Loish
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PROCESS VIDEO // dark mode - part III
🕑 Added 2025-05-23 09:04:01 +0000 UTCHere's part 3 of my process for my dark mode painting! Part one and two just got posted - check out the feed to see it. This painting is intended as a companion piece to my light mode painting. I didn't record the final hour of rendering, so unfortunately this stops right before the end, but I still think it's a pretty good representation of my process!
Here’s some information about this process video:
It has been sped up by 200%, so 2 times the original speed.
This painting session took me about 6 hours and 15 minutes, split up into multiple sessions.
I edited the process into three parts. This is the final part!
I mostly used the hard round brush from my own brush set to paint this. I also used a lot of brush & smudge combinations to paint and then soften edges.
This is painted in Adobe Photoshop. You can replicate a similar workflow in Procreate, with the exception of the gradient tool and the number of layers used!
I wasn't able to record the entire process, unfortunately - but I did record 90% of the process, so this is the whole thing minus the last hour or so of rendering.
Here are some helpful resources that can help understand this process in more detail:
Soft & hard edges with the lasso tool: This is a technique I use a lot in this video - except rather than using a large noisy brush, I use the smudge tool to soften the edges. This tutorial runs you through how I gradually layer shapes to get this semi-translucent effect.
Creating interesting & flowy shapes: This tutorial is all about how I combine different types of shapes to create a sense of movement in my image.
STARTING OVER
I was super bummed to have to start over on the dark mode spirit, but I was surprised by how easily it went once I got started. I think that’s because I had already tested out something that didn’t work, which makes it much easier for me to decide what does work. I also know that I want the drawing to resemble the Light mode spirit more, so I can use that as a template. I also make some changes to the girl’s pose and expression so that she appears more hypnotized / controlled by the spirit. Once I do this, I feel like the whole concept works so much better!
LAYERING DETAIL
Once the foundation works well, it just becomes a question of gradually layering on detail. My technique of combining the lasso tool with the gradient allows me to continually layer on semi-translucent shapes of detail to get a 3-dimensional feeling. It’s a really great technique if you’re using photoshop - and with Procreate you can just use a soft brush instead of a gradient! Again, my tutorial on Soft & hard edges with the lasso tool walks you through the details of the workflow.
Unfortunately I didn’t record the last hour or so of the process, but since this video brings it to 90% completion, I figure it still gives a good sense of my workflow! I hope you enjoyed it and as always, let me know if you have any questions 🖤
Comments
Loish
haha dang, i didn't realize i had even made THAT many layers. i have a pretty powerful setup (updated my PC for the first time in 15 years so I went all out), you can find the details here: https://loish.net/faq/setup/ but i don't think such a setup is required. i'm just lazy with my layers because there are no limits, but i could easily just save a new version and flatten everything to work around layer limits. procreate and ipad is a pretty good setup too!
Michael H
Ok…I have to ask (after seeing layer 134!), you’ve been asked this before I’m sure….what computer system are you using. I looked up ‘maximum layers that can be used in Photoshop. Of course the specs on your computer would determine what you can do in Photoshop. When I looked up Photoshop maximum layers, it said 8,000❗️😵💫. But Adobe Help Center suggests 1,000 is a more realistic maximum! Thank you Loish for sharing any info on what system/computer/processing power you are using to run Photoshop. I’m just very curious. I’ll be sticking with Procreate lol, for a long time. Btw: The Mac that was suggested to run Photoshop was about $2,000.00 but I’m guessing professional digital artist have much more powerful systems. 💙
Michael H
Going for #3☕️👍🏻
Loish
I relate to this so much! I also used to work that way: starting with clean lines, going layer by layer. but it just never worked for me because there were too many problems that i couldn't solve later in the process because i had already committed to it. that's why i just take more of a cut-and-paste approach now! i'm glad this one resonated with you, the reason i shared it was because i really want people to know that they can go with the flow!
Pilar 🌿
Love the final piece! Watching your process videos has been so eye-opening for me. It helped me realise that a similar workflow is what works best for me. Painting & sculpting as you go feels a lot more freeing and at least for me, helps me see what's working and what's not working as I go. I also feel in control. The other approach I was doing - that I'm now letting go of - was, I would start with a black outline for every element of the drawing, and then move on to colouring (like a colouring page). But I always felt that that never helped me achieve so many things that I wanted for the artwork, one of them being the workflow itself. Having outlines that I have to commit to from the start is too rigid for me. So this painting & sculpting, adding details, modifying shapes, adjusting colours as you go, fits my style so much more!
