Color Pencil Portraits
This step by step lesson illustrates and explains the drawing techniques used to create a realistic color pencil portrait.
- Slide Show
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A color pencil portrait.
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Indicate the position of the features.
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Lightly sketch the features in line.
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Establish the outline of the face.
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Outline the shape and volume of hair.
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Complete the neck and shoulders.
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Suggest the tone and color of the eyes.
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Build up the tones and colors of the iris.
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Balance the white of the eyes.
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Evenly shade the skin with a flesh color.
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Apply some tones with a darker color.
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Intensify the darker tones of the skin.
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Use an eraser to lift out some highlights.
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Add some warmer flesh colors.
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Add eyebrows and eye lashes.
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Build up the color and tones of the lips.
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Apply some color to the dress.
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Carefully shade the pattern of the dress.
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Apply a flat color to the cardigan.
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Add some tone to the cardigan.
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Build up the hair with light rhythmic lines.
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Shade in the form of the hair.
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Intensify the color and tone of the hair.
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Evenly apply a neutral background color.
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Build up a tonal counterchange.
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Unify the tones of the drawing.
In our Color Pencil Portrait Lesson we lead you from the first marks that you make on the paper, building up your skills through the key stages of our drawing technique to create a realistic portrait. Our slide show illustrates the development of our color pencil portrait and lets you observe the drawing process from start to finish. Once you see the step by step development of our portrait, you will understand that the drawing process is quite methodical and not as complex as it looks.
Each of our lessons below leads you through a different section of the portrait, illustrating and explaining that part of the drawing from start to finish.
