drawing realistic hair - tutorial

[TheAqworldsTIPS]

i never learned anything. lol

[kaykay12870]

Very good. But can u take time and show us step by step

[johanda143]

Very very use full thanks J

[XanXus1031]

Very very helpful.

[fangirl1234fangirl]

i dont get it =(

[1nick200]

what would you recommend if i wanted a curly and dark hair would really help thanks

[AJchikaaah]

What would you recommend doing if you're drawing black hair? Other than that, it helped a lot!

[julliaH]

@AJchikaaah I would recommend you to start drawing with a HB, than continue with darker grade, like B, 2B.. till you get the hair as dark as you need. You will see that these B grades are soften and it will be difficult to work with for thin lines. So after you apply a darker value, try to use again the HB pencil and make the thin strokes.

[soiseiseke]

it helped me :) thanks a lot!

[TheStef263]

How long on average does it take you to finish a portrait? and if your model is fair skinned and has a lot of light on them, how do you do really soft shadows? would an off-white paper be better for this, compared to pure white?

Thanks for these tutorials, and I am so jealous of your drawing skills >.>

I thought I wasn't too bad, then I started watching youtube videos D:

[julliaH]

@TheStef263 hmm.. a simple portrait medium size (8x11 inch) would be about 2 days work.. It always depends on the complexity. I have a large portrait which took me a month, and others (small) in just one day.

I don't think that a off-white paper would be better, but it depends... In this case I think that I would simple don't go too dark with the shadows, but be sure to have well defined face lineaments.

[Jeychiele]

@julliaH what do you can the pen you use at 0:46 - 0:49 ?? Sorry , I'm new in this kinds of things .. xD

[julliaH]

@Jeychiele that's a pencil eraser.. looks like a pencil but in fact is a thin eraser. If don't have such a think just make a sharp point to a simple eraser ;)

[rajendra332]

The background music sounds so cool. What album is it from ?

someone can provide me the details.

[junkheadrooster]

dickblick?..uh. ok. but d-i-c-kblick!?

[nicolettesandy]

love it

[xXLookoAwayXx]

the drawing at the beginning.. i mean.

[xXLookoAwayXx]

Gosh... i wish i could draw that well D: ... it looks amazing btw :D

[xboredBITCH]

.. I'm great at drawing the face and stuff but I suck at drawing hair. >_>

[sharky0629]

@UsernameAvailable809 Oh so, you can draw better? I'd love to see you try. Why not compliment on how it is good instead of lie out of jealousy.

[UsernameAvailable809]

that's not realistic at all.

[BeckyIsABeautyBabe]

@UsernameAvailable809 Sad.

[telefonkirtys]

@UsernameAvailable809 You look unrealistic...

[koalajt]

incredible!!!

[1DirectionFliesBy]

Ughhh i'm drawing someones hair and his hair goes from blond to brown and i just can't seem to get the highlights/shadings done =/ I try to draw it like in this vid but i just can't get it right...

[HansPortman]

Hey, really u r awsome, ive practiced a lot but .. im not so good yet... congratulations friend =D

[theredgirl222]

@kidharris55 aww I'm sure they were great though!

Well, first of all I'm sure you've had this said to you a few times before but, practice, practice, practice! It's true, if you want to improve you have to practice! Imagine how much she had to practice to get to this kind of stage. Motivation, patience, time and inspiration! And of course a little music hehe. Go on! Practice! :D

[iluvpitters]

May i ask what size pencils (mechanical) that you'd recommend for fur, and drawing dogs realistically? Your art is beautiful. =)

[kidharris55]

I Quit Drawing...I Can Do It. I Get It a little but its not as real as yours.

[julliaH]

@AndrewSana I use the Starthmore Bristol paper 300 series, the smooth one :)

[Yomega51]

13 people dont have hair!

[MaahinH]

where can i get an eraser like that?

[Jeromepsy001]

I could make a face for about an hour and spend two days on hair.

[JWadGallery]

@AndrewSana i use acid free bristol paper. if that helps

[MyElsieT]

can you make a tutoial of drawing curly hair!! Please!!!

