Colored Pencil Tutorial

Welcome to the step by step tutorial on my technique using colored pencils .  This is the technique used on such pieces as "Serenity" and "Repose". If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me - I'm more than happy to help you out if you'd like to try this technique yourself!

Step One: Supplies

Supplies Used:

6" x 6" Arches Hot-Press Watercolor Paper (300lb weight)

Graphite Transfer Paper

Drawing Pencil (HB or B)

Eraser and Pencil Sharpener

Reference Photo

Paper Towel

Prismacolor Colored Pencils (Pencil Crayons)
*Black 935
*White 938
*Mahogany Red 1029
*Rosy Beige 1019
*Salmon Pink 1001
*French Grey 10% 1068
*French Grey 20% 1079
*French Grey 30% 1070
*French Grey 50% 1072
*French Grey 90% 1076
*Burnt Ochre 943
*Dark Brown 946
*Slate Grey 936
*Sepia 948
*Cream 914
*Cool Grey 10% 1059
*Cool Grey 30% 1061
*Peacock Blue 1027
*Deco Yellow 1011

Stabilo "All" Colored Pencil in White (this is a "write-all" pencil - oil based)

The pencils should all be easily found at your local art supply store, although some stores aren’t always carrying individually sold colored pencils. They can be purchased at Colors Art Supply(Regina, Saskatoon) or online from a site like DickBlick.com or DanielSmith.com.

PLEASE NOTE: For sake of this tutorial, we can simply transfer our reference photo directly onto our paper using the graphite transfer paper. This technique is ONLY used in the class setting to save us time in teaching the colored pencil technique (as this is not an anatomy/drawing workshop) and when creating artworks at home, you should sketch your image beforehand and transfer your finished sketch onto your paper. transferring your photo directly is a disqualification for most competition rules, which require you to draw your own work from scratch. This applies to photos you have taken with your own camera. It is, essentially, "cheating", and should not be passed off as your own artwork. The following step shows a sketch being transferred, as you can try at home.

Step Two: Sketching/Transferring

First, I take my reference photo and sketch it out (on cheap paper) before I transfer it to my hot-press paper. You do not want to sketch directly on your hot-press paper, as you will be able to see the lines and erase marks on your final copy. Do all of your scribbling and erasing on a rough copy, and then transfer the bare minimum of lines onto your final copy:

Step Three: The Nose

The first step when adding color is to lay down a base layer of color that will be burnished in the next step. You will be looking for colors present in your reference photo, looking for the most vibrant of the colors (burnishing will tone them down). The paper should be ghosting through the pencil, and you don’t need to worry about adding any detail, as burnishing will hide any detail from this stage. This is a quick and rough base layer, and there shouldn’t be too much time wasted on making it perfect.
Colors used: Mahogany Red, Rosy Beige, Salmon Pink, Black

The word “burnishing” will be used frequently through this workshop. To burnish is to rub or press very hard on the paper, forcing colors to be blended together. In this case, our burnishing will almost always be done with a White or a French grey 10% colored pencil. You can purchase a “colorless blender” if you so choose, but I prefer the creamy effect of using the lighter colors to do the burnishing. Burnishing will be best achieved using a slightly rounded/dull pencil, with no sharp point.

The goal with the burnishing is to blend all the colors from the previous layer into one creamy smooth texture. You will be using a lot of pressure on your pencil, and will be moving the pencil in small circular swirls, which will force the colors to blend. Keep in mind that these pencils are a waxy base, and you are essentially pushing the wax around and mixing them on the paper. The end result should be no more paper ghosting through – you will have a solid and smooth section that is almost shiny in appearance. It will also be much lighter in color than your reference photo – and in fact, this color should represent the lightest or close to the lightest color you see in that section of your reference photo. My saying is: "If your arm isn't hurting, you're not doing it right!" This is a reminder to press VERY HARD and work in tiny circles. The harder you press, and the smaller the circles, the smoother the overall result will be.
Colors used: French Grey 10%, White

