How to Color a Blue Roan in PSP

      Welcome, and Thank You for coming to check out my tutorial. For this tutorial you will need Paint Shop Pro (preferably version 7), one already made Line Art, and a Tablet is recommended but not required. This site is image intensive, as there are a number of screen captures provided for you. I will also try my best to make this tutorial simple and understandable.
-JNFerrigno


Step: 1 | Color: #2F3237 | Brush: Paint Brush | Size: 30-40 | Opacity: 100%
Create a new layer, this layer goes below the line art. Every layer you create will go below the line art, or your line art will disappear. Select your brush, size and opacity. Using #2F3237 brush in the entire line art.


Step: 2 | Color: #131519 | Brush: Paint Brush | Size: 10-20 | Opacity: 60%
If using a tablet, I like to have my pressure sensitivity options set to Vary Size and Vary Opacity. Change the opacity of your paint brush to 60% and lower the size. Do no go higher then 20, you won’t get that much detail in your piece even with the sensitivity option on. Using #131519, begin to draw in some muscle definition. All horses are different, so it’s recommenced that you have a color reference for your highlighting and shadow till you understand further. The barrel (middle) of the horse does not matter for this step, because we are making it a roan.


Step: 3 | Brush: Retouch | Size: 20-30 | Opacity: 50-100%
Under the Retouch brush, you should have a smudge option. After applying a layer of color, I follow up with a step of Smudge and then Soften in almost every step for most my pieces. The opacity of the smudge tool should be no greater then 50% and your sensitivity options NEED to be on or it just takes forever to get it right. The size of the smudge brush is also important, and should not be much bigger then your paint brush, that way with your sensitivity options turned on you still keep the small details in your piece. Following the smudge option, I like to go over it quickly with the soften option just to blend in any strokes that may appear unsightly. Your opacity options can vary, but generally I use 100% for the soften option.


Step: 4 | Color: #6A717C | Brush: Paint Brush | Size: 5-10 | Opacity: 60%
Create a new layer and change your brush settings + color to the ones mentioned above. For this step you will use three different types of brush stroke. The first one is just a simple stroke. The second one however is what I call a curly-Q, and in a continuos line I make little overlapping circles. Some times I make them tighter, some times I press harder, as a result this gives me piece some variation. The third stroke is a dot, or also called stippling. Over the body I scatter these stipple marks with no pattern or order to them at all. Keeping in mind that the shoulder and hip of this color should fade into the rest of the body, so try to avoid pressing to hard on those areas.


Step: 5 | Brush: Retouch | Size: 20-30 | Opacity: 100%
Follow step 4 with a brush over of the soften tool. If your layer looks to bright, you can play around the with the layer options so lighten it up and blend it better.


Step: 6 | Color: #ACB6C6 | Brush: Paint Brush | Size: 5-20 | Opacity: 60%
Create a new layer and update your brush settings. You can repeat the same process as in step 5 but on a smaller scale, or you can use an assortment of decorative stippling brushes that may have come with your program. If you are using PSP 7, these brushes are already loaded. These just give some additional texture to the piece. Repeat Step 5 afterwards.


Step: 7 | Color: #D7DFEB | Brush: Paint Brush | Size: 5 | Opacity: 60%
Create a new layer and updated the brush option. Using #D7DFEB apply your highlights on the horses body. If you haven’t created a light source, find a photo of one you’d like to use as an example. Repeat Step 5 when you’ve finished.



Note To Users: Keep in mind this is not the only way to color a black (blue) roan, and you can use a number of other colors instead of the ones I mentioned above. However this is just a basic over view, that I hope will give you future ideas for any roans you may plan on creating.