Principles of Digital Painting for Portraits

Get started by getting to know Rodrigo's professional career, his artistic influences, and the main techniques he uses for digital painting. Then, go through everything you will learn in this course, including an overview of the final project.

In the second unit, discover the basic principles of light, shadow, and color—the key elements of portrait art. Take a tour of Photoshop by exploring its interface and setting up keyboard shortcuts to get the most out of the software.

It's time to get down to business and start creating your digital portrait. Make a mood board that will serve as a reference for making your first sketches of the face in Photoshop. Then, map the lights and shadows of your image.

Create volume and depth in your portrait by painting shades of gray and then adding color. Rodrigo shares some tricks and tips he uses for choosing a color palette and adding details.

In the last unit, make some final adjustments to highlights and secondary highlights using the Color Dodge technique and start adjusting tonal values. Finally, learn the best way to export your image.