DIGITAL ART TUTORIAL - How to paint an ear in 9 easy steps
In this digital art tutorial I'll be showing you how to paint an ear with digital painting software and (preferably) a drawing tablet. This is the end result we're aiming for in this tutorial.
STEP 1 - Draw the basic shape of the ear
Start out by sketching the basic shape of the ear. Use reference photos or a mirror to understand the shape of the ear. Don't worry if your lines are messy, you can fix that later
STEP 2 - Define the shapes
Define the shapes by adding shadows and highlights. You can keep the contrast low at this point.
STEP 3 - Increase contrast
Increase the contrast en define the shapes even more by adding deeper shadows.
STEP 4 - Add color variation
Use an Overlay layer to add color variation to the ear. I used oranges, reds and some purple.
STEP 5 - Blend the colors
Blend the colors to get more smooth gradients. I use a soft round brush with the opacity set to about 50% (and set to pen pressure) and pick up colors using the eyedropper tool, this way I can glaze the colors on top of eachother getting a nice blend.
STEP 6 - Define the deepest shadows
Make the ear more detailed by adding the deepest shadows. Also clean up the sketchy edges.
STEP 7 - Add highlights
Add the brightest highlights. I use a very light blueish tone and paint with a low opacity.
STEP 8 - Blend and refine
Blend the colors where it's needed and refine the edges. I also added another Overlay layer to add some more orange/red tones.
STEP 9 - Final details
Time for the final details! You can spend as much time on this as you want :) Adding some real tiny hairs gives a nice realistic touch.
If you have any questions about the techniques I use, be sure to let me know!
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