Is Pixel Art Easy to Make? Get Your Answers Here

Computer graphics have come a long way in the past decade or so. Back then, designers and software engineers were severely limited by the technology they had to work with. However, they still somehow managed to create the magic that is now known as pixel art. If you’re wondering, is pixel art easy? the answer might surprise you.

Even with the latest developments in video game design on hand, many people still long for the good old days when they spent hours playing “Sonic the Hedgehog” or “Donkey Kong.” Using low-resolution videos, those games still played a significant role in many people’s childhoods.

Pixel art can allow you to revisit your past and draw accurate representations of your favourite characters. The attention to detail that is required in such cases is a lot more than what is expected from a regular artist.

As such, pixel art can be quite strenuous. However, with a lot of practice, you may be able to bring Mario and Luigi back to life one pixel at a time.

Is It Easy to Make Pixel Art?

If you ask anyone on the street what they think is harder to learn between pixel art and digital art, chances are they would assume it’s the latter. After all, how difficult can it be to draw such low-resolution pictures by adding different coloured pixels on a canvas?

However, it turns out that pixel art is just as difficult (if not more) as digital drawing. This boils down to the fact that when making a digital drawing, simply getting the overall shape right can be enough to create a beautiful piece of art.

In pixel art, however, even small actions can leave the picture quite distorted. If you accidentally move even a single pixel to the wrong box, the results can be glaringly obvious. You should also realize that even though you are dealing with very low resolution, fundamental art principles, such as anatomy, composition, and art theory, are still important.

The only saving grace for beginners is that any mistake you make can be completely erased as if it never existed. This means all you need is a lot of dedication and patience, and you will get it right in the end.

What Do You Need to Become a Pixel Artist?

There are four basic skills that you need to master if you are planning on becoming a good pixel artist. These are anti-aliasing/shading, dithering, colour, and line art. Constant practice is often required before you can easily make pixel art using such skills.

To make this retro artwork, start by understanding how the tiny pixels you are moving around will interact to create the overall image. Next, pick a good resolution for your picture and choose the right colours.

Determine the size of the pixels you want to work with, keeping in mind that while smaller ones may require a lot of work, a big pixel will have a greater impact on the picture if placed incorrectly.

Lastly, you will need to create the grid on which you will be drawing. Working with a good pixel editor, such as Adobe Illustrator or Adobe Photoshop, can make your job significantly easier.

Can you make money with Pixel Art?

Digital creators of art, animation, video games, and applications regularly require the services of a good pixel artist. However, whether or not this can be a full-time job may depend on the nature of the project.

A video game developer who is creating a pixel game, for example, may find it better to hire a full-time pixel artist until the game is completed, a process that can take many months in some cases.

It is important to realize that pixel art is just a style of creating images, while an artist does the job. This means you can be hired to handle the artwork in various capacities, of which pixel art is just one.

The emergence of AI technology has also given artists a new headache to deal with. Advanced AI models are being developed that may be able to create high-quality portraits, backgrounds, and pixel characters at a much faster rate.

However, whether such AI technology is ready to rival real artists is yet to be seen. In the meantime, there is still a lot of room in the digital art industry for talented pixel artists.