I just found out how many layers are in a typical digital painting and my mind is blown

I was watching a process video from an artist named Loish on YouTube, and she casually mentioned her piece had over 80 separate layers. I always thought my 10-15 layer files were pushing it, lol. Has anyone else been shocked by the sheer number of layers some pros use?

3 comments

3 Comments

fiona9852mo ago

Actually, some artists use folders to group layers, so that 80 might be for whole groups, not each single layer. Still a crazy amount of organization though, right?

grant.susan2mo ago

Nah, I get the folder thing but eighty is still wild to me. Even grouped up, that's a ton of separate pieces to keep track of. My brain would just give up halfway through, lol.

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roberts952mo ago

Yeah, my buddy who does concept art showed me a file once. Had to be over a hundred layers easy. He had folders for just the glow on a single button. I asked how he finds anything and he just shrugged. Said it makes sense when you're in it. Still looks like pure chaos to me.