Now that you have a smooth creamy and solid layer of color, the details can be added on top. To achieve this, you will be adding color and lights/darks in form of small lines and dots – often redoing the burnishing as you go. Adding details will work best with a very sharp pencil, and frequent sharpening may be necessary. As you add colors and add black accents, you can use the White and French Grey 10% to re-blend those details, or even use a darker grey or brown. Don't be afraid to experiment with different pencils and different techniques! I call this a “layering process” – and the more you layer, the more realistic the picture will become. Be sure to add many colors, as there are multiple colors in the image that we barely see with our naked eye. The more colors you add and blend in, the more depth the picture will achieve. You will find that at this point, even a white line can be fairly easily drawn over a darker section of the pencils, and you can use this to add highlights where necessary.
Colors used: Mahogany Red, Rosy Beige, Salmon Pink, Black, White, French Grey 10%, French Grey 50%, Burnt Ochre

Step Four: The Chin

The same effect will be used on the hairy parts of the cat. You will add a base layer of color, even if this is simply some black/grey/brown, being careful to not put any color on the areas of the picture that have to stay quite white. No attention has to be paid to making “hairs” at this point. This is just a quick bit of shading prior to the burnishing. I usually add a bit of black at each of the very darks spots in the picture as well, being sure to make them smaller than they are in the reference photo (burnishing will expand them a bit by smearing the dark outwards).
Colors used: French Grey 50%, Black, Burnt Ochre, Slate Grey

The burnishing is done slightly differently for hair texture. Essentially, you will be burnishing in the same direction and length of the hair on the animal. (From the lips downward/outward, with shorter strokes up by the nose, longer strokes down by the bottom of the chin). This is where a good grasp of animal anatomy comes in handy, but a strong reference photo can help you even if you are not familiar with the animal you are working with. You will notice as you burnish (always pressing very hard – again with White or French Grey 10%) the colors previously scribbled on will actually start looking like hair.
Colors used: French Grey 10%, White

At this point, the smooth layer covering the chin will already look a little like hair, albeit blurry and un-detailed hair. Now, you will simply add darker and finer hairs – always keeping in mind to use a lot of different colors (even if it looks like black hair, it is helpful to add browns/blues to add depth). When adding hairs or re-blending, always try to keep your pencil strokes the same direction and length of hair you are working on. You can add little hairs sticking out in other directions (to add character) but only after you are finished all the hairs running the main direction. Multiple layers of adding crisp detail, blending, adding more crisp detail, blending, etc. will make the hair look realistic and give it the depth.
Colors used: Black, White, French Grey 50%, French Grey 10%, Slate Grey, Sepia

Step Five: Finishing the hair

The same technique will essentially be used for the entire cat's face. To repeat, the steps are:
1) Base Layer - a rough and quick shading with dark or vivid colors to be burnished later
2) Burnishing - using very hard small circular or hair-length strokes to blend the base layer together
3) Detailing - adding details over the smooth burnished layer
You will always be repeating steps two and three over and over, and the more you add to these steps, the more depth and reality your picture will have. Remember to be conscious of the length of the hair and the direction of the hair. You would not be using long (one inch for example) pencil strokes when burnishing the bridge of the nose. These would be short tiny scribbles to help mimic the look of tiny bristly hairs.

The pictures that follow are of the various stages of layering for the rest of the cat's face:

Muzzle: Base Layer

Muzzle: Burnishing

Muzzle: Details

Bridge of Nose: Base Layer

Bridge of Nose: Burnishing

Bridge of Nose: Details

Note that the burnishing stages always look cooler or more blue than the finished product. This happens when white is used to burnish black (it brings out the blue in the black pencil) and can be avoided (if necessary) by burnishing with French Grey 10% or by adding French Grey 90% in with the black in the base layer.

More images from the rest of the face:

Face: Base Layer

Face: Burnishing

Face: Detail 1

Face: Detail 2

Face: Detail 3

You might notice that even when I'm working on the cheek or the eyebrow, certain aspects of the chin or muzzle might change. This is because at all times while working, I glance back at my previous sections and do touch-ups if necessary. This will help with the continuity of the picture as well, so it doesn't look like you're working entirely in pieces, like a quilt. I am very particular about each and every hair, and sometimes after working on another part of the picture, I go back and notice something I missed or something I needed to change.

