How to Shade and Highlight in Watercolor
Mastering Light and Depth in Your Paintings
Introduction
Shading and highlighting are essential watercolor techniques that help create depth, dimension, and add a touch of realism. No matter the subject of your painting, whether it's a delicate floral composition, a still life, or a landscape, understanding how to work with light and shadow can elevate the quality of your watercolor artwork.
In the guide below, I introduce the topic by exploring some shading and highlighting methods in watercolor, along with practical tips to enhance your skills. Shall we begin?
1 - Understanding Light and Shadow
Prior to exploring the techniques themselves, it’s crucial to present some essential terms and concepts associated with light and shadow.
When light sources illuminate an object, they affect its look by producing highlights where the light directly strikes and shadows where the light is obstructed.
Thus, grasping these concepts is crucial for successfully utilizing the required methods and attaining the expected outcomes in your artwork.
1.1 - Light
Light serves as the source of brightness in a scene. It specifies the highlights and mid-tones of an object and establishes its shape. The angle, brightness, and hue of the light affect the appearance of objects in a painting.
Highlight – The most illuminated region where light strikes directly and is at its peak intensity.
Mid-tone – The region that gets indirect light, causing it to be lit but with reduced intensity. It acts as a bridge between the illuminated and dark regions.
1.2 - Shadow
Shadows are areas where light is blocked or reduced. They provide contrast, helping to define the shape and volume of objects. Shadows can be divided into:
Core Shadow: The darkest part of the shadow on an object, located on the side opposite the light source.
Cast Shadow: The shadow cast by an object onto another surface, varying in size, intensity, and sharpness depending on the light source and its position.
Reflected Light: A subtle illumination that bounces off surrounding surfaces, softening shadow edges and adding depth.
By understanding how light and shadow interact, you can create more realistic watercolor paintings that convey a sense of form and space.
To develop this skill, observing real-life objects or using a reference photo can help train your eye to recognize these variations.
2 - Techniques for Shading in Watercolor
1. Layering (Glazing)
Layering, or glazing, is a fundamental watercolor shading technique. By applying multiple transparent layers of paint, you gradually build depth and dimension.
- Start with a light wash for the base color.
- Once dry, add another layer in a slightly darker tone to create depth.
- Continue building shadows by adding more layers, allowing each one to dry before applying the next.
2. Wet-on-Wet Blending
The wet-on-wet technique creates smooth, natural transitions between light and dark areas.
- Wet the area with clean water.
- Apply a darker pigment where the shadows fall, allowing the paint to spread naturally.
- Use a clean, slightly damp brush to blend the edges seamlessly.
3. Dry Brush for Texture
For rough textures and more controlled shading, the dry brush technique is effective.
- Use a dry or slightly damp brush with minimal paint.
- Lightly drag the brush across the paper to create texture and subtle shading.
4. Gradual Dilution (Lifting and Softening)
Sometimes, softening edges or lifting color can create subtle shadow effects.
- While the paint is still wet, use a clean, damp brush to soften the edges.
- To add highlights or a glowing effect, gently dab a tissue or a dry brush over the wet paint to lift excess pigment. This technique helps create bright spots in specific areas.
3 - Techniques for Highlighting in Watercolor
Unlike opaque mediums, watercolor does not use white paint for highlights. Instead, highlights are typically achieved by preserving the white of the paper or lifting excess color using the lifting technique.
1. Preserving Whites with Masking Fluid
- Masking fluid protects areas that should remain white.
- Apply it before painting and remove it once the surrounding areas are dry.
2. Using Negative Painting
- Instead of painting an object, paint around it, leaving the lighter areas untouched.
- This technique works well for intricate highlights like veins in leaves or reflections on water.
3. Lifting Paint for Soft Highlights
- Use a clean, damp brush or tissue to lift paint while it's still wet.
- For dried areas, gently scrub with a damp brush to remove some pigment.
4. Layering Transparent Washes
- Instead of painting a solid highlight, use thin layers of diluted paint to build up lighter areas gradually.
However, you can also use white paint to enhance highlights, such as white gouache or a white pen, like a gel pen or a Posca pen.
4 - Practical Tips for Better Shading and Highlighting
Observe light in real life: Study how light interacts with objects to improve your understanding of shading.
- Use high-quality paper: Watercolor paper with good absorbency allows better control over layers and lifting.
- Test colors beforehand: Different pigments behave uniquely, so swatch them to see how they layer and blend.
- Experiment with brushes: Different brush shapes and sizes can create varied shading effects.
- Be patient: Let each layer dry completely before adding more to prevent muddy colors.
Final Thoughts
Mastering shading and highlighting in watercolor takes practice, but with patience and experimentation, you can create stunning depth and realism in your paintings.
By using techniques like layering, wet-on-wet blending, and negative painting, you'll develop a better understanding of light and shadow, making your artwork more dynamic and expressive.
What shading and highlighting techniques do you use in your watercolor paintings? Let me know in the comments!
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