another specialist, the letterer, the application of colors by the colorist.[2]
As the last hand in the production chain before the colorist, the inker has the final word on the look of the page, and can help control a story's mood, pace, and readability. A good inker can salvage shaky pencils, while a bad one can obliterate great draftsmanship and/or muddy good storytelling.
The Inking below was finished after Penciling: A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works in the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms.
I use a marker for my inking. I trace over the pencil strokes, using smooth, consistent curved lines, with big arcs. After I have the entire sketch all inked, I use an eraser to erase the pencil strokes (they're visible after inking with a permanent marker). The result is a refined sketch, that has now eliminated all of the pencil strokes, and is one cohesive, single line, instead of several pencil strokes taken together to achieve the desired stroke.
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-Anthony's Art Shop
