My proven technique for drawing dark and mysterious fantasy scenes in Photoshop

How to
By published

Murat Gül reveals his process for creating foreboding digital art.

This artwork is inspired by Blizzard’s Diablo series, which shaped my love for dark, moody, semi-stylised environments. I began by sketching in Photoshop with large, textured brushes, focusing on clear shapes and composition rather than details.

At this stage, I avoided using pure black or pure white values, which makes it much easier to introduce colour later. I recommend pushing the greyscale phase as far as possible – almost fully resolving the environment in values first.

Once the composition was solid, I applied Photoshop’s Gradient Map tool to establish the base colour palette. For final refinements, the Smudge and Sharpen tools enhance textures, materials and atmosphere.

01. Establish composition and value structure

I start with a loose greyscale sketch, focusing on simple shapes to define the environment and structure. Using large brushes and clear silhouettes, I block in major forms such as the tower, terrain and trees.

This shape-based approach helps me to quickly establish composition, depth and scale before refining details, lighting or textures later in the process.

02. Base colouring with the Gradient Map tool

I apply base colours using the Gradient Map tool to build up mood and colour harmony. This helps translate greyscale values into a cohesive palette. I refine the lighting and atmosphere, adding fog and soft transitions to separate depth layers.

Limited colours and controlled contrast guide the eye towards the focal structure, maintaining balance and clarity.

03. Texture refinement and polishing the work

In the final stage, I refine materials and storytelling details. I use the Smudge tool to shape snow flow and organic textures, creating natural movement. For harder surfaces such as stone, I selectively apply sharpening to restore edge definition.

Details come into focus near the figure and the structure. I keep the background softer for depth, atmospheric readability control and overall visual hierarchy.

This article originally appeared in ImagineFX. Subscribe to ImagineFX to never miss an issue. Print and digital subscriptions are available.

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Murat Gül
Murat Gül

Murat is a lead 2D artist at United Tech. He crafts moody environments and powerful characters with a cinematic, painterly style, inspired by dark fantasy.

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