How To Colour In Hair Drawing

Hair is one of my superlative five favorite things to draw and colour, and this was likewise a very requested tutorial. I tried to add every bit much information as possible while keeping the video fun to watch and total of tips!

Cypher hither is a hard dominion, and it'south generally to show how I do things, then I hope you lot enjoy it 🙂

Using references

It'southward tough to describe things when you don't cheque what they await similar in existent life. So every time yous're stuck, search for photos! Non just of anime drawings, but actual people as well.

Where, yous ask? In that location're plenty of places; you can go on Pinterest, Instagram, DeviantArt, etc.! And if you think that's adulterous, copying, or stealing, it's not. Every groovy creative person uses references, so you should as well!

Shape and volume

Hair and eyes in anime are often used to express emotions and a grapheme's personality, and so they're usually given more details than in real life. But this is drawing, then there aren't any complex rules for this! Let your hand flow, and exercise your creativity. Take a look at your favorite anime drawings. How does the pilus make you feel?

Straight blackness hair feels serious;

while fluffy curls are warm and welcoming!

Sketching tips

I kickoff pilus only thinking of the general outline without giving much attending to details: when sketching, only the general shape matters.

If yous don't know where the pilus starts in the head, think of the skull, and add some padding. A simple line in the centre should exist plenty to represent that. You tin brand the top function more circuitous as yous learn how hair works.

As well, it'south practiced to work with S curves. Even if the pilus is straight, it tin can be a long open S, making the hair look low-cal and flowy. With wavy hair, the Due south curves will be more visible!

For perfectly curly pilus, I employ a different technique. I starting time draw a spring and define the front role. And so, I duplicate that line shape.

After that, I erase the lines that are on the back and connect them to form a full spring!

You don't demand to draw every strand like that (feel gratuitous to exercise then if you like though!), a few will be plenty to requite the feeling you are looking for, and the back can but have a elementary shape.

Don't be afraid to delete what looks incorrect and try again. Even if information technology takes fourth dimension, spending time on this office to get the feeling right volition pay off in the end.

Another of import tip is to work with long lines, non short chicken scratches. It will brand your cartoon look more polished, and you will accept fewer chances to hurt your wrist!

Take breaks if you are lost, and look up new references to refresh your eyes. Brand sure to exit them open while you depict; it volition help a lot.

Well-nigh lineart

Depending on the drawing, I will make clean up the sketch instead of creating lineart.

Past "make clean up", I mean I volition erase the messy lines and go over them when necessary, giving information technology a different feeling than a perfectly make clean line. I feel this helps me relax about art and not worry too much about details.

You don't need to over-zoom and gum your face on the screen to be certain the lines are perfect! To be quite honest, you lot are likely to exist the but 1 that will be able to spot your small mistakes.

The castor for lineart can be the same as for sketching, just this will depend on how you want it to look. I highly recommend looking at the standard brushes or checking Clip Studio Assets. There are many fun brushes you tin easily download and use.

In this phase, you tin make the lines thicker where they intersect or where shadows volition be. It will give your lines more depth.

Shading

One time you have the base color added, define where your lite source is. Call back your basic lessons about brawl shading? Practise exactly that.

To do this, lay out a general shape with the shading colour.

Once you have the full general shape divers, yous tin can shine it until your liking.

But as you are still learning, you don't need to get fancy on the shading. Become slowly, inside the scope of what you experience is challenging enough for your current skills, and then make it complex as you become!

As you lot tin can see, in that location'due south some kind of backlight on the black that matches the grey on the white side. I commonly add together some extra colour to the pilus I depict, because it looks pretty!

Now, how to pick the right color?

Short respond, in that location is no right color! Play with them until you find what y'all like: effort pink in blue, imperial in green, orangish in yellowish, and so on. Have fun! Wonder how to make blackness and white hair not look grey, purple, etc.

If y'all use like colors to your drawing's surroundings, the tone volition look correct. For case, if her shirt were red, I would add together more ruby tones to the pilus. I tend to use colors already on the cartoon and playing around with them. Like this pilus strand in a blue and red room: there'south a bit of each colour on it.

But if y'all are working with complicated hair like a rainbow or gradient, yous can gear up a new layer on top in Multiply blending fashion, and test out which colors work better without messing up the gradient.

Highlights

This function is very fun, and there are many means to add together smoothen to the hair.

Yes, even white pilus!

I like to airbrush the skin color on the bangs, so when I add white highlights on superlative, it volition testify!

If you don't know which color to use, you tin take the hair color, create a new layer, set the blending mode to Add (Glow), and then add blobs, triangles, lines, etc. Any shape works, so do what fits your sense of taste, then use hue and saturation (Ctrl+U) to change the color to a tone that matches.

When I add together highlights, that'south when I also add messy strands. We all struggle with messy hair, right?

Some other picayune thing I enjoy is making the eyelashes and eyebrows transparent. You can easily do that by locking the lineart layer, and and then coloring with a color that's darker than the hair, or lighter. Try it out; information technology depends on the hair colour you are using, and if your lineart is set as multiply or not.

Conclusion

Maybe you're still unsure how to draw hair fifty-fifty after this tutorial, but I don't wait you lot to suddenly exist a pro. As I always say, art takes time.

So at the very least, accept away this of import point from this: use references! I can't repeat this plenty just make sure to use them mindfully.

I believe y'all don't actually need a step-by-pace to learn something. Instead, try to sympathise things in your own way. As long every bit you bask what y'all exercise and are upwards for the challenges life will bring, you will grow as an artist!

Practicing is key, but patience and passion make up the door.

Cheers very much for checking information technology out!

Have a practiced fourth dimension cartoon ☆ ～('▽^人)

– Hyanna Natsu

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