How To: Eight-Bit Art

Pixel art, also known as 8-bit art, is a retro form of art that harkens back to the days of Atari and arcade game characters. Basically, it's pixilated digital graphics. Instead of using painting software tools to paint broad strokes on a canvas, the artist paints each individual pixel, creating a simplistic, block-like image. This process can only be done with higher quality painting software such as Photoshop or Corel because changing from a higher resolution to 8-bit is a more advanced feature.

Instructions

1. • 1

     Open the File menu and click "New" or "New Project."

   • 2

     Click the "Color Depth" or "Color Mode" option to make its drop-down menu appear.

   • 3

     Click "8-bit," then click "OK." An 8-bit canvas will open in the work area. The canvas will be covered with a grid that is larger than a normal canvas.

   • 4

     Paint your image by filling in each square with color using your paintbrush tool.

   • 5

     Save you image when you are done by clicking "Save As..." from the File menu and selecting "JPEG" from the file types drop-down menu.