Drawing with Colored Pencils: Basic Blending Tips & Techniques

1. Intro: hi and welcome to my skill share class. My name is EMI. I am a pencil artist from Holland and I'm drawing since August 2014. When I first started drawing with colored pencils, I had no idea where to start or how to even blend with colored pencils. I also had a hard time finding answers to the questions I had about which techniques to use . After almost two years of practice, I have learned a lot. I'd like to help those of you who are just getting started and have no idea how just like me back then, in this class, you will learn everything about drawing with colored pencils and how to achieve a realistic look. I will share blending tips and techniques. I will show you how to make a color wheel and mix different colors. You will learn how to look at light and shadows in an object, and they will show you how to look at details in a reference photo. At the end of this class, you have a better understanding of drawing and blending with colored pencils. Now let's get started 2. Materials: This is the paper I use Daily. Ronnie, Bristol Board. This is very smooth paper, and I would recommend smooth paper for drawing with colored pencils. You have other brands to just look for Bristol paper. Now. The two colored pencils I use Faber Castell Polychrome owes. These are oil based pencils. They have a hard pencil tip, which I like to use for fine detail. I normally don't do sees to color bigger areas. For that. I used to care and dash new minutes. These are wax based pencils. Expenses are softer than the Holy Crow. Most I used a luminous pencils to lay down lots of color. And when I need to blend bigger areas, they do need to be sharpened more often and also replaced sooner. Ruminants is a brand that is expensive to buy, but they are an excellent choice. If you are a serious color pencil user off course, you could try my techniques with the brand pens was you already have. If you want to buy some colored pencils to get started, I would recommend buying the Faber Castell totally crow most. I started with the 60 pencil set, the pencil eraser I use is from Faber Castell. You can sharpen it for a sharper tip to erase finer details. These large brushes are useful for brushing away eraser crumbs. If you don't have a pencil eraser, you could take a regular eraser and a sharp knife. Thank cut off a small piece. Then you can use it just like I use the pencil eraser. The pencil sharpener I used is from a Dutch brand, Brian Zoo. This one is perfect for the two colored pencils I have. I used a smaller one for the public Ramos and the bigger one for the new minutes. As these pencils are a bit whiter, you could also use a regular hand sharpener. They both fit for the brightest highlights. In my drawing, I use a white in Nebraska 0.7 millimeter. This is an acrylic bank marker, and instead of the white a critic marker, you can always use a white gel pin or maybe some white acrylic paint with a small brush 3. Blending Tips&Techniques: before you start, always make sure your dips are sharp enough. You will shade the first layers with light pressure. Shading with colored pencils will take some time, but be patient with it. I used to different shading styles, circulation and cross hatching. You can use thes styles or use your own style. Find out what works for you. Circulation is something I use the most. I use it for areas where I really need flawless, smooth color. I shade in tiny circular movements while shading. I keep turning my pencil to keep the tip sharp. I use cross hatching for bigger areas. It's a layering technique where you drawn area of lines all going in the same direction. Then, to make a darker, you go over the area again with lines in another direction and so on. Keep your lines close together. If you want to smoother finish. You see my pencil tip is still sharp enough. This is what your tip will look like if you don't turn the pencil and if you shade with their tip just straight on the paper like this, you will get a very short tip in no time, and you'll need to sharpen again. I shave the second layer with light to medium pressure and the third layer with medium to hard pressure. When it comes to layering, shape gently. You will build up the layers, maybe three or more, until you have no white of the paper showing through only with layering you will get a glassy, smooth finish. You can see that the color saturation is different with polychrome owes. It will take more layers to get the same color as the ruminants. With just two layers, and also with the ruminants, I get a very smooth effect. You can also use white as a blender. You can create lighter tones, and you can also use white to add texture on top of dark colors. Some brands are better than others. The luminous white. This accident as it is soft and opaque. You can also use other colors or lighter colors to bend. Colored pencils can be erased, but be sure that the more you erase, you might damage the paper. That is not what you want. Also, the more layers you have, the more difficult it is to erase, and you will not get it as white as you will with one layer. So if you want to keep something in your drawing white, do not rely on erasing. Try to leave that area white. It's important to use a cleaner racer every time, so you don't accidentally add in any other colors. I also used to erase or to create special effects or text years. Here, you can see that the police chrome is white isn't as a big as the luminous white with the white. A critic marker. I make very bright highlights or I use it for effects. This is another technique I'd like to use with the marker. I make some adults and then smudge it out with my finger. You can experience with different effects. Dry it out for yourself. Once the paint is dry, you can cover over it for another effect, or if you think it's too white, make sure not to press too hard with your colored pencil, or you will remove the paint 4. Mixing Colors (Color wheel): the color wheel is helpful any time you are making color decisions in your drawing, making your own color wheel is an excellent way to learn how colors mix with each other. You can use a circle to create the color wheel or shapes like I did. I will be coloring with the Faber Castell Poetic Ramos and the Karen Dash Luminant to show the difference of these two colored pencils. I start with the primary colors yellow, red and blue. These are colors that cannot be created by mixing other colors. Now the secondary colors. These are a 1 to 1 mix of two primary colors. For example, one layer of yellow and one layer of red produce orange for two layers of yellow and two layers of red to make a darker and to get a smooth finish. De sherry colors are the combination of one primary and one secondary color. For example, yellow orange is a combination of yellow, a primary color and orange secondary color. So first I create the secondary color orange and then a layer with the primary color yellow . I would like to encourage you to make a color wheel, too. It's a great way to learn how these colors work together while improving your blending skills. It takes a little time, but it is definitely worth it. In the end, mixing colors and you're drawing on what your color choices are can really affect the richness and depth of your drawing. It's also interesting to have a look at layering all kinds of colors. How diverse can you make color palette by just layering colors in a different order yellow under red or red under yellow? Yes, different color combinations out on another piece of paper before applying to your drawing so you can be sure you like the results. 