Many mangakas are turning to digital tools like Clip Studio Paint to help with their illustrations. This is unexpected, particularly when you take note of particular elements, shading, and effects that seem like they could only have been created with a pen or brush. In this article, we will work you through the best digital manga artists you should start following.
Summary – Best Digital Manga Artists
Tatsuki Fujimoto: The best digital manga artist known for Chainsaw Man and Fire Punch
Kohei Horikoshi: Best digital manga artist known for My Hero Academia
Shizuka Yamaguchi – Tomodachi no Suki na Hito
Reki Kawahara – Best digital manga artist known for Sword Art Online
Yoshikazu Hamada – Best digital manga artist known for Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon
Shun Saeki – Best digital manga artist known for Food Wars
Tite Kubo: One of the best digital manga artists well-known for creating Bleach
Gege Akutami – Best digital manga artist known for Jujutsu Kaisen
Ishida Sui – Best digital manga artist known for Tokyo Ghoul
Reiji Miyajima – Best digital manga artist recognized for Rent a Girlfriend
Tatsuki Fujimoto – Chainsaw Man
Japanese manga artist Tatsuki Fujimoto is well-known for his creations, including Chainsaw Man and Fire Punch. Fujimoto was born in Nikaho on October 10, 1992, or 1993, in Japan’s Akita Prefecture. He began drawing at a young age. Since there were no nearby preparatory institutions, he practiced oil painting in painting workshops attended by his grandparents. In 2014, he received his degree in Western painting from Yamagata, Yamagata Prefecture’s Tohoku University of Art and Design.
Fun Fact Abou Tatsuki Fujimoto
- Fujimoto Has An Unconventional Background For A Mangaka
- His first series, Fire Punch is extremely unconventional
- He has a real-life fascination with dominant women
- Fujimoto pretended to be his non-exsitent sister on Twitter
Kohei Horikoshi – My Hero Academia
The manga series Ōmagadoki Dōbutsuen, Barrage, and My Hero Academia were all created by Japanese manga artist Kōhei Horikoshi and serialized in Shueisha’s shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump. Horikoshi is an Aichi Prefecture native who attended Toho High School and Nagoya University of Arts. He once worked as Yasuki Tanaka’s assistant. Tanaka is the author of the manga series Kagijin, Hitomi no Catoblepas, and Summer Time Rendering.
Horikoshi claimed that Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Naruto were his three favorite manga series when he was younger. Manga creator Yuko Osada (Toto!: The Wonderful Adventure) also had an effect on him.
Related: My Hero Academia Best Motivational Quotes
Fun fact about Kohei Horikoshi
- Kohei was once the assistant to Tanaka, Summer rendering author
- He reused some characters from Oumagadoki Zoo
- Kohei favorite manga is Naruto
- He has drawn movie posters for Western releases
- He loves hands
Shizuka Yamaguchi – Tomodachi no Suki na Hito
The manga creator of Tomodachi no Suki na Hito is Shizuka Yamaguchi. She created it digitally and it’s a manga that has been serialized on LINE Manga. She liked that she could carry her digital drawings with her wherever she went. Even on vacation, she sketched some of her scenes.
She utilizes a Huion Kamvas Pro, which is attached to her MacBook Air, for drawing. She adds a Gaomon PD 1161 in addition to this. Clip Studio Paint Pro is what she uses for coloring and drawing.
Reki Kawahara – Sword Art Online
Sword Art Online was originally drawn with a pen and paper. Today, more contemporary spin-offs like Sword Art Online: Girl Ops are digitally drawn.
The fact that the manga serialization was shifted online might be related to this. Girl Ops was first published in the print anthology Dengeki Bunko Magazine. The manga was transferred to WEB DenPlay Comics when the magazine folded. This is an anthology of digital manga.
It was clear how different the styles were from one another. One thing to note is that Girl Ops’ effect lines were produced automatically. There was also obvious use of screen tones for depth.
Related: Anime Location of Sword Art Online
Fun facts About Reki Kawahara
- Kawahara Reki’s hobby is cycling.
- Kawahara Reki voiced Tin Writer in the Accel World TV anime adaptation, though Tin Writer was re-dubbed for the Blu-Ray release.
- He originally wrote SAO in 2001
Yoshikazu Hamada – Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon
Yoshikazu Hamada is the mangaka of Tsugumomo. He enjoys drawing manga and mainly uses Wacom Cintiq CINTIQ 21UX for his pen monitor. Fortunately, we don’t have much information about him but he is one of the best digital manga artists known for Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon or Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid
Shun Saeki – Food Wars
Japanese manga artist Shun Saeki, formerly known as tosh, is well-recognized for the manga series Shokugeki-no Soma.
While attending university, Shun Saeki made his debut as tosh in an adult manga magazine. An editor at Jump NEXT reached out to him in 2011 about publishing a one-shot, and then in June of 2012, he created Shokugeki-no Soma(Food War). Menkui!, Harem Time and Kimi to Qatashi no Renai Sodan are a few of his well-known pieces.
