How To Add Color To A Drawing In Photoshop

How to Color Illustrations in Photoshop

Black and white illustrations sometimes get passed over because they lack the vibrancy of colored-in graphics, but that can easily be changed. This tutorial will bear witness yous how to color in whatever analogy with the palette of your choice. Being able to drastically change illustrations will give y'all more than flexibility with your designs, even allowing you to repurpose illustrations just by changing the colors.

Step One: Open the file in Photoshop

For this tutorial, we'll be using an elephant analogy from the Storyblocks library. Start by downloading the JPG version of the image, so open up it in Photoshop.

Step 2: Unlock the background and add a new layer

Create a new layer. This layer volition need to go underneath the elephant illustration, but to exercise that nosotros start demand to unlock the background. Click on the lock icon on the groundwork layer (the layer will become "Layer 0" after yous've washed this), then drag "Layer i" under "Layer 0."

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Step Three: Make full in the gaps

If there are any gaps in the outline of your illustration, make sure to fill them in using the paintbrush tool. Our elephant illustration has ane small intermission in the outline of the left ear, then nosotros just need to connect the two points. Make sure the elephant layer is selected when you start painting.

Footstep Iv: Set the blending mode

With the Layer 0 (the elephant) selected, click on the blending fashion button and select "Multiply."

Step Five: Select the background

Select the magic wand tool and click on an area of the image outside of the elephant (this is where it is important that the outline of your analogy not accept any gaps). A moving dotted line will announced around the area that you selected. If the dotted line does not get around the entire elephant, Ctrl+click (or Command+click on Macs) on a dissimilar part of the background and click "Add together To Selection." Repeat this until all areas around the outline of the elephant are selected.

Step Six: Grouping the layers and add together a Layer Mask

Select Layer 0 and Layer 1 (you can do this past clicking on Layer 0, and so Ctrl/Command+click on Layer 1). Click Ctrl+Grand (Command+Grand) to create a new group from the two layers. With the area effectually your illustration notwithstanding selected (we did this in Step Five), click on "Group ane" and then click "Add layer mask."

Stride Seven: Invert the layer mask

After you create the layer mask, you'll demand to click Ctrl+i (Command+i) to invert the layer mask. This will allow you easily to paint inside the lines of your illustration. Once you've inverted your layer mask, your illustration should look like the image below.

Step Eight: Color in your illustration

With "Layer i" selected, selection a color, click on the paintbrush tool, and beginning coloring! Because of the layer mask nosotros created in Pace Seven, yous tin only color inside the elephant. This makes adding color to an image a lot easier because you don't have to worry well-nigh staying "within the lines."

For this tutorial, we colored the entire elephant in a light gray, made the tusks white, then selected a darker gray to add some shadows and depth to the illustration.

You could stop here and y'all'd have a neat elephant illustration that you tin can add together to whatever graphic. However, if you lot'd like to add a background to your epitome, read on for some bonus steps.

Bonus: Add a background

Create a new layer (brand certain that it isexterior of Group ane). Drag the layer beneath Group 1 and pick a color for your background. With your new layer selected, click Alt+delete (Choice+delete on Macs) and the entire background of the illustration will be filled in with the color of your choice.

Earlier & After

That'south it! You've successfully colored in an illustration in Photoshop. You tin at present use this aforementioned tutorial with other stock black and white illustrations from the Storyblocks library.

Get Started with Illustrations

Tags:
Adobe Photoshop,
images,

Maddie Stearn

Freelance Writer

Maddie Stearn is a freelance author and graphic designer from the Washington, D.C. area. Equally one of stock media'southward fiercest advocates, she has been known to discuss the virtues of stock at whatever opportunity.