John Martz

I’m happy to answer, but I’m afraid it’s not too interesting.

Any cartoon-style inking you’ve seen is actually done in Manga Studio (or actual ink), and not Photoshop. Manga Studio often feels like half-finished software, especially compared to Photoshop, but its drawing tools are much better for cartooning (or at least mimicking dip pens and brushes).

My settings do not vary much from the default, but here’s a screenshot of what I use:

I have the buttons on the side of my Cintiq set up so that one of them alternates between black and transparent inks, and the other toggles the auto-correction to help smooth out large, clean arcs, which otherwise get a little wobbly.

Additionally, these settings will produce entirely different results based on the sensitivity settings in the Wacom preferences, and based on how much pressure you draw with.

So really, what works for me, might not work for you. It all depends on what kind of a line you’re trying to create, how you work, and how your hardware is calibrated. With any piece of software or art tool, experiment and find what works best for you. There is no right way.