Depict a pin-up figure with attitude

1 In my pencil sketch I try to define character and composition. I want her face in the centre. I consider the path that the viewer’s eye takes, and position her face on one of the diagonals. This guides the viewer through the curve of her body, then along her right hand to the can, and through her left hand back to her face. It’s hard to see it yet – tone and colours will help me with that. 2 Pin- up is usually all about tanned hips, blue sky and colourful clothes, but this won’t suit a punk character, so I pick a cooler, darker palette. I fill the background with a purple- grey neutral tone, making it easier to define bright and dark colours. The brightest will be her hair, the most saturated the candy box. To emphasise her curves I add a red splash on the wall, and a pink one to balance that. 3 I fix major elements and assign colours to them so they’re in harmony. For example, it’s useful to use visual ‘rhymes’, such as the obvious big pink shirt and small pink lips, and not-so- obvious green eyes and red candy box. Now it’s time to work on volume and texture, add a second light source – another pin- up trick: hard backlight. I also smooth the girl’s features. 4 I hide the original outline drawing by changing its blending mode from Multiply to Overlay. This way I still can find and conceal it again as I work. It may sound inconvenient, but I merge all my layers, making the digital process closer to a traditional one. Finally, I work on details such as the eyes, mouth and rivets. I then use Photoshop for final texturing and colour correction.