[peterfireball]

thanks>>what thickness do you go for with your mechanical pencil when doing the first layer of hair? 0.5 or 0.3 or smaller? cheers

[julliaH]

@peterfireball 0.5 is the thickness of that pencil, but I don't use it to create the first layer. This is great after a few layers, when you want to make details. But don't stick to rules, try to draw as you feel ;)

[Breiavis]

that is jawdropping nice drawing oO

[CoparGaming]

what pencils should i use???? i have standard graphite pencils but i dont know what i need to make my drawings so realistic

I have graphite pencils dont know what type.

i have a putty rubber too and rulers but thats it

what else do i need?

[DopingBox]

@CoparGaming Skills

[apollo041]

thanks for sharing this tutorial... :)

[hutchimodutchimo]

love the music !

[SuperSims3M]

that's fantastic ,

i have 1 question,;

can i use a normal pencil and a pencil named; superior special pro-environmental?

because i don't have something like what you have

x

[julliaH]

@SuperSims3M of course you can. This is what I used too at the beginning, before finding and art supply where I could buy these pencils and papers. ;)

[cupOapples]

little big planet. lol

[EdaBrrs]

I also forgot to ask where i could find that pencil eraser. I was looking on Michaels website and couldnt find it.

[julliaH]

@EdaBrrs who is Michael?

[l0v3ly4shl3y]

@julliaH It's the name of an art store..

[frostywayz]

@julliaH its "Michaels" its like a art store but has a little bit of everything, actually doesnt have a lot of art stuff

[tabbytea9]

@julliaH its a craft store.called michaels

[ForWhomTheBellTolls5]

@julliaH I think he means the art supply store called "Michaels"

[CalTamaDrummer]

@julliaH michaels is a craft and art store in the US.

[julliaH]

@EdaBrrs who is Michaels?

I buy my supplies from dickblick. com . They deliver all over the world :)

[junkheadrooster]

@julliaH dickblick?...um the name is dickblick???..

[julliaH]

@junkheadrooster dickblick . com (erase the space)

[EdaBrrs]

OMG you are amazing, I think i can do this now. I think all I was missing was the pencil light eraser to make deeper effects and separate planes. Thank you so much! I have a lot of bald women on my sketch book. I guess is their lucky day! lol thanks again.

[watdoyouwant100]

wat brush do you suggest to use? and r u just going back and forth on the strokes?

[julliaH]

@watdoyouwant100 just a big and fluffy one.. use to remove the dust.. No, I go just one direction, it's and illusion from the speed of the video :)

[BreakingFeathers]

THANKS SO MUCH<3

really helps a lot!!

how long have you been drawing? curious~~

[42mySelff]

omg, soo 3D :)

[Mahdiwisdom]

please tell me ........i dont understand what is hb ..2b ...6b i use the ordinary pencil

[Origamiman979]

@Mahdiwisdom if you buy true artist pencils ( and don't get me wrong, you can use a regular pencil, but in my opinion you get a better range of shading and highlights when you use decent pencils, which are available a micheals or any other hobby store) the pencils are labeled from softest/darkest throught the hardest/lightest. the darkest are the labled 9b-b 9 being very soft and very dark. then there is hb,f,h wich are in the middle.....i need to start a new box now :D

[Origamiman979]

@Origamiman979 after that are the light/hard pencils ( beware when using these as they can literaly carve your paper) they range from h-9h 9h being the lightest/hardest. If you choose to buy a set of pencils, you can choose from the entire set of 9b-9h for around $40, or choose between 3 partial sets, those being the softies the middles and the hard ones. those cost around 17 ish. or you can buy individual pencil for like a dollar...i need a new box...again :D

[Origamiman979]

@Origamiman979 i was a idiot and bought the entire set, and i only need the softies/ and a few middle. so from darkest to lightest we have 9b 8b 7b 6b 5b 4b 3b 2b b hb (which is a standard pencil) f h 2h 3h 4h 5h 6h 7h 8h 9h. if you have any more questions just ask. hope i answered your question.

[Mahdiwisdom]

@Origamiman979 thank you so much,this really helps me :D

glad to know a great person like you :)

[Origamiman979]

@Mahdiwisdom no problem glad i could help

[GMAN73ful]

It's the one area i have trouble with (hair & animal fur). So frustrating sometimes. You make it look so easy lol. Seriously though, its great that there is alot of tutorial vids with tips explaining how to do it.

