DIGITAL ART TUTORIAL - How to paint black hair in 9 easy steps
A lot of people asked me to make a tutorial about how to paint black hair. So here it is! I'll be showing you how to paint black hair with digital painting software and (preferably) a drawing tablet. This is the end result we're aiming for in this tutorial.
You a lot less color variety in black hair, so you really have to work hard on the highlights to get a realistic result. I worked mostly with a blueish, almost black, tone and greys.
STEP 1 - Paint the basic shape of the hair
Start out by painting the basic shape of the hair. Use a dark base tone to do this, I used a blueish/purple tone, near black. Don't paint with 100% black, you won't be able to add variation that way.
STEP 2 - Add darker shadow areas
Add darker shadow areas to the hair to define the shape more.
STEP 3 - Add light areas
Use a dark grey tone to lay down some basic light areas. Be mindful of where the light will hit the hair.
STEP 4 - Use a hair brush for detail
Use a hair brush on a separate layer to suggest detail, cover all the strand but be sure to vary the color you use. Once you've added a layer of hair brushwork, use gaussian blur on this layer to slightly blur it.( Check out the video on how to make your own hair brush at the end of this post)
STEP 5 - Add highlights
Use a screen layer to add highlights to the hair. This is starting to look more realistic already!
STEP 6 - Add shadows
Use a multiply layer to add shadow areas and define the little strands of hair more.
STEP 7 - Add volume and loose hairs
The hair was missing some volume, so correct any mistakes at this point. Start painting individual dark hairs. Try to make loose long strokes from your wrist and set your brush to a small size.
STEP 8 - Brightest highlights
Use another screen layer to start adding the brightest highlights to the hair, the brighter the highlights, the shinier the hair will look.
STEP 9 - Final details
Add some loose hairs, I used a grey tone and a near black tone to add individual hairs.
VIDEO: How to make a hair brush in PHOTOSHOP
If you have any questions about the techniques I use, be sure to let me know!
Other tutorials
- DIGITAL ART TUTORIAL - How to paint a hand in 9 easy steps
- DIGITAL ART TUTORIAL - How to paint an ear in 9 easy steps
- DIGITAL ART TUTORIAL - How to paint lips in 9 easy steps
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Great! Hairs are a difficult part, well explained!
This looks absolutely beautiful!
I wish I was as talented as you haha
Awww thanks, just keep practicing :)
Thanks for sharing! Upvoted and followed!
Thanks so much, glad you like it!
Amazing tutorial! For ones who know the basics of digital painting it gives a clear understanding of the workflow.
Thank you, I'm glad to hear you like it :)
Yea
It looks really like real hair !!! Nice tutorial @artwithflo
thanks for this owsam posts i really need this because my mother also have problem while dying her hairs , you solve her problem thanks and keep updating by these types of posts
Thanks for the tips. I never got it right. Then I gave up and decided to draw only hands. Now it's my signature subject. lol
This was very helpful! My eyes usually gloss over when I think about drawing hair.
Keep teaching @artwithflo ! You are doing a great job :)
Great tutorial, this will help a lot.
Excellent tutorial! resteemed! <3
love your tuts as always. love that you show people how to tweak brushes. It's good to know those things :)
Thanks for always sharing these guides with us :)
Wow amazing and useful stuff !!
Thanks for sharing this !
Upvoted and resteemed !
Follow me @prashanthak
Thanks so much, I really appreciate it <3
This looks incredible, I wish I was this good at digital painting!