The Colored Pencil Course: Portrait Drawing - Part 5
Lesson Description
In this lesson, we continue our portrait drawing series and focus on the final element that brings a portrait to life: hair. This is the fifth module in the portrait series, and it covers techniques for drawing realistic hair with colored pencils. By the end of this lesson, you will understand how to create texture, volume, and natural flow in hair, completing your portrait with confidence.
Understanding Hair Structure
Before drawing hair, it’s important to understand its structure and behavior. Hair grows in sections, with strands flowing in specific directions and responding to light differently depending on the texture and thickness. In this section, Matt breaks down hair into basic forms and planes, showing how to observe the overall shape, movement, and flow. Understanding these fundamentals helps you avoid drawing hair as flat or stiff lines.
Layering and Building Hair with Colored Pencils
Hair is best created through careful layering of colored pencils. In this lesson, you will learn how to build depth and richness by gradually layering light and dark tones. Matt demonstrates how to begin with general shapes and values, then refine individual strands to create realistic texture. Emphasis is placed on patience and observation, showing how subtle layering can make hair appear soft, full, and lifelike.
Using Direction and Flow
Direction and flow are key to natural-looking hair. In this section, you will learn how to follow the natural curves of the head, ensuring that each stroke complements the overall movement of the hair. Techniques include drawing with short, controlled strokes for fine hair and longer, sweeping strokes for larger sections. Matt also explains how to avoid common mistakes, such as drawing hair in straight, uniform lines that appear unnatural.
Capturing Highlights and Shadows
Highlights and shadows give hair volume and dimension. In this lesson, you will learn how to observe the way light interacts with hair and replicate it using colored pencils. Matt shows how to preserve highlights by leaving areas of the paper untouched or lightly layering lighter tones, while deepening shadows with darker pencils. This balance of light and dark creates a sense of realism and depth, making the hair appear three-dimensional.
Step-by-Step Hair Demonstration
Matt provides a detailed, step-by-step demonstration for drawing hair in a portrait. You will follow along as he sketches the general shape, blocks in the base colors, layers midtones, and refines individual strands. The demonstration emphasizes blending, layering, and adding subtle details to achieve a polished and realistic finish. By working systematically, you can apply the same techniques to any hair type or style.
Practical Exercises and Tips
At the end of the lesson, practical exercises help reinforce the concepts learned. These exercises include practicing different hair textures, experimenting with highlights and shadows, and observing how hair interacts with light and surrounding facial features. Matt also provides tips for troubleshooting common issues, such as flatness, stiff lines, or overworked areas, ensuring your hair looks natural and dynamic.
Completing the Portrait
This lesson also focuses on integrating the hair with the rest of the portrait. You will learn how to balance hair with facial features, skin tones, and overall composition. By the end, your portrait will appear cohesive and complete, with realistic facial features and hair that adds expression, personality, and depth. Completing the hair is the final step in creating a polished, lifelike colored pencil portrait.
Lesson 17 provides a comprehensive guide to drawing hair and finishing a portrait with colored pencils. By focusing on structure, layering, direction, and the interplay of light and shadow, you will gain the skills to create realistic, dynamic hair. Completing this module gives you the confidence to finish your portraits with professional-quality results, enhancing your overall colored pencil portrait drawing abilities and leaving you with a polished, lifelike work of art.
Lesson Materials
Bristol paper, Prismacolor colored pencils, colorless blender.
Lesson Resources
Download eBook
Reference Image
Course Curriculum
Founder of The Virtual Instructor, artist and teacher. Matt makes learning art easy to understand and enjoyable.
Hi Matt….. I am just finishing this portrait in CP and wondered is there was anywhere I could upload a picture of what I’ve done for you to critique. Perhaps you don’t do that so please excuse me if you don’t. I’ve only been a member for a short while and still don’t know all the “ins and outs” This is only my third attempt to use CP’s and only my second portrait. thanks for all the instruction, this is the ONLY place I’ve found any instruction in the use of CP’s!!!! Thank you Matt!!!!!