Step Six: The Eye

The eye is the most important part of any animal picture. Even if the hair and rest of the face is lacking a little, a crisp and detailed eye will make the artwork come alive. Again, as with the rest of the piece, we will be approaching the eye with the same steps: 1) Base Layer, 2) Burnishing, 3) Details. This first step shows the pupil and the outer parts of the eye drawn in (dark black) and a bit of color put in. I always over-do the color (exaggerate it) as the burnishing will tone everything down. Note at this point the pupil does not have to be exact, or the perfect shape, as we will be burnishing into it a little - we will touch it up later. Even if your reference photo is lacking in color - be brave and put in colors that you think might be there. A little too much color is better than a flat and lifeless eye.
Colors used for the entire eye: Cream, White, Black, Sienna Brown, Dark Brown, Slate Grey, French Grey 50%, Cool Grey 30%, Peacock Blue, Deco Yellow, French Grey 90%

The burnishing on the eye will be done in small (VERY SMALL) circular motions, to help smooth everything out. When it is all burnished, there should be no paper ghosting through, and you should not see any pencil strokes. It will have a glassy appearance. This is the only stage in the burnishing that we use the circular motions. From this point forward, we will work in strokes that run from the pupil outwards, following the natural lines that appear in the iris. Note at this point there is almost no color or shape to the eye, and this is ok. We want a smooth layer to work with for our next steps.

After our burnishing, the eye looked flat. Now we can put some shadows in, using black or one of the darker cool greys. Again, as with any step before burnishing, I exaggerate the color because when it is blended in, it will look a lot lighter and less vibrant. I try to work in small circular strokes to prevent any harsh lines from showing up in the eye.

This step is simply burnishing the shadow and blending it into the surrounding eye. Here, I may choose to burnish with a slightly darker pencil than the white or french grey 10%. Cool greys are best for the eyes, and here I used a cool grey 30% to do the blending. With this shadow, we want it smooth and flat, so again we are working with very small circular motions.

Once the shadow is burnished in, we can work at adding some color and at the same time, a bit of detail to the eye. Again, because I will be burnishing a bit afterwards, I can make these colors quite vibrant. I'm working the brighter blues in lines from the pupil outwards, and the rust and brown colors from the edges in. In between these two colors I am adding some cream and yellow hues. It is important that you actually start your pencil strokes inside the pupil, dragging towards the outer edge. We want to actually touch the pupil as we work, even if it "mucks it up" a bit. We will fix it afterwards. If we don't do this, the pupil will look like it's floating in the middle of the eye, rather than actually being a part of the eye. Don't be afraid to add colors you don't see in your reference photo. We all know eyes are incredibly colorful and unique, and the more colors you add the deeper and more real it will be.

Once our color is laid down, we can burnish it in slightly, now using the outward linear strokes. Always work from the pupil outwards, or from the edge inwards, remembering that the eye is a sphere (no horizontal or vertical lines). We want to blend in our color a bit, so it is not quite so vivid, but we want to retain some of the lines that naturally appear in the iris. Additionally, we want to keep the edges of the eye dark (feel free to burnish in some of the black from the edges - again we will touch this up afterwards). If you find your shadow has disappeared a bit, add some more dark and burnish it in as you go. The key here is a lot of layers of color and burnishing. The eye should look smooth, but also round and detailed. When you are completely happy with the iris of the eye, you can go back and darken the pupil and edges to give the eye a nice crisp black line where it is needed. Keep in mind that reflections and highlights come after - don't worry about the highlights at all at this point.

We don't want to add any reflection or highlights until we are completely finished the shadows, burnishing, and color. After highlights are put in, we don't want to have to go back and add anything to the under-layers of the eye. Keep in mind that the reflection of the eye sits on top of the spherical eye shape - the iris and pupil fall underneath that clear layer, and we want it to appear as such.

To do the reflection and highlights in the eye, I often use the "Stabilo - ALL" pencil. This is a write-all pencil (they are often referred to as a grease pencil) that is advertised as writing on wood, glass, plastic, etc. It is oil-based and glides smoothly over the Prismacolor pencils. It is also slightly transparent, which is ideal for a reflection. The best reflection will still show the eye underneath, and this is what gives depth and reality to the eye. Work in small sections at a time, and layer the Stabilo pencil over itself to achieve a brighter white. I work with quite a sharp point to the pencil, and sharpen often so I can maintain the level of precision I need to put in the little edges on the reflection. I also add a small spherical highlight to the bottom left of the eye, helping give the illusion that this flat eye is very round. This is also the step where I add the highlights into the black skin surrounding the eye, as in nature this part is often moist and will reflect light. Another key component to eye reflections is that they are almost never just white... this means adding some blue or some green to the edges of the reflection. Look very closely at your reference photo (or at a different one if necessary) to get a good idea of what colors are visible. I would suggest not creating a reflection yourself without looking at a photo, as it's a very important part of the eye, and reflections are very tricky.

