Next I begin to add some colour to the picture using a large brush. I’m not concerned with the details too much, just trying to pick the right colours to fit the mood I want, and here I want something that looks unreal, dream-like…yet grandiose. This part can be rather long… sometimes I start over to see other variations…but now I’m going to stick to this one because I like the dramatic light from above and the fire-like light coming from behind the character. I’m also being careful with the colour balance
After I set the colours I begin to add details, dabbing with a large soft brush (with different opacity) and refining with a smaller hard brush. Since I have an idea of the exact palette and mood, it’s time to start to refine my painting. I start correcting my shapes, cleaning up the values, the colours, and try to retain as much of the block in as I can
Well, I keep doing this until I’m happy with the result. I start with large brushes and use smaller ones at the very end. This is another thing that keeps me loose and makes my work go faster.
In the end I do a small adjusting of the Levels, add some final details, correcting here and there… DONE! Now I can go out and drink some beers, happy with my achievement.
Hope this helped, if you have any questions concerning this tutorial, I’ll be happy to answer, just drop me an email. Good luck!
