Today, we have the luxury of fast computers with lots of memory and power. However, that wasn’t always the case, and graphics designers had to make due with very limited capabilities. For this assignment, you are to draw a person, vehicle, or otherwise intricate object. The catch is, your image can only be 16 pixels by 16 pixels! Work to express as much detail as possible in the space allotted. If the size is not constraining, you are not setting your standards high enough! Feel free to enlarge the picture before putting it online, but remember that your resolution must still be that of a 16×16 pixel image.

This tutorial for the 256 Points assignment uses Microsoft Paint since it is the most easily accessible image creating software for people with a Windows operating system.

Pros of using Microsoft Paint:

• Free and comes loaded on the computer.
• Very simple and easy to use.

Cons of Microsoft Paint:

• Not a lot of editing features.
• Almost too simple.

Now time for the tutorial.

Step 1: Open up Microsoft Paint.

Step 2: Now look at the toolbar at the top of the screen and locate the “Resize” button (right next to the dotted square that says select under) and click it. Then click the circle labeled “Pixels”

This is where were are going to resize the image in order to get the desired 16×16 pixel dimension. To do that, we first have to un-check the box labeled “Maintain aspect ratio” so the dimensions we type in won’t change. Next, click on the box to the right of “Horizontal ” and change it to 16. Then do the same for the box to the right of “Vertical.”

Lastly, click “OK.”

It should now look like this on your screen:

Step 3: I know it seems small but that’s okay since it is exactly what we want. But we can’t exactly draw a picture like this so we need to zoom in. To do this, look at the bottom right of the screen and find the “zoom” bar which looks like this:

Then click the + sign till it reaches 800%.

It should now look something like this:

Step 4: This is still a little bit hard to draw something with since we have no guide to see where exactly the pixels start and end. Luckily, Microsoft Paint has a handy feature which outlines the pixels in a grid. To use this feature, click on the “View” tab at the top of the screen and click the box labeled “Gridlines.”

Step 5: Now that we have each and every pixel clearly visible, we can start drawing our image. Using the default brush, change the size of its area of effect to the smallest available (which is only one pixel).

Step 6: The rest is all up to you! Think about what you are going to draw, choose your colors and start painting. Then when you’re done, unclick the “Gridlines” box to see your full image! Personally, I decided to draw a red car and here is my final product:

This is the first of two tutorials I’m completing for the final week of DS106. The assignment is 256 Points.

Today, we have the luxury of fast computers with lots of memory and power. However, that wasn’t always the case, and graphics designers had to make due with very limited capabilities. For this assignment, you are to draw a person, vehicle, or otherwise intricate object. The catch is, your image can only be 16 pixels by 16 pixels! Work to express as much detail as possible in the space allotted. If the size is not constraining, you are not setting your standards high enough! Feel free to enlarge the picture before putting it online, but remember that your resolution must still be that of a 16×16 pixel image.

Let’s get started. This tutorial is for those using GIMP.

1. Open GIMP. In the top left, click “File” and select “New…” Set the width and height to 16 pixels. Click “OK”

2) A small white rectangle should appear in the middle of your screen. It will probably be very small, so click on “View” in the top left and set “Zoom” to 1600%. This will ensure that you can easily work on your image pixel by pixel.

3) For this assignment, I recommend using the Pencil tool. Use the down arrow or manually set the size to 1.00. To the left of where it says “1. Pixel,” click on the small box and select the small square. It should be the same image as the box shown in the image below. This will allow you to draw one pixel at a time.

4) This step is optional, but I included it because it makes it easier to plan and draw your image. Select a gray color and quickly move your mouse over the box you will be drawing in. This should allow you to see each individual pixel easier.

5) Select the colors you want to use using the box under the tool selector on the left side of the screen. Begin drawing your image! I decided to draw the more detailed part of my image first before filling in the background.

6) Your image is complete! You should click “File” and then “Save as…” to save your file in case you ever want to come back to it in GIMP. Then, click “File” again and select “Export as…” Use the menu at the bottom (the one that currently says “All export images”) to select the type of file that you would like to save your image as. JPG or PNG both work if you need to upload your image onto WordPress. Then click Export!


7) You’re done! You should now be able to create a 16×16 pixel image in GIMP!