The goal of this lesson is to learn how to use color mixing techniques to paint clothes and hair. The theme of the picture will be – “First Snow”. Special thanks to yana-stock for brushes “Snow”.
The final result:
Materials for the lesson:
Brushes Snow
Step 1
Before going further, I want to emphasize the importance of using the key “ALT” in combination with brushes. When the “ALT” key is pressed – the brush behaves like “Pipette
\ Eyedropper “. Keep this in mind when starting work – this will greatly speed up the drawing process!
Step 2
Create a new document (Ctrl + N) Size of 2000×2000 pixels. I usually like to work on high-resolution images — it allows me to add a lot of detail.
Start with a sketch. We need to create only a sketch, which will serve as the basis for the drawing. So, do not stop too long at this stage trying to make the perfect pencil sketch.
Step 3 – Color Palette
This is a very important aspect when creating a picture. We will create a palette of colors for the various elements of the pattern (clothing, leather, hair). If you are a beginner, do not use many colors at once, make sure that your drawing has several dark, light and neutral shades. Do not be afraid to experiment and have fun! For our work “First Snow”, I choose several different shades of red for decorating clothes.
Step 4
Here is a table of colors to be used in this picture. Then you can choose a shade, color (ALT + Brush \ Brush Tool
) of these sets for use on your drawing.
Step 5 – Background
In this work, I want the spotlight to be the face of the girl, so the background should be simple (neutral). Create a new group, name it “Background \ Background”. Create a new layer “B1” and fill it with color f7e7ce.
Step 6
In my drawing I use two basic standard brushes: hard round and soft round. Use the tool “Dimmer 
\ Burn “. Set a round hard brush: 400px size, range: midtones, exposure: 52%, and paint over the areas in the upper left corner, as shown in the figure. Similarly, use the tool “Lightening 
\ Dodge “ (Exposure: 22%), brush the area in the upper right corner.
Step 7
For each step in this lesson, use a separate layer. If you are not happy with the result, you can always remove the “damaged” area of work and start over. Create a new layer and name it “B2”. Take a round brush (opacity: 55%; push: 45%) and put a few dots on the canvas. Use the colors: B0687B, E2AEA5 and EACCAE.
Step 8
Create another new layer. Using a round brush, sketch out the trees.
Step 9
Create separate groups for each logical section of your picture (scarf, hair, face, jacket, etc.). Draw the primary colors and shapes. Be sure to do this in the appropriate group.
Step 10
I am not an expert in lighting, but I know the basics: the shadows “fall” opposite to the direction of light. I choose the location of the light source in the upper right corner. Thus, the right side, which is closer to the light source, and the darker – the left side, will be illuminated. character side. Draw the main dark and light areas. Use the hint below.
Step 11
Using a hard round brush (opacity: 50-75%; pressure: 50%), paint in more detail shadows and highlights. So far, it looks sloppy, but do not worry, we just started work, the drawing will be much better!
Step 12 – Mixing Colors
As a newbie, I very often used the Finger \ Smudge Tool to mix colors. But now I do not recommend smearing the colors with a “finger” as a blending method. Here is the method I use now.
Choose two colors – ‘A’ and ‘B’. We draw two lines corresponding to these colors at a certain distance. A soft round brush (opacity: 50%; pressure: 50%) draw a line in the middle between two colors with the color ‘A’. Now with the same brush, with the same settings, add the color ‘B’ over the new line. We get the first intermediate color. Guided by this technique, you can create a smooth transition between two colors.
I use this technique for all my works, be it painting, trees, clothes or a face. I hope you learn this technique too. The image shown should give you a better idea.
Step 13 – Scarf
First of all, let’s do the Scarf group.
Step 14
Mix colors using the technique I showed earlier.
Step 15
On a new layer, add a few folds to the scarf, in the places where it is wrapped. Just add the curves and folds where you see fit.
Step 16
To make the scarf more attractive, add a few white stripes to it (again – on a new layer).
Step 17
In order to inscribe stripes, create volume – draw shadows and light. Simply select several colors (ALT + Brush \ Brush Tool) from the red areas of the scarf (Light / Dark – Shadows / Highlights) and draw the folds in the required places.
Step 18 – Jacket
The scarf is almost ready. Let’s move on to the “Jacket” group. We have already determined the colors of the jacket and the background now we will use them in our work.
Step 19
We continue to draw the jacket using the technique of mixing colors.
