Drawing and pixelizing artwork

Editor lets you paint pixels and edit layers and frames directly. Use it for a new icon or for refining eyes, hands and outlines. Pixelizer converts photos, illustrations, GIFs, videos and 3D models through presets and nodes.

Treat an automatic conversion as a starting point. Algorithms analyze surrounding colors and edges but cannot decide which accessory defines your character. Tune the broad style in Pixelizer, then refine meaningful one-pixel features in Editor.

A 16×16 or 32×32 canvas can work for icon practice. For a character, choose enough space for the expression, clothing and equipment that must remain readable. Decide which shapes matter at the final size before adding detail.

In Pixelizer, the long side in PIA or a downscale node controls pixel resolution. The internal 3D grid height is automatic and is separate from final output size. A 2× or 4× export enlarges completed pixels; it does not change line structure or create additional colors and detail.

Check the silhouette first. Then assign base colors to hair, skin and clothing before adding light and shadow. Starting with tiny texture marks can obscure the overall form.

A busy photographic background or many reflections can consume palette colors that the subject needs. Clean up unnecessary background and margins first. Check what each palette color contributes. If almost every pixel looks different, review color count, dithering and small color regions together.

Choose a preset for your source, then adjust long side, color count, small regions and edges, and finally outlines. Change one setting at a time so you can identify what helped. Alternate original/result comparison, zoomed inspection and actual display size.

The default 3D preset combines model rendering, PIA and outlines. PIA groups colors and spatial regions; the outline stage cleans boundaries. If the result resembles a low-resolution photograph, check whether shading levels and scattered small clusters have been simplified instead of only lowering resolution again.

Start with a modest number of colors so you can compare the brightness of skin, clothing and hair. Add a color when it contributes to expression or material separation. Many nearly identical colors can add complexity without improving readability.

Do not judge an animation from one pose. PIA’s fixed-frame option selects the palette reference and keeps all output frames. If a weapon or the inside of a coat appears only in certain poses, check that its colors survive. Compare palette choices when colors flicker during playback.

Preserve detail is the default Pixel Perfect mode. It cleans boundaries while keeping small features. Remove detail cleans one-pixel protrusions and small irregularities more aggressively. Compare eyes, fingertips and hair tips against the original before keeping the result.

These modes clean boundaries rather than only drawing around a silhouette. Turn Draw outline off to inspect cleanup without an added line. Use Silhouette for the outer shape and Color edges when internal color changes should also form lines. Automatic cleanup does not decide the artistic intent of every curve.

Color outlining derives a darker related line color from the nearby interior. It can maintain the relationship between hair, skin and clothing. Defaults are color outlining, 25% darkness and no light direction.

Reduce darkness for softer edges or increase it slightly when the subject blends into the background. The light-direction option changes the light and dark sides of the outline; check it against the source’s lighting. Choose a solid line color when a uniform outline suits the style.

Alpha is transparency. The outline alpha threshold decides whether a partly transparent pixel counts as inside or outside the shape. The default is 120. It does not set the line color or overall image brightness.

A higher threshold can exclude more faint edge pixels; a lower threshold can include more of them. Too high a value may remove thin hair or translucent accessories. Check for halos, holes and broken edges on both light and dark backgrounds.

In the 3D workbench, paint directly on the model or its UV texture. Use brush size and strength, color picking, Smooth noise and Undo stroke to clean up unwanted patches before sending the model to Pixelizer.

Painting changes texture colors. It does not sculpt protruding geometry, fill model holes or unwrap a new UV layout. Those are source-model tasks. If there is no editable texture, inspect the material color controls instead.

Separate editable areas into layers and use visibility, locking and opacity. Shortcuts include B for pencil, E for eraser, G for fill, I for eyedropper, L for line, U for rectangle and O for ellipse. Finish typing in a field before using a tool shortcut.

Add or duplicate timeline frames and use onion skin to compare the previous frame. Play the animation to check whether eyes, hands and feet unexpectedly change size. Use zoom for pixel connections and actual size for expression and silhouette readability.

Editor’s PNG export saves the current frame, while sheet and GIF exports use the selected animation range. Pixelizer’s Sprite export packs every final output frame into a PNG sheet. Check which tool you are using when choosing an export.

Keeping source files and settings is different from exporting a finished image. Browser-only work will not automatically appear on another device. Check save status and keep important PNG, GIF and GLB files separately. See Pro for Pixelizer export and library access conditions.

• Looks like a blurry photo: compare pixel size, shading levels, small regions and dithering.
• Jagged protrusions: compare detail-preserving and detail-removing modes with and without drawing outlines.
• Skin outlines are too dark: check color outlining and darkness.
• Missing eyes or hair: review detail-removal mode, alpha threshold and output resolution.
• Colors change between poses: check the palette reference and every frame.
• Excessive 3D motion: adjust body-part motion amounts and reference pose.

Change one setting at a time and compare with the earlier result. For unresolved problems, include the source format, preset, changed settings and error text in a support request.