[banzaiHonda92]

thank you, it helped me

[camelisintelligent]

Awsome...

[prettydiana09]

i love it but its kinda hard i tottaly messed up :,(

[Sheilongful]

Awesome tips! it is unbelieveable that simple things make all the difference!!!!

[genegx2]

SOOOOOO is that a drawing of ur self O.O ur kinda cute =)

[julliaH]

@genegx2 thanks! that's a portrait of my sister ;)

[genegx2]

@julliaH

Wow very pretty sis u have there...and i been trying 2 draw ppl as well....main reason why i watched ur video..and every time i draw some one it dosent even look like them......is their a key on doing it or just keep on practicing?

[XSirXLoveX]

@genegx2

Just keep practising, I wanted to draw realistic people a year ago to.

And I really tried allot, and know I can even draw my brother and such.

So defenlty keep trying.

{ Really bad Englisch. XD }

[overlycasual]

@julliaH That looks kinda like the girl from Life With Derek (that old disney sitcom) :)

[gotenblane]

@julliaH wow your sister have such great hair :D

[julliaH]

@gotenblane lol :))) she does

[blakey5875]

Really good tutorial!! Thanks for explining each step!! Do you have any tips for curly hair?? Cheers

[julliaH]

@ftsj90 I'm not presenting music here, but how to draw :) The music is credited at the end of the video :) If you enjoy more the music go ahead and buy their album, and let others to see the video drawing :)

[ftsj90]

fantastic drawing, btw i raelly wanna know what song is that!

[julliaH]

@ftsj90 than watch the movie again :)

[ftsj90]

@ftsj90 hehe i see, awesome drawing together with awesome music.

[07Rfa]

muito bom mesmo!!!

congratulations

[TheNoisycricket96]

this is inccredible but it discourages me because of how bad mine looks when it comes out how can i get better

[ftsj90]

@TheNoisycricket96 determination is the key to success, my hair drawing sucks epic, but i am sure i will get good someday! don give up bro!

[yaaaminn]

how about a video on braids ?

[niiin130]

it''s cooool



[Ohemgee1996]

Whenever i watch videos like these i always think to myself "wow i can totally do that!" and then when i try .. it comes out looking like crap. people like you make it look so easy!!

[TheNoisycricket96]

@Ohemgee1996 im with ya i did this one last night and it looked like gorrilaz in the mist i get discouraged ..

[honko802]

The jumpy, energetic nature of the guitar goes so perfectly with the frantic and fluid movements of your pencils as they create such beautiful hair.

[LaLilOne7]

wow you are very good!!!!!

[LovethatLucy1]

Very beautiful! Thank you. And excellent choice of music, too. It's as if your pencil flows so easily with it. Is it possible for you to do a tutorial on curly hair?

[julliaH]

@LovethatLucy1 thanks ;) The curly hair is the hardest to do, but that might be a good idea of a new video ;)

[LovethatLucy1]

@julliaH I'll deginately be looking forward to that video.... Just recently I posted a video of 2 sisters I did with wavy, windblown hair. I posted it as a video response here but I'm not seeing it yet. If it doesn't show then please go to my page and check it out and let me know what you think.

Currently I'm working on a portrait of a 3 yr old girl and her force smile in the snapshot is driving me crazy. I can't seem to get it right. I'll be posting a video of that 2 when done. Wish me luck!

[comp89]

Great Vid, thank you! :)

I have a question, how did you get the face to look smooth?

is there a special technique that you use?

I use a tissue to smudge but it doesnt really give that smooth look.

[julliaH]

@comp89 Thanks! I also use a tissue for making a smooth skin. The tip is: use layers and don't try to obtain the final result from one layer ;) see one of my other videos "Portrait drawing - advices for realistic pencil portraits" maybe will help you :) After I made the eyes I show a little how to make the face (unfortunately the contrast was low and I couldn't record too much)

[rckiris]

just wondering how long does it usually take you to draw a mid-lengthed hair? it looks like it takes forever to add layers of lines after layers like that.

[NewtonBlog]

for the light areas, ar u using an eraser or a white pencil ?

