You struggle with drawing Fur!
You try and try and it does not look realistic!
You have a Reference Picture but don’t know where to start and how?
I got you. Grab your Pencils and lets do this Fox Drawing together. I will show you in 10 easy Steps how to get from a the reference to a beautiful Colored Pencil Drawing.
I use Faber Castell Polychromos*
the beginning:
Step 1:
This is the photography that was provided by the Colored Pencil Magazine for their monthly challenge. The picture is by Patricia Sue Overton (thank you again for this). My first step is always to find my own composition. I want the finished drawing to be my own (if I am using a reference picture by someone else).
First open the picture in Photoshop or any photo editing program or APP you have ( you can also make some quick thumbnail sketches) and play around with the crop option. I want the Fox to be in the focus, so I need to zoom in. I think that the background is to busy with the bark of the tree and the ground – so my next decision is to leave the background white.
Step 2:
Now that we know what we want to draw, we must define the HOW.
This is how I do it: I study the reference for a while. Zoom in and just concentrate on the object. Try to find all the hidden colors, and the longer you look the more colors will show up. ( I drew them onto the reference for you ) Quite a lot of greens and purples and blues, don’t you think? You would not have guessed that when you look at the photo briefly – so take your time.
Lets start drawing:
Step 3:
It is time to get the first pencils marks on the paper. Make a rough outline of the subject and block in the colors. For this Fox drawing I use the purples and yellow-oranges that I saw in Step 2. Once this is done apply more layers of those colors and try to find the shapes of the body and the direction of the fur.
Step 4:
Now we add the reds and oranges as we go further. Look for the facial features. At this stage we still use a very light hand with our pencils so that any corrections can be done without causing bigger problems.
TIP: Always go with the direction of the Fur! Even if you think that you will not see any of the first pencil marks in the finished drawing, it is good to practice this. And a stronger pencil stroke might still be visible in the finished Artwork.
the Underpainting
Step 5:
Now use the oranges and reds to build up the colors. Than use dark sepia and black to get down the darkest shadows of the drawing. With a blending stump pusch the pigments into the tooth of the Paper. But don’t push too hard, you don’t want to damage your Paper.
Step 6:
Once this is done apply another layer of color and smoothen it out, until your middle values are like you want them to be. I think I am quite happy now, this is my ‘Underpainting’.
Details – the fun part!
Step 7:
Draw the fur with a very sharp point . Always in the direction it grows. Keep close attention to the reference picture. This little fella has quite swirly hair on it’s back – and it gave me some trouble drawing it. Blur it out a bit with a blending stump and go over it again with a very sharp pencil.
Step 8:
Keep adding the Hair until you have finished the drawing. If the Hair strains look to sharp use you blending stump to *blur* it out.
Finishing Touches
Step 9:
Most of the work is done by now. Now you see where you need to add the darkest shadows and add back some highlights.
Step 10:
For the brightest highlights in the facial hair and on the back I used a white gel pen
Here is my finished version of the Fox Drawing
( and some of the details )
* Affiliate link
Thank you for following me through this Fox Drawing. Please leave a comment telling me how you liked it.
Thank You for taking the time to help all of us that are just getting started with colored pencils. I love your fox. We have two that come thru the yard quite often. Thanks again!!!!
thank you for such a detailed and delightfully cute little fox tutorial
Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. I like to hear how people like the short tutorial, and I am happy that if helped you 😀
Thank you so much. You said it perfectly… I don’t know where to start. Now I can’t wait to gather my supplies and begin. … and your work is beautiful!!
Thank you so much Katherine :*
I am so glad that my work helps you and you like it.
Thank you! I love this little fox, your drawing put him to life. Thanks for the tutorial, it will help me in my drawing.
Thank you Margo for taking your time to comment. And I am so glad you like it.
I hope to add a few more tutorials soon 🙂
Thank you for sharing!
You are so very welcome ♥
This was my first time coloring an animal and this picture and your steps were super helpful. Thank you so much. I’m really happy with how my fox turned out!
I am so happy to hear that Alana and you are welcome.
Thank you so much for taking me through your process. You have given me a way to observe the fox first as a whole and then into its parts then back as a whole. It does indeed answer the questions of where to start then why to start there and then the how you start there and where to go next. You gave a great road map. I could easily see the blues and the purples but it took another couple of steps for me to see the subtle greens. Thank you. My question is also about the paper. At the beginning you state that you chose white as the background yet the finished fox appears to be on a subtle pale back ground. Were you just choosing to look at the image with a white back ground on photo shop then choosing an appropriate paper with a tint for the actual project after your observations? If so, what color is the paper and how did you arrive at that color choice?
Hej Michelle,
Fist of all it made my day that I could help you so much ♥ And thank you for the time you took to comment in depth. Hope you can Apply that ‘road’ map on other drawings too.
I choose white paper ( I am always only drawing on white paper – maybe will use some tinted paper in the future) Maybe it looks tinted on your device or it is something that happend during the scan.
You could always use Photoshop to cut out the object and place it on different colored backgrounds to find the right composition for you. – I hope this answers your question, if not let me know 😀
This is a beautiful piece. I do have one question though. May I ask what paper you used for this fox drawing?
– Sarah
Aww thank you Sarah, I love it too.
I used the Daler Rowney Smooth heavy Paper for this Drawing.