Advanced Text Tips and Tricks in Clip Studio Paint
Clip Studio Paint is a powerful digital painting and comic illustration tool that offers a wide range of features for creating stunning text effects. In this article, we'll explore 10 advanced text tips and tricks to take your text game to the next level.
Tip 1: Create a Custom Font List
Organizing your fonts can be a daunting task, especially if you have a large collection. Clip Studio Paint allows you to create a custom font list, making it easy to access your favorite fonts. To create a custom font list, open the Text Tool and click on the Font List. Then, click the gear icon at the bottom and select "Create New Font List." Give your list a name and select the fonts you want to include. Click OK to save the custom list. To access your custom list, open the Font List and select your custom group from the dropdown menu.
Tip 2: Add Fonts without Installing Them
Did you know that you can add fonts to Clip Studio Paint without installing them on your system? To do this, open the Font dropdown menu and click "Add Font from Files." Choose a font file in TTF or OTF format, and be aware of the message that may appear. Read it carefully before clicking close. The added font will appear in your Font List and can be used only in Clip Studio Paint. To remove the font, go to the File menu, choose "Manage Fonts," select the font, and click the trash can icon.
Tip 3: Font Ligatures in CSP Version 2.0
Font ligatures are combined glyphs that replace certain combinations of characters to improve their appearance. Support for font ligatures was added in Clip Studio Paint version 2.0. Ligatures can be enabled or disabled in the Font settings. They are treated as a single character for font spacing purposes. To disable ligatures for a specific set of letters, go into Edit mode, select the glyph, and disable ligatures.
Tip 4: Text Transformation
Clip Studio Paint offers several text transformation options. Click Transformation settings to access options to rotate text, skew text horizontally or vertically, and mirror text. You can also use these options to create a quick shadowed effect by copying a layer, reducing opacity, flipping vertically, adding horizontal skew, and moving it into place.
Tip 5: Text Outlines
Adding an outline to your text can make it stand out. The Outline option under Font is available, but it may not be suitable for larger art. Alternatively, you can go to Text and enable Edge to add an outline to individual text objects. Adjust the size and color of the outline as needed. To outline an entire layer, go to Layer Properties and click Border Effect. Adjust the thickness and color of the outline as needed.
Tip 6: Adding Colors, Gradients, and Patterns to Text
You can add colors, gradients, and patterns to your text using a Clip Layer. Create a new layer above the text layer and clip it to the text layer. Anything on a Clip Layer only shows where the layer directly below it is visible. For example, you can use the Gradient tool to add a Sunset gradient to the text layer.
Tip 7: Adding Gradients and Shadows to Text
You can apply a gradient to a text layer, and it will only show where the text is. Anything added to this layer will show up on the text. The text remains editable. You can also create a shadow by copying the layer and moving it to create a shadow, making pattern text look less chaotic.
Tip 8: Making Parts of Text Transparent
You can make parts of your text transparent by adding a layer mask to the text layer. Select the layer mask and choose a brush. Switch the color to transparent and paint the transparency onto the layer mask to make parts of the text fade. The text remains editable.
Tip 9: Creating Custom Text Subtools
You can create custom text subtools in Clip Studio Paint. Click to create a custom text subtool and give it a name. Customize the settings as desired. Click the wrench to open the subtool detail palette and click "Save all settings as default." Then, click OK. Note that this will only work for new text objects created with the subtool selected, not existing text objects.
Tip 10: Warping Text
Warping text can add a unique touch to your design. To warp text, rasterize the text layer by right-clicking and selecting "Rasterize." Rasterizing changes the layer to pixel data, like a drawing. Once rasterized, the text can no longer be edited as text. You can then use the Mesh Transformation, Distort Options, or Liquify Tool to warp the text.
Bonus Tip: Balloon Tool
The Balloon tool is a powerful feature in Clip Studio Paint that allows you to create speech bubbles and other shapes. To use the Balloon tool, select the Balloon tool and drag a balloon around your text. The balloon will appear behind your text, and the layer will be converted from a text layer to a balloon layer. You can link the text to the balloon by going to the Object tool and selecting the balloon. Then, you can move the text and create a tail by selecting the text itself and going back to the Balloon tool to choose the Balloon Tail sub-tool. Click and drag to create a quick straight tail.
In conclusion, Clip Studio Paint offers a wide range of advanced text features that can take your text game to the next level. From creating custom font lists to warping text, these tips and tricks will help you create stunning text effects that will make your designs stand out.