Painting wet skin workshop

Multi-disciplined artist Antony Ward reveals his techniques for painting wet skin and blending colours in his distinctive portrait pieces

Artist Ant Ward goes through his process for blending colours and painting wet skin using Photoshop.

I’m primarily a 3D artist and have been since the early 90s. You may have even followed one of the many workshops I’ve created for 3D World magazine over the years. Even with this background in polygons and vertices, I’ve always had the desire to try more traditional art and get back to my roots.

For as long as I can remember this would be my New Year’s resolution, the year I’d start drawing again, but I never stuck to it. This was until 2016, which was the year I was determined to do it… and finally did!

I can happily say that I’ve been drawing and painting ever since. I came up with a realistic plan and followed it through to get me to where I am now. The plan was so successful that I’ve been asked repeatedly to share it.

I now regularly paint in my spare time, mainly creating stylised portraits because that’s what I enjoy doing – but it’s important to just be creating. Over this time, I’ve experimented with various techniques and brushes. I’ve come up with a system that works for me when painting skin, hair and eyes, and I use this with all my portraits.

With this workshop I want to share my process for painting wet skin, while demonstrating how I blend colours without the use of fancy tools or brushes.

Set out your workspace logically 1

It’s important to have your workspace organised before you begin. I like a large canvas, with a separate floating window to hold a reference photograph if necessary. Reference ensures that I can get the general look and lighting correct, but I’ll never make a direct copy of the source material. I also have my own brushes at the ready on the bottom of the screen.

2 See the bigger picture

Another window I like to have open is the Navigator. When you’re working on a painting or even a sketch you can get lost in the details because you’re looking closely at the canvas. Having a version of the image in the Navigator enables you to quickly glance at the whole piece and spot potential problem areas you might miss.

3 Create a basic sketch

I like to take my time during this early stage in the process, and gradually build the sketch up using numerous layers, refining it with each revision. That said, it doesn’t need to be exact – it’s only here as a rough guide. I find that once you start laying down the colours the proportions will need adjusting as you work, which is where the Liquify tool comes in useful.

4 Lay down the base colour

Because this portrait has a dark background you won’t be able to see the sketch as you work, so invert it to make it white. Fill the background in a dark grey, not black, and then begin to fill in the head area with a mid-tone skin colour. You can use the Eyedropper and choose a colour from the reference photo if you prefer.

5 Introduce the basic shades

Out of my brushes I think the Soft Speckled is one of my all-time favourites – I use this most of the time. With the base colour set, create a new layer and press Alt while selecting the base skin layer to create a clipping mask. This will stop your strokes going outside the skin area. Now use the Soft Speckled brush to start roughing out some of the darker and lighter areas of the face.

6 Experiment with colours

Next, use a lighter skin tone and work in even more of the lighter areas, including the ear. Keep checking the reference to see where the light catches the cheek, brow and upper lip. You can also use this opportunity to experiment with other colours you can see in the photo, such as adding some red to the nose and cheek.

7 Apply creases to the face

It’s time to start defining some of the creases around the eye. Choose a harder brush this time, the one called Hard, and block out the highlights where the nose meets the cheek. Also add a stroke on the upper eyelid. Switch to the Soft Speckled brush and gently erase around the edges, softening and blending this into the skin.

8 Add and remove definition where necessary

Carry on adding more definition around the crease of the nostril and upper lip, and around the cheek bone. This is how I do all my blending: I simply block in an area with the Hard brush and then gently remove it again using the Soft Speckled brush and the Eraser. This approach isn’t limited to Photoshop; it can be use in any painting program.

9 Developing colour variation

Now that you have a good base it’s time to start adding in more colour. The face isn’t just one tone – there are lots of greens, blues, pinks and oranges. Try to use the reference as a guide and add purple around the eyes, more red to the nose and cheek and an orange tint to the cheeks. Again, follow the same process, adding and removing to achieve the perfect blend.

10 Flip the canvas to reveal problems

Make sure that as you work you’re flipping the canvas regularly (I recommend setting up a keyboard shortcut for this). Doing this helps to highlight problem areas with lighting and the proportions. You may also feel that some key facial features need to be implemented at this stage, such as the eyes, lips and nose. If anything, it’ll be good to have a break from painting the skin.

11 Rinse and repeat

With the features in place you can then repeat the process, adding more layers and building up the contrast while also experimenting with colours. Contrast is key: it adds depth and brings the piece to life. Make sure that you’re always glancing at the Navigator to make sure the tones are correct. In my experience, seeing things from a distance can help you balance the portrait.

12 Paint highlights

The highlights are what bring the skin to life. They also help to portray the water resting on its surface. To add these, I simply use white and follow the same process as before. Block in an area and then pull it back with the softer brush. Be careful, though: go too far and your portrait can end up looking more like a plastic doll.

13 Illustrate water droplets and blend them against the skin

To create the water droplets running down her face, simply use the Hard brush to create the main trail. Use either an Overlay or Soft Light blending mode on that layer to blend them into the face and then add a new clipping layer, which will make it possible for you to paint the highlights and shadows on to each trail. As a final step, use white to add the droplets at the end.

14 Use the hair to gauge the success of the portrait

Adding the hair doesn’t mean the portrait is complete. I never feel like you can finish working on the face until the hair is in place, because it helps to frame the face so you can check how the lighting and proportions work. From here it’s a case of going back and repeating everything you’ve done so far. Add more depth, adjust the highlights and get those extra skin colours in place.