Watercolor - Creating a 3D look

3D movies are all the rage it seems. Personally, I am not willing to pay the extra $ for 3D, but with watercolor, you can get the look for free!

Above is one of our pumpkins that we water embossed (or applied Paper Shaping technique as reader Jan suggested). It has dried and is still "puffed". So how can we color it to add to the 3D look? You will see this technique used a lot in all the Copic coloring examples, but it has been around long before Copics. When something is closer to you or out where it can catch the light, there will be highlights. This area will be lighter. Areas that are further away, back in the shadows, will be darker. So if we apply these principles, our artwork will look more realistic.

Begin by painting clean water (remember to have TWO water containers) over the entire area you are coloring (here that would be the pumpkin). Next add pigment to the outskirts or boundaries of the area.

Without adding more pigment, begin pulling that original color over to the highlighted areas. See above how the closest part of the pumpkin is lighter? It amplifies the rounded look.

On something that is segmented like a pumpkin, you can actually create highlights on individual sections, having the shadows between each section. Not sure that my example above turned out so great, but hopefully, you get the idea.

Another way to create a 3D look is to add shadows. I think shadows deserve their own post, however......after all, according to my daughter, I am the "Shadow Queen"....and who knows what lurks in the hearts and minds of man?....The shadow does!