...and voila. I know it looks pretty rough, but it hopefully illustrates (pun) the point I'm trying to make. See how the characters are kept separate from each other better? It's less confusing to the eye and gives the drawing more depth.

For added depth, you can add hatching to the background and cracks and scratches to the walls. That doesn't work for all penciling styles however.

Panel from Invincible #2 published by Image Comics. Original line art by Cory Walker.

"Ok, great. I know why varied line weights are necessary...but HOW DO I MAKE THEM?!"

Well, there are two main techniques I use when varying my line weights. The first is inking two lines and then filling in the middle. It's pretty quick and works good if you know exactly how thick you want the line.

The other technique I use and more often then the first, is building up the line. If it doesn't look thick enough, I just ink another line next to it and taper it off to the same point the proceeding line stops at. Remember to ink the entire distance of the line...otherwise you'll get an ugly little bump in the middle. When it's the right thickness, just fill in the white spaces if you have any.

Another general rule of thumb when inking something rounded...like a muscle: Middle of the line thin...ends of the line thick. Keep that in mind especially when inking the outlines. Also, where ever there's a corner, make sure that the thick end of one of the lines is at that corner. It'll help define that corner better. You'll see it a lot of both in the Sequential Page section of this tutorial.

Now, practice inking some pinups with your new found knowledge. Then, come back here and learn the tedious process of the SeQuEnTiAl PaGe!!!