Fun Facts About Shun Saeki
- He has a ferret as his pet
- Shun Saeki made his debut in an adult manga magazine
Tite Kubo – Bleach
Japanese manga writer and illustrator Tite Kubo is well known for producing the popular manga series Bleach. He was born in Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture on June 26, 1977.
When Kubo first started creating comics, prominent manga artists like Akira Toriyama and Masami Kurumada served as his main sources of inspiration. His debut manga series, Zombiepowder, was published in Weekly Shonen Jump, marking the beginning of his professional career in 1999.
Kubo’s manga series Bleach, with its distinct fusion of fantasy, action, and supernatural themes, has become a cultural phenomenon.
Fun Fact Abou Tite Kube
- Tie real name is Noriaki Kubo. He uses Tite Kubo as his pen name because he thinks it’s cool
- His first manga series was Zombiepowder
- Kubo is well-known for his artistic Gothic-inspired design art style
Gege Akutami – Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen’s mangaka, Gege Akutami, does all of her illustrations digitally. He once drew using conventional techniques. But he noticed that his work was not getting better.
He struggled to control the actual pens, which is why. It occurred to him after a while that working on digital drawings would be simpler. That was the moment he changed media and he discovered that it was effective for him.
On February 26, 1992, Gege Akutami was born in Iwate Prefecture. In the fifth grade, Akutami relocated to Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture. Akutami got the idea to become a professional manga artist by copying a friend when they first started producing comics. After reading Bleach in fourth grade, among other works, Akutami has mentioned Neon Genesis Evangelion, Hunter x Hunter, and Tite Kubo as influences in his work. In 2014, Gege Akutami started working as Kiss x Death’s assistant to Yasuhiro Kanō.
Related: Anime Location of Jujutsu Kaisen
Fun Facts About Gege Akutami
- Gege Akutami has never shown his face on camera
- He is a fan of occult.
- Yuji Itadori was named after Gge’s classmate
- Gege Akutami isn’t his real name
Ishida Sui – Tokyo Ghoul
The dark fantasy series Tokyo Ghoul, which tells the tale of a young man named Ken Kaneki who meets a ghoul and becomes one, is Sui Ishida’s most well-known work. The series ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump magazine from 2011 to 2014. In 2014, it was turned into an anime series and light book.
The manga was also translated into English, and in 2015, it became the number one bestseller in the New York Times. Tokyo Ghoul, a precursor, had a brief digital serial on Jump Live in 2013. 2014 saw the start of Tokyo Ghoul:re, the sequel.
Related: Anime Location of Tokyo Ghoul
Fun Facts About Ishida Sui
- Sui Ishida wrote and illustrated a Hunter X Hunter one-shot
- His biggest influence included classic literature
- His favorite mangaka hero is Yoshihiro Togashi
- Ishida Sui loves making fanart
Reiji Miyajima – Rent a Girlfriend
The hometown of Reiji Miyajima is Nakano, Nagano. He started his career as a manga artist in Tokyo after completing his high school education in Nakano. Miyajima’s work Sakka no Tensai won him the Magazine Grand Prix Encouragement Award in October 2005.
For his one-shot manga Pool no Saboten, he was given an honorable mention at the 75th Weekly Shōnen Magazine Newcomer Manga Award that same year. His second one-shot manga, Icon, was published in Magazine Special in 2008. Today he is well recognized for Rent-a-Girlfriend, which has performed quite well and has even received an anime adaptation.
Fun Facts About Reiji Miyajima
- He also worked on a very strange idol franchise.
Do Manga Artists Draw Digitally?
It’s true that more than 50% of manga artists nowadays rely on digital tools to help them keep up with their hectic schedules. But some only use traditional methods, and even fewer blend traditional and digital.
Which Manga Artists Still Use Traditional Drawing Methods?
Which Manga Artist Does Use Both Traditional Method and Digital?
Hiro Mashima, Fairy Tail mangaka, Hiroya Oku, Ganz creator, Ken Akamatsu love hina Negina mangaka, Oda Eiichirō, Yusuke Murata, Hirohiko Araki, and Shinichi Sakamoto use both ditial and traditional methods
Why Do Some Manga Artists Prefer To Use Pen and Pencil over Digital?
Because pen and paper is more conventional, many manga artists find it appealing. The user experiences traditional and digital drawings differently. Knowing how to draw is crucial when your job requires you to illustrate numerous manga chapters. You need an efficient and comfortable drawing technique, and for some people, pen and paper work best.
To put it frankly, many people prefer it because certain sketching techniques are still better supported by pen and paper drawing.
Show Your Work
Whether you are a professional or an amateur, we will love to see your artwork. So don't hesitate to remove your cats from your box right away