Gather reference and write out a list of shots and ideas you might want to explore. Then create a set of thumbnails, using as big a brush as possible to discourage over-detailing. Fail fast and often to get to the good ideas quicker!

Aim to create 6-12 of these quick thumbnails, and then choose one to move forward with as a painting.

Prepare your image for painting by creating a base set of line art. You can use 3D to help with the proportions, or go fully 2D, depending on your preferences. Make sure to get the line art as clean as possible, and then print out 2 or more copies to paint onto.

Using traditional media, paint two ‘passes’ onto separate printed pages of your line art. One of these would be the lighting pass, and the other would be the local color pass. Depending on your skill level with traditional tools, you can keep this these paintings tighter or looser. Either way you will be cleaning up the paintings in Photoshop later, so it’s your choice how much of the details to solve with paints rather than digitally.

For extra credit, you can paint a second lighting pass, in order to create an alternate version of your final image at a different time of day.

Once you have the paintings, scan them into Photoshop and re-align them to the original canvas so you’re ready to begin working digitally again.

Now it’s time to finish your painting. It’s recommended that you try painting hero assets like Kenn demonstrated, printing out large versions of the line art for these key elements and making tighter paintings to enhance focal points of your image. Then do any other cleanup or post-processing needed to bring the artwork to its final look.

Once everything is done, prepare the image for posting on social media and your portfolio online. And don’t forget to share your hard work on the Learn Squared site!