[summerbabe65]

@NewtonBlog she was either using a 4H pencil or a pencil eraser :)

[Melokaliju]

great video! thank you !

[TugelaFerry]

Can you tell me what is this tool you use to make white lines? Some kind of white colour pencil or brush? Thanks ;)

[agbwbffl]

ok so is it darker at the bottom then the top?

[cursedteme]

This was amazing! I've never drawn realism before and was challenging myself. For my first try, I think I did pretty good thanks to this (: Thank you

[XxWhatsYourFandomxX]

I've doodled my whole life, but only really got into portraits a couple of years ago. I'm not very good, and I'm still learning the patience for the process, but this tutorial really helped. Thanks :)

[palladino67]

ok so do draw black hair can i use the same method just darker pencils right?

[julliaH]

@palladino67 sure, start with a HB and continue with 2B.. and so on, depends on how dark you want it ;)

[TugelaFerry]

@julliaH Can you tell me what is this tool you use to make white lines? Some kind of white colour pencil or brush? Thanks ;)

[julliaH]

@TugelaFerry that's a pencil eraser. I use it to erase small areas, or lines :)

[Ronson1324]

I think the hair is what's really challenging for me...

[justbet502]

im only 13 so as you can imagine, im not this good yet, but i not gonna lie, ive got some natural talent.im good. last year i had to take an art class. at first i wasnt thrilled, but then i started noticing myself drawing little pictures at home and found that i was good. really good. i told my parents and found out that two of my uncles used to be really good artists!! how cool is that?!? anyway thanx so much for putting this on here. its reaally cool. 8~)

[julliaH]

@Fighterwomen1 no, I don't know where the highlights are.. I just imagine during I draw them..

[julliaH]

@Fighterwomen1 ;)) not really, because here are no formulas. Just keep practicing ;)

[mrpuffle3000]

again, is there ANY easier way to do this?!

[julliaH]

@mrpuffle3000 if there was, I would use it :)

[mrpuffle3000]

@julliaH ok its just i did c some easier ways but urs was the best hair looking...hair so but i guess the best is always the hardest

[KriBlackRoson]

@julliaH hahaha good answer!

well I think it's easy and pretty cool, congrats <3

[julliaH]

@KriBlackRoson thanks ;)

[KriBlackRoson]

@julliaH thank you too for sharing <3 =)

[bersek23]

you really got patience on drawing hairs... :-)

[alhanwn69]

waaaaaaw

this aDifficult

[jzthug44]

Hey i was wondering what kind of paper that is.

[julliaH]

@jzthug44 this one is a Bristol smooth paper

[yellowsparklefish337]

Thank you, this is great :D I've always been so bad at the hair part but i was just doing it wrong :D

[einjiel04]

what pencil or ballpen are you use?..

[julliaH]

@einjiel04 I use Derwent graphite pencils

[rela78]

What are you using at 3:21 is that an eraser? Also if it is what is it called?

[julliaH]

@rela78 it is a pencil eraser. I use it because I need a sharp eraser.. but if you don't have this, you can cut a usual eraser and make a sharp corner ;)

[rela78]

@julliaH Ooh, I never knew something like that existed, for the longest time I've been using a kneaded eraser to do my fine erasing (or the erasing that my standard erasers can't do/reach) by squeezing a small piece of the eraser and well erasing with it. Unfortunately it becomes frustrating when the squeezed portion becomes smeared or loses its edge quicker than I was able to make its edge,then I have to start all over and figure out how I had previously squeezed to get the same effect. Cont~

[rela78]

@rela78 So I might take a look into this, might I ask what brand is it so I can research it? Thanks!

[vetusdecus]

seizure art

[EmilyE257]

The hair is usually the last thing I draw, and I get lazy :p

[00hottopic00]

haha the music makes you want to draw xD wow you are so good i think its the best hair ive seen so far!!

[julliaH]

@00hottopic00 thank you :) that's why I used that song, it makes you feel happy :)

You can watch the other movies I made which contains part of how to draw hair.

[drtyfknmouth]

@00hottopic00 It DOES make you wanna draw, doesn't it? Or cook something or pick bananas or grapes in a vineyard or something. I like it.