Step Seven: The Whiskers

The whiskers are simply long thin lines – in this case both black and white. Care should be taken to keep the pencils very sharp, and the white whiskers can be done with the Stabilo pencil. I often use a grey pencil which matches the layer under the whiskers (or slightly darker than the under layer) to put a very fine edge along the whisker, to help define the whisker, so it doesn’t look fuzzy or blurry. It will help to work from bottom to top – doing the whiskers that are underneath first, overlapping the next ones on top. I frequently use the burnishing technique with long, thin strokes to make some of the whiskers lighter or more blurry, and use black or a dark grey (very sharp) to do fine wispy lines. Again, the more layers you do and the more time you take, the more real it will look. Above is a picture of the fine wispy whiskers under the lips and chin, and below is the image of the whiskers completed. Keep in mind that the whiskers are very unique from one picture to another, and often the technique that works on one image will not work on another. It depends greatly on the texture and color of the layer beneath your whiskers. If you're concerned about how a certain technique will work, you can always try it on a separate piece of paper first. I often do this if I am unsure how to go about doing a certain part of a picture. "Recreate" the scenario on a scrap paper, and try a few different techniques until you find one that will work for your image. In this case, I am lining each whisker with my Prismacolor pencil first (very sharp white or black) and then going over it with the Stabilo (for the white ones) and touching up the edges with the color that closest resembles the layer beneath the whiskers.

The Finished Product!

The finished product is a very realistic artwork with a smooth creamy finish. The more attention you pay to small details, the more real your picture will look. I often go back over other parts of my picture after having finished them, to add or change little details. Sometimes it even helps to take a “day off” and come back and look at the picture again – certain things will jump out at you as needing extra little touches. Essentially, I never even consider any of my artwork “finished” per se… I eventually get to a point where I am content with the result (and content with the incredible amount of time I had put into the piece!), and therefore choose to stop. At any point, I (and you!) could always go further, and take it one step closer to photographic realism.

"Snow Leopard's Eye"
Dimensions: 5" x 5"
Medium: Colored Pencils
Completed: October 2008
Open Best of Show Winner
"Reflections of Nature" 2008

A Few Things to Consider...

A word on fixatives and varnish:
Colored pencil pieces undergo a process called “wax-bloom” – which will result in a waxy film rising to the surface of the artwork, causing a foggy film over the work. This is because of the wax-base in the pencils. It is essentially harmless to the work – it just looks terrible. It wipes or polishes off easily with paper towel or facial tissue, but this will continue to happen (anywhere from one day to years after the work is finished) and therefore these pieces absolutely MUST be sprayed with a fixative that will seal the wax in and stop this process. The fixative I use is a crystal-clear acrylic-based matte fixative in a spray-can. Always be sure to check the label and follow directions very closely to prevent damage to your work by your fixative. If the fixative is suitable for graphite or pastels, it will be fine for colored pencils. I wouldn’t suggest a varnish, or a brush-on product, as many of them yellow with age, or cause the paper to warp.

A word on copyright:
Please note that the images used in this tutorial are not copyright-free images. Feel free to practice the images in this tutorial for your learning process, but please be aware that any and all artwork created in my class or created based on these images in this tutorial must NOT be used for competition, sale, reproduction, or display. If you need reference photos, I suggest you check out a website called WetCanvas.com which has a free reference library with contributions from artists all over the world. Some photographers even sell rights to their photos if you inquire. Plagiarism is a serious offence, and as artists, we must take special care to always acquire the proper permissions to use any reference photos we apply to our work – especially when working in a realistic style such as this, in which the artwork strongly resembles the original photo. I would like to give much thanks to the photographers Rebecca and Glen Grambo, from whom I have purchased many reference photos (including this snow leopard). Please visit their website to see some amazing wildlife photography!

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Last updated October 30, 2008