Vertex Week: using strong shadows in portrait painting with Cynthia Sheppard

By Georgia Coggan
published

Add striking strong shadows to your portraits with this expert tutorial.

Using strong shadows in portrait painting with Cynthia Sheppard

For Vertex Week 2022, here is an excellent tutorial on using strong shadows in portrait painting from fantasy illustrator Cynthia Sheppard. A self-proclaimed art director by day and illustrator by night, Sheppard was senior art director for legendary strategy card game Magic: The Gathering.

As an illustrator, Sheppard focuses on emotional resonance and visual storytelling with her ethereal, moody illustration art. Her work plays with light and dark in stunningly, making her the perfect teacher for this shadow-focused tutorial.

Love this tutorial? Then try our other incredible Vertex Week workshops, including Erik Ly's guide to getting better at digital illustration in Photoshop. Or why not learn how to create an art book with pro advice from designer and publisher Spiridon Giannakis.

If you'd like some shiny new tools for your digital art, see our roundup of the best drawing tablets out there. Need a new pen? See our pick of the best stylus for Android.

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Georgia Coggan
Georgia Coggan

Georgia is lucky enough to be Creative Bloq's Editor. She has been working for Creative Bloq since 2018, starting out as a freelancer writing about all things branding, design, art, tech and creativity – as well as sniffing out genuinely good deals on creative technology. Since becoming Editor, she has been managing the site on a day-to-day basis, helping to shape the diverse content streams CB is known for and leading the team in their own creativity. 

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