[garfildicaa]

@drtyfknmouth In my case, EVERYTHING makes my want to draw.

[JoJanDiezel]

What kind of leads do you use for the mechanical pencil I mean grade and brand?

[jenrho937]

Stump = Shading Stick ?

[julliaH]

@jenrho937 yep, blending stump. It is use for blending, shading..

[MajorArea]

wow. You're really good at that.

[HijabiTaz]

Hey there, can you please do a tutorial on how to do "Man" hair, mine just turns out flat and unrealisitic..! Thnx..!

[Mimmisy123]

For me, the one thing I lack detail on in a portrait is the hair. I never knew how to draw it with so much detail! Thanks :)

[torritornado]

Ir's all in the shading! ;-) Cool vid! It helped alot!

[julliaH]

@torritornado indeed ;) it's all in the shading

[rcatstott]

ok i have to say i love dis video one reson is the music o.o and pluse your realy good at drawing

[phoenix66phoenix]

@ 6:03 what kind of pencils is this? I like this video alot! I am recently started drawing agian so i have to start from ''beginner''. Can I also ask you how the song is called? Thank you. (sorry voor my bad English).

[julliaH]

@phoenix66phoenix I draw with mechanical pencils and normal wood pencils.. from different brands.. usually Derwent. The song is "Luna de fiesta", by Chambao, I mentioned this at the end of the video :)

Welcome!

[phoenix66phoenix]

@julliaH Thank you very much for give me advice! Tomorrow I'll buy some new pencils, because those i use now, are very old. I like the way you draw. Keep going with uploading it on youtube. Bye bye.

[a62010]

Instead of using a sponge to smooth out can we use a stump?

[julliaH]

@a62010 to smooth you can use a brush, a q-tip, a sponge, or even a napkin..

I don't know what a stump is..

[TheSingh14]

@julliaH  STUMP...PAPER ROLLED UP REAL TIGHT. LIKE A PAPER PENCIL. I USE THOSE...;)

[ungredda4]

what song is this?

[julliaH]

@ungredda4 it is Chambao with "Luna de fiesta", I mentioned this at the end of the video :)

[Srdragonis1977]

love your work i got a ? in this video u use a brush is that to clean work space or to feather the hear ? your work is helping me so much im just starting out so and thing u got will help !

[Srdragonis1977]

@Srdragonis1977 opps sorry for the miss spelling typing to fast!

[julliaH]

@Srdragonis1977 Yep, I use that big brush to clean up work space. Now I've started to also use a small brush to smooth the strokes.. of course where it is needed. I hope that will be able to upload a new video today in which I used a small brush to blend.. if my computer don't crush again :D

I'm glad to hear that this is helping you :)

[myscongeniality]

Hi, this is a great video which I am sure will help me a great deal in my drawings. I would like to ask what paper you use? Is it smooth or does it have texture? Thank you.

[julliaH]

@myscongeniality I'm glad it will help you! For this drawing I used Bristol Extra Smooth, a very very smooth paper. But because it was too smooth I started now to use Strathmore Bristol Smooth paper. Unfortunately you can find this only in America. It is a smooth paper. No tooth texture.

[Phamou5]

Thanks for the tutorial JulliaH it has inspired me to practice drawing again... you are very talented!

[julliaH]

@Phamou5 welcome! I'm glad to hear that!

[SebasCine]

i can draw perfect portraits but i have serious problems with the hair...

[Sercil00]

So it really takes that long? And here I was patting myself on the shoulder for doing this for 3 hours straight without losing my nerve ^_^

thanks, hopefully this will help getting at least halfway decent hair done. I had it with first doing a real good job with the face and then messing everything up because I cant draw hair.

[julliaH]

@Sercil00 I hope this video will really help you! Try too the other one I made recently "drawing hair - pencils on paper" :)

[bigjohnjr04]

amazing! Hair/fur has always been a headache for me. you are very talented!!!!

[HaNdsoFBLoodCss]

wow :O 5*

[broken352]

are u sure ..? 20-30hours??

that sure take a long time ..

by the way

nc hair ^_^

[julliaH]

yep :) in fact this one took much longer to complete, but it worth it ;) Thanks ;)