Scanning and colouring

Method:

1. Open up Photoshop.
2. Scan in all frames of the animation.
3. Copy and paste everything into one file as layers (bottom to top numbering).
4. Rotate, crop etc.
5. Open Timeline (or Animation) panel.
6. Time out animation according to dope sheet.
7. Chuck on Levels and Black & White adjustment layers.
8. Group all layers.
9. Set group to Multiply.
10. Fix up ugly bits in lines.

Colouring instructions (for my colourists):

For my dear colourists,
the outline you receive should already be cleaned up to something like this
with aforementioned Levels and Black & White layers.

1. Fix up any holes in the lines (black, approx 3px, 99% hard).
   
   

   

   For Step 1, what I mean by holes...

   

   ... and how you fix them.

   
   
2. Create new layer beneath outline layers.
3. Trim to same length as corresponding outline layer in the Timeline. (<= just ignore this if you don't have Timeline)
4. Magic wand (w) to select background (outline layer). Try to get as close to the line as possible by adjusting the tolerance value. The bits leftover use Shift + Select. The reason for this is because the adjustment layers for the outlines don't affect the outline layers themselves, which you are making the selection on. And those layers are messy.





5. Select inverse.
6. Fill (g) black to create a silhouette (colour layer). This is to compensate for the scratchy pencil outline. Random black pixels look better than white ones.



7. Lower opacity so that the lines are visible again (colour layer).
8. Magic wand (w) same colour areas (outline layer).
9. Fill (g) with corresponding colour (colour layer).
10. Repeat from 8 until all areas are coloured.
11. Max the opacity.
12. Manually colour in with the Brush (b) any bits missed.
13. Repeat from 2 until all frames are coloured.

Example of how the colour layers are meant to end up; the outline layers are the top half, the colour layers at the bottom match their corresponding outline.

For those without Timeline, this is the basic layer structure you're aiming for.

Notes:

• Make sure you are on the correct layer.
• Just because the marker cursor thing is showing a certain layer on the Timeline doesn't mean the layer is actually selected.
• New layers start where the marker is on the Timeline.
• Useful shortcuts:
• Magic wand => w
• Brush => b
• Fill => g
• Eyedropper => hold Alt while on Fill or Brush
• New layer => Ctrl + Shift + n
• Brush size => [ and ]
• Trim to end of marker thing (I set this one myself) => Ctrl + Alt + d

Colouring instructions (pseudo-code version):

while (curr < numFrames+1) {

     if (holes in curr) {

          Fix up holes in the lines (black, approx 3px, 99% hard).

     }

     curr = next frame

}

while (frames != coloured) {

     Create new layer beneath outline layers.
     Trim to same length as corresponding outline layer in the Timeline.
     Magic wand (w) to select background (outline layer).
     Select inverse.
     Fill (g) black to create a silhouette (colour layer). #This is to compensate for the scratchy pencil outline. 

                                                                                #Random black pixels look better than white ones.
     Lower opacity so that the lines are visible again (colour layer).

     while (frame != coloured) {
          Magic wand (w) same colour areas (outline layer).
          Fill (g) with corresponding colour (colour layer).

     }

     Max the opacity.
     Manually colour in with the Brush (b) any bits missed.

     curr = next frame

}