5. Drawing a Sphere: I want to show you how to start with a flat circle and make it look round and three D First draw a circle with a light pencil. The next thing you want to think about it, where will your light source come from? Because you want to know where you will shape and where your shadow will be. When you are drawing something round, you don't want to shade with straight lines, so I will not use the cross hatching technique, but only the circulation technique. I will shade in circular movements and with light pressure, I shaved the middle with a green. This will be my main color. I'm using Karen Dash luminous pencils, and this color is grass green. I'm going to shave the core shadow with a dark blue and then create a smooth, radiant as I go up, shake very lightly and gently and gradually build the colors up. I will darken the core shadow with a dark brown. I'm shading with light pressure to blend ago for the brown with a dark blue. When I blend, I use life to medium pressure. Instead of using light green, green and a dark tree, I use blue and brand for the core shadow because this will create a more natural color. Sure, you don't go out of the line, and if you do, you can use the pencil eraser to correct of it. Now, once you have the Grady in the way you like it, you can blend the colors with the main color green. Make sure you have a nice Grady in before you shave the last layer, because it won't be easy to correct. I use light to medium pressure where the light source is coming from. I will add some yellow. I used the pencil eraser to create the highlight and then blend with a white pencil for a smooth finish. Now the cast shadow. Depending on where your light source is coming from, that will determine how far your shadow will be. I start with the main color green and then a dark blue and a layer over it with a dark brown. Try not to use black for the gas chatter, because these colors create a more natural look. - The last step will be creating reflected light. This is a reflection of light from the surface of whatever your object is sitting on. I'm going to use the pencil eraser to lighten it up. Now I shade over it so I will not have an edge from the eraser line. - I'm correcting the shadow a bit with the pencil eraser, and then it's finished. If this is your first time drawing a sphere, take your time with this practice. With your shading and blending, I would love to see any work in progress or final drawings in the project gallery. 6. Drawing a Realistic Apple: And now let's make a drawing of an apple. You can print your reference photo or use a computer to look at, or you can use your phone like I am. I like to use my phone because I can zoom in and out to look at details closely. First, your Ah light outline of the apple. You could trace over the reference photo or sketch it yourself before I start. I test out some colors on another piece of paper for the coloring. I'm going to use the Faber Castell poorly, Kromah and the care in Dutch Newman. It's pencils now. Start shading. Always shade likely when you are mixing colors because you want to see how the colors turn out. If you go to dark, it's not easy to correct Onley with the last layers I shared with medium to hard pressure. - I'm still shading with light pressure on building up the layers. - I use a dark brown to dark in some areas and then go over it with the red or the yellow. Now I'm blending the colors, and I'm using medium to hard pressure. - As you can see, it's all about layer after layer after layer now I used a pencil eraser to light in some areas. Okay, - For the highlight, I used the white acrylic marker, and as I showed before, I use my finger to smudge of it. You can color over it again, or white in the highlight. Some more. Now let's create those little spots on the apple. First, I draw them with acrylic marker, and once the paint is dry eye color over it with the yellow or red colored pencil, it's all about details. That is what makes the difference in the drawing. You can see in the reference photo that the apple has reflected light on the side, so I'm using the pencil eraser to lighten it up for some other spots or lighter areas. I used a pencil eraser. I'm drawing a line for the background so it looks like the apple is on the table. I keep going back and forth if I wanted to be a bit lighter erased with a pencil eraser, or I darken it with the brown and raw number. Keep looking at your reference photo. - Unfortunately , the red on my film camera doesn't look as red as it isn't the real drawing So for the end result, I made a photo with another camera. That's it. The drawing is finished. I hope you will try this for yourself. Remember, it's all about practice. If it doesn't work out the first time, try it again. Another time. Don't give up during your eye to look at highlights, shadows and at all of the small details in the photo. Don't forget to upload your final drugs in the project. Valerie, I would love to see them. 7. Your Turn: So now it's your turn. Practice a lot with your shading and blending, and I would like to encourage you to make a color wheel for yourself. Get to know your colored pencils and understand the colors. Better practice with blending and layering, and then create a sphere for yourself so you will learn how to draw three D Object with light and shadows at last, try to draw a realistic apple. Practicing is the most important thing you can do to get better. And when it comes to drawing, it's not all about diamond. It's about having the motivation to become better. So try to draw with their color pencils every now and then. Put on some music or maybe an audio book. Relax and draw. And don't forget to upload your work in progress and final drawings in the Project gallery . It's really helpful to see what others are creating. You can get feedback, and it helps to stay motivated. I really hope you enjoyed this class, and I hope to hear from you if you have any questions