Hi Beverly,
You can share your work on the forum…http://thevirtualinstructor.com/forum
Nunca pensei em sair.O que eu mais desejo é permanecer como um “MEMBER” por muitos e muitos anos.Em todos estes longos anos de aprendizado nada foi foi tâo importante e com tanta qualidade para a minha evolução artística e humana como o Thevirtualinstructor e a constante acessoria do Matt,que alem de ser um excelente professor é uma pessoa maravilhosa pelo qual tenho grande respeito e admiração!!Muitíssimo obrigado pela ajuda p ermenente que me ajuda dia a dia a continuar evoluindo e melhorando a qulidade do meu trabalho!! Espero continuar por muito tempo continuar aprendendo contigo amigo Matt!!!! Jose joao menezes Martins
Obrigado! Seus comentários significa o mundo para mim! Estou tão feliz de tê-lo como um membro e um estudante!
I have no interest in portrait at this time, am concentrating on still life- so will save lessons until later,
Thank you. All the Modules so far have been excellent. Barb Chadwick
I’m working on the portrait of Anna, trying out some different colors so her skin color is a bit closer to that of the photo reference. When my version #1 is finished, I’ll upload it to the tutorial forum – but I think I’ll need to do a version #2, because I’m still not close to the colors in the photo reference. My initial effort came close to the colors as they appear on my monitor, while you were demonstrating the procedure of drawing Anna. I’m trying (now, toward the end of my work on Module 5) to use more peach and a bit of “chocolate” color. Adding some Dark Brown color and some chocolate seem to help, but they’re not exact. Increasing the amount of dark umber seems to result in a dark brown with unpleasant gray undertones. Too much Sienna makes the skin too red.
Meanwhile, I’m very curious about the dedication at the end of the final module “In Memory of Anna”. Is it permissible to ask who was Anna?
Thanks for posting this tutorial. It’s a “very big stretch” for me and my effort is far from what I’d like, but I hope I’ve learned a lot by attempting it.
Bill Hansen
Hi Bill,
I can’t wait to see the finished result of your hard work! You may try layering over lighter skin tones over the dark umber. It may eradicate the grayish colors. Anna was a former student of mine whose life was taken from her. She was a young mother and left behind a small child when she passed away.
Oh Oh – I should have written that I’m working on the end of Module 4, not Module 5. – Bill
Thanks Matt – Very sorry to learn of Anna’s death. I was afraid it was something like that.
RE: my attempt at rendering her image – Just guessing of course – looks to me as if I need to use a fair amount more brown (but maybe not more dark umber), and maybe more peach, a lot less beige. I don’t think thee’s any tooth left on the paper, or I’d try layering over what I have. All the values could be darker. Stay tuned – maybe a day to finish the hair, and then find time when there’s decent light to photograph the result. – Bill
The first version of the portrait has been uploaded to the forum, “share your work from the tutorials” section. For accurate colors (colors which look more like the ones in my drawing, not necessarily the ones in the photo reference), follow the link I’ve put in that post. – B
Matt,
I wanted to publicly thank you for this colored pencil course. It was just what I needed. I have been working in colored pencil for just one year. I had reached a point where I needed help making it look a bit more realistic. This course did it!
The foil, reflections, and especially the detail I could get on the cork of the wine bottle were a wonderful surprise on the still life. Many people liked my drawing of the dog or Anna’s portrait best. The landscape on toned paper wasn’t quite as good as I would have liked, perhaps because I used gray rather than tan paper. The portrait was my first ever. I feel that my finished works ended up looking so very like your own examples. Your instructions were so easy to follow. I’m really happy with the way they all turned out.
Best of all, I have confidence that I can now make a realistic colored pencil portrayal of any subject. You really helped me to see value and see and layer more than one dominant color.
I’m stopping here, having finished Anna’s portrait, and not wanting to mix medias for now. I’m going to concentrate on nature journaling again (spurred on by John Muir Lawes’ website), which is why I started art in the first place a year ago, but then got side-tracked with Lisa Clough’s colored pencil videos. I just purchased Alyona Nickelsen’s Colored Pencil Painting Bible and look forward to continue realistic colored pencil. Anyway, I thought you might like to know how one of your customers came to your course.
Thank you so much! Your course has been a great gift to me for the price of a semi-expensive restaurant dinner out. Yours is the much better value!
Greg Gillson
San Diego
Hi Matt,
This was indeed such a great lecture on portrait drawing with coloured pencils.Thank you! Since I saw Heather Rooney’s drawings for the first time at youtube, I have been full of admiration for those people who master this technique. By means of your instructions there might be a slight chance that I can begin to learn this as well. Anyway, I really enjoy to be a member here.
Best regards
Anna Maria Lassen
Ps. May I ask how Anna passed away?