Changing Colors Tutorial by Rachel

So I have this beautiful image and these beautiful papers that I want to use with it. The problem? I don't have the correct color tones to match the paper! So this is a quick tutorial on what I do when I need to "dirty" something up/tone it down, whatever you want to call it ;0)

I color the image first with colors that match the papers as close as I can. 

The colors on the paper are pretty, but a bit muted so I am going to add a marker with a grey tone in it, in this case YG93.  You do NOT have to use this specific marker, most markers with grey tones will work, this is just the one I personally prefer.

 I don't want to touch the pink or the olive green colors because they are fine as they are, but I do want to tone down the blues and oranges and the brighter green.  I use my YG93 to start in the darker areas and do a single light layer up to the lighter areas.  On my orange I didn't want to mess with the light orange area much so I stayed away from it, but on the blue I really want to change the whole tone so I colored over the whole area.

There isn't a huge, dramatic difference, but if you look at the orange, blue and bright green they are toned down a bit and match the paper a bit better (click on pic for larger one).

I also did the same thing on the leaves of the tree on this card; the turquiose I had was just not the right shade so I swiped it with my YG93 to tone down the color a bit:

Images by Pink Cat Studio

CMC Challenge #1 w/Prize + B&W Tutorial by Rachel

When I saw this little Oliver image, I immediately thought of a black and white photo for some reason, so I thought it would be a great time to do a little tutorial on coloring an image using b and w (or greys, actually).

This also marks the first Color Me Copic CHALLENGE!  To enter the challenge all you need to do is:

1. Create a NEW card or other project (no links to previous projects please) using the black and white technique demonstrated below
2. Link your blog post using the InLinkz blue frog at the bottom of this post
3. Upload it by 7/28!

The best part is that The Greeting Farm has generously offered the Oliver and Amelia "Journey" set as a prize!!!! The CMC team will pick the top 3 cards that demonstrate the best use of the technique and display them on the CMC blog, BUT the winner of the Journey  set will be picked randomly so everyone has a chance.

The Tutorial

You can use any color of grays that you like, I tend to use the "C's" but neutral and warm grays will work just fine.  For this image I'm using C1, C3, C5, C7, C9 and 0 (Colorless blender).  Ignore the 110, I didn't end up using it :0)

Last step and finished image!

Used the finished image on this card so you can see how it looks :0)

Image by The Greeting Farm (Oliver and Amelia "Journey" set)

Kim's

Images: The Greeting Farm: Cheeky beauty; Cheeky glamour;

Skin: E40, 41, 43, background and outfits: W-1, -3, -5, -7,

100 and the colourless blender!!!

Basic Shading Tutorial - by Rachel

This is the tutorial featured in the February 2010 TGF Newsletter

I thought I'd share how I color some of my stamps, here is a very basic tutorial on shading with a "light source" coming from the side.  I say it's pretty basic because we aren't worrying about folds in the clothing and creating dimension and whatnot right now, it's just a straightforward way to learn to start shading.

The paper in the background is what I'm going to use on my card so I am picking my colors to match the paper.

Most of the time I use 3 colors for shading.  I'm starting off with B16/14/12 and R85/83/81.  First off, I pick a light source, in this case I'm assuming the light is coming right at her face (from the left side of the page), therefore I'm starting with my darkest colors on the back part of her (or the right side of the image).  I start with B16, then move to B14 and I blend a lot where the two of them meet so hopefully there is no line.

 Then I add B12, once again shading where the colors meet to avoid any lines.  I also go back and add more of my darker color, in this case B16, if I feel a bit more contrast is needed.

Next I do the same thing with the pinks, I start with R85... 

...then R83... 

...then R81, I also added more R85 for more shadow.  I also added YG09 to her dress at this point. 

**TIP** When shading a very small area, go from your darkest (YG09) straight to your lightest (YG06), there isn't enough space to add the middle color.

 

On Mr. Froggy I used YG17...

 

...then YG25...

 

...then YG03 and R20 (for "blush" on his cheeks).

 

For her face I do the darkest color (E11) near her hairline and then move to...

 

...E00...

 

...then E000 with R20 for accents on her cheeks and eyelid.

 

Her crown is Y17,Y08 and Y13.  I started shading her hair with Y28.

 

Then I finished her hair off with YR21 and Y21.

And here she is!

These are just my tips, some people go lightest to darkest, some go over the whole area before shading, etc.  There is no wrong way!  As a matter of fact, I color a different way every time sometimes, lol!

My "method" on this card:

1.  Try to use 3 colors for blending, within 3 digits of one another if possible.

2.  Darkest to lightest, blend blend blend where they overlap!

3.  When shading very small areas, skip the middle color and just go darkest to lightest.

Image: The Greeting Farm (Twinkle Tots: Princess Ava)

Color Me Copic Team - Meet Rachel!

Rachel (AKA ~Rach)
Blog: The Paper Crafting Place

I was introduced to Copics in July/August of 2009 and was hooked right away! I used to use Prismacolor pencils before but nothing compares to the eye-popping colors that you can get using Copics, I love them because they really make an image come to life. 

I don't have any formal classes or training, it's all self taught so I really consider every piece I color to be practice.  I've learned most of what I have by imitating other people's coloring that I love, by watching some great tutorials on YouTube and by asking lots of questions.  My hope is that this site will help all of you by having a bit of everything all in one place!