Creating different lighting situations for characters has impactful visual effects and can also be used as a narrative tool.
- 1 min. short (Jordan’s steps)
- 1 min. short (blue light glasses)
- 1 min. short (Cintiq vs. iPad)
- 1 min. short (action poses)
- 82 min. video (draw along)
The interaction of color and various types of light can create a broad range of color schemes.
Lighting can be a very effective means of creating a mood or atmosphere to a character as well. Draw along led by Teaching Artists Cat Huang and Jordan McCracken-Foster.
Video Walkthrough
- Considering the color palette in relation to the character’s emotions.
- Children are very challenging to draw, their proportions are tough.
- Jordan using a photo of a figure skater as a reference for a hoverboard design for this character.
- Designing accessories for a character in relation to their story.
- How to draw the same character in multiple art styles.
- Start small with comics.
- Basing characters on people you know in real life.
- Figuring out the mood of the scene and then matching colors to that.
- Use yourself as a super quick reference when creating lighting.
- Being part of an artist community keeps all of us motivated.
- Strong story & characters are important regardless of the media.
- Adjusting the color scheme with multiply, darken, etc. (settings)
- Using complementary colors for the shadows.
- Consider the location of the light in relation to the character, is the light from above, from below?
- How to deal with color variation between various streams.
- Stories and TV shows you grow up with can influence you as an artist.
- Working with characters long term.
- Creating lighting with unusual colors to show a mood.
- You don’t have to follow the character’s color scheme when creating a lighting situation.
- Seeing different art styles is great!
![Character Design & Lighting, Cat Huang](https://artprofmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/20220228211900/vince_color_artalong.jpg)
Prof Lieu’s Tips
![Clara cartoon](https://artprofmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/20230124222022/IMG_4091-2.png)
You can read all you want about art supplies, watch all the tutorials, but ultimately, everything comes down to the hands on experience that you as an individual artist have.
![Figure Drawing: Charcoal](https://artprofmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/20221223205336/IMG_5042.jpg)
Often people want to know in advance whether a certain approach or technique is going to work.
There is only so much you can anticipate in your head. Until you actually try something, you’ll never know!
Software
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