Step 20 – Folds on the jacket
Think about the places where the fabric is creased or creased. Usually you see more folds at the joints, at the bend of the arms and legs, etc. In the figure, the position of the right hand is almost straight. Therefore, it will be enough to add a few folds on the sleeve. The left hand is slightly bent at the elbow, so we need to add more folds on this part. If you notice, the folds on the clothes when worn are not parallel to each other. Thus, to create the desired bends on the fabric, simply add a few dark and light blue stripes at an angle.
Step 21
When drawing clothes folds use the tool “Finger
\ Smudge Tool. It is very convenient when working with these elements, you can lengthen the folds or drape them as you like.
Step 22 – Face
Make a sketch of the overall shape of the face. There is no need to add details at this stage; determine the colors needed for drawing from the color palette.
Step 23
I don’t go into details on how to draw all the details of a portrait, since I’ve already created a lesson on how to draw a face. You can use my manual and do the same (draw eyes, nose and mouth), but instead of smearing, use the mixing technique. Here is a link to a face painting lesson.
Step 24
Draw nostrils. Add shadows and highlights on the nose and lips.
Step 25 – Eyes
Eyes are a very important detail for creating moods and transmitting emotions. We will draw huge eyes and a tiny mouth to create an “innocent look” effect. This technique usually works not only in drawing, but also with my husband, if I want to achieve something from him 
Step 26 – Hair
Drawing hair is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. Spend some time to study how the hair falls, intertwines. If you look at the photos with the image of hair, you will notice that usually we do not see each hair separately. We perceive hair as ready-made strands. We will start drawing with a selection of working colors and applying the foundation, you can add details later.
Step 27
Create a new “H1” layer in the “Hair” group. Determine the overall shape and color of the hair. Use a large brush to determine the volume of the hairstyle. If you do not want to spend a lot of time drawing hair, choose a simple hairstyle with straight loose strands.
Step 28
Create a new layer “H2”, you can use it as in clipping mask to the “H1” layer, if you do not want strands to stand out from the bulk of the hair. Choose a color that is darker than the base hair color and start adding strands. Use a hard brush with a size of 20-25 pixels; The opacity is 60% and the pressure (flow) is 65%. I used the brush settings: transfer – control – transition (75), because not everyone has a graphics tablet.
Step 29
Create a new layer ‘H3’. Use a round brush of 15–20 on it; 50% opacity; pressure 50%. Experiment with opacity and pressure, and you’ll get color variations that will make the image more interesting. Also, add a few strands of light color. Do not forget when drawing about the source of lighting.
Step 30
Using a hard brush size of 10px to add some more dark and light shades of the primary color, as in the figure below.
Step 31
We continue to work on hair. Use the color mixing method described above. Do not forget about the key combination “Brush + ALT” for quick color selection.
Step 32
Now it’s time to add some details to the hair. Using a brush with a size of 1-3 pixels we draw several fine hairs.
Step 33
Choosing the right shade plays a very important role. For example, if you take this part of the hair (see picture below).
Step 34
Continue working on the strands around the face. For convenience, you can temporarily expand the canvas.
Step 35
Draw the hair along the entire length without leaving clear transitions. Colors should flow from one to another.
Step 36
Add some dark fine hairs all over your hair.
Step 37
When working on parts, I usually enlarge the image to 100%. To do this, you can use the function “Scale \Zoom “(Z). The constant increase and decrease of the scale takes a lot of time and quickly bothers me. I recently discovered a useful feature in the cs5 version (not sure if it is in older versions). Navigate: Window \ Window> Arrange \ Arrange> New window for .. \ New window for. Now, you can view the PSD file in two different scales at the same time.
Step 38
I like to draw strands of hair without using special brushes, although it is much longer and more difficult, but it is a good practice.
Step 39
In the shaded areas you cannot see the details of the hair, so just use the tool “Blackout \ Burn tool“to create volume. I know you are tired. But the more we add details, the better the result will be!
Step 40 – Trees
The trees that are on the left side will be darker and sharper. The trees that are on the right side almost disappear in the snow (fog). Activate the tool “Eraser 
\ Еraser tool ” with such settings: round brush, opacity (50-80%). Treat part of the forest (as shown).
Step 41 – Finishing Touches
I finished painting to decorate a scarf tassels. Just worked with the tools “Blackout \Burn tool “and “Lightening\ Dodge “ to create the effect that the girl “appears from the background.” Added more sharpness to the image. To improve the composition – cut the background to reduce empty space on the sides.
Step 42 – Snow
To draw snow I use a special brush “Snow”.
When working with this brush, adjust the opacity and pressure values as you wish. Do not forget that the face should remain expressive. If necessary, remove excess snow from the area of the girl’s face.
Step 43
We are done! I hope that this lesson will be useful for you!
