GRAPHICS AND TYPE
QUICK TIP
So far we’ve used Hard brushes. Now that we’re
on the rendering section of this design, use softer
brushes with modified Opacity and Flow in order to
blend the pixels while painting on each layer. This
brush type works well on the cheeks and to blend
shadows around the jaw.04
ADD SOME FLAT COLOURS
Under the line art layer, use the Brush tool,
set to a default Hard brush, to fill in your portrait’s
skin tone. We’re going to use various brown tones for
this design, but you can deviate from any of the
presented colour palette if it works better with your
overall design. On a new layer, colour in the eyes with
shades of grey-violet. Later we’ll use a clipping mask
in order to add stock images to each eye rather than
rendering the irises manually.05
HIGHLIGHT THE FACE
We’ll draw highlights onto the face on a
layer above the skin tone layer. Using a Smooth
Hard brush, map out areas of the face that would
be hit by light first. Consider the nose, chin, part of
the forehead, beneath the eyebrows, and the sides
of the mouth as areas to highlight. Use a light
brown a few shades lighter than the base skin tone
rather than white for this step. We’ll add bright hot
spots to the design later.06
SHADE THE FACE
For the shadows, we’ll use a brown that’s a
few shades darker than the skin tone. Paint it into
areas where facial features are overlapping and
casting shadows onto other parts of the face.
Consider under the nose, inside the ear, on the outer
edges of the upper eyes, and under the chin to be
areas cast in shadow. Reduce the opacity of your
brush while painting shadow shapes in order to build
the value up. You may also change the lighting
completely if you feel it benefits your composition.07
USE GAUSSIAN BLUR
Next we’ll go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur
to apply a smooth Gaussian blur. The radius applied
to the layer will depend on the size of your
document. We’re going to apply a radius of 16.9
pixels so the highlights and shadows blend together
without extending too far beyond the face within the
design. Hit OK and use the Eraser tool to erase the
blur effect from outside of the face. This will keep
your design and background clean.08
PAINT THE FACE
Create a new layer above the blurred layer
and continue building up values in the same manner
as was done before. Vary the opacity of your brush
and consider using textured brushes in order for the
skin to look more painterly rather than as if it’s beencel-shaded like a cartoon. You can also use the
Blur tool to blend pixels in smaller areas of the
portrait rather than blurring an entire layer. Add
mauve-coloured blush to the cheeks and warm
brown for the lips.