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Description
How to color dark hair in photoshop

Step by step

Before coloring this, it will help if you have a large file to work with. I always scan my pictures at 300% its actual size so that it is easier to do detail. I can shrink the file later, when I am finished if I wish to.

When all the coloring and shading tutorials are up, I will provide a copy of the picture uncolored so that you can try out the coloring on it if you wish.

Prior to coloring hair, you need to draw it. For a tutorial on how to draw Ko-Chan’s hair, here is a link: How to draw Ko-Chan’s Hair, click here

1. First, you need to select the hair that is already drawn. To do this, you need to:
• Use the lasso tool and outline the hair
• Go to the color select tool, which looks like a dropper, and select the color of the hair (the black from the pen marks) by clicking on the hair with the color select tool
• Go to select, scroll down to color select, and click okay
• You will see the hair in the selection box, and click ok
• Go to edit, scroll down to copy, and click
• Go to edit, scroll down to paste, and click.
Now you have the black pen marks of the hair in a new layer. I am not showing this step because after doing all this, the picture looks the same. But it isn’t! Click on the back ground, then go to layer, select “new” and click. You want he layer to be 100% opaque. You are now ready to color under the lines you’ve drawn. For dark hair, it is helpful to do it this way, because then you don’t loose the black by coloring over the top of it. When actually, color, you need to first select a dark color and color everything in. The color I used for this part is # 090061. Then select a mid range color, and go over the lighter areas with it. For this part, I used color # 675DC3. Finally, the lightest color, I just do a little of this here and there. For this part, I used color # B8B2FC. Don’t worry about being precise, you can fix it later. Of course, you can be careful, because it does help a little to stay mostly in the lines.
2. This next step is easier. You want to blur everything together. To do this, go to Filters, scroll down to blur, and then scroll to Gaussian blur. Select that. The amount of blur you want to set when the box shows up is about 8.2. That is what I used for this picture.
3. Now you need to select the smudge tool. I love the smudge tool, and it is my best friend on photoshop. It allows me to correct all my mistakes. If you are having trouble finding it, the tool looks like a white gloved hand with a finger pressing down. You can find it in the same box as the sharpen tool and the blur tool. The blur tool looks like a drop of water, and the sharpen tool like an art knife thing. You want the smudge tool. Set it so that it is100% hardness. I used an 18 pixel sized tool. You can see in this step how I use the tool to just push the color back into place.
4. Do this with all the edges of the picture, so that no color is sticking out. Feel free to zoom in if you think it will help you.
5. Using a smudge tool that is 7 pixels big and still 100% hardness, scribble up and down on the colors inside the hair. This will give the impression of individual strands of hair.
6. Now you want to select the dodge tool, which is next tot eh smudge tool. At 0% hard and 7 pixels big, scribble up and down some more in all the areas that you want to have a little extra shine. Be careful with this too, it is easy to get carried away. This is just to add a little more shimmer into the hair.
7. It is time to make a new layer over the top of all the other layers. Click on the top layer first and then go to layer in the tool bar, scroll to new, and select layer. You want this layer to be 100% opaque as well. With the paint brush tool. Select black. This is to help with touching up the dark parts. There are places that you want to be absolutely black, so color them black. Just like with applying the colors before, don’t worry too much about being perfect.
8. Again, like before, now you use the smudge tool to push everything into place, and to scribble up and down to give the impression of strands of hair. I used the same sized smudge tool as before.
9. Now you want to merge the layers that have the hair. It is strongly advised that you keep the hair on a separate layer from the background layer, because this way, you can color under the hair later without worrying about you colors getting over the top of your work. It is just easier this way. ^__^ To merge, go to the side bar that shows all the layers, and select one of the layers you want to merge. Then click in the boxes next to the other layers you wish to merge. You will see a chain link appear in the boxes if you have done this right. Once you have the three layers connected (linked) you go to “layer” in the tool bar, and scroll down to “merge linked.” Now you have them all connected together. This is just the first part of this step. Once you have all three layers turned into one, go back to the smudge tool, and change the size to a 5 pixel sized tool, and start touching things up. Unlike before, you want to be a little careful with this that means that you do NOT want to scribble, but rather use the tool by making strokes that follow the direction of the hair flow. It is easiest to do this with quick and short strokes. Up, up, up. Down, down, down… This step turns it into a polished looking piece, but it isn’t necessary if you are going to later shrink your work. The rest of the steps are also optional.
10. Select the whole layer. Go to select and scroll down to select all. Then go to edit, and scroll down to copy. Then go to edit and scroll down to paste. Now you have the same thing on two layers. If the hair shows up in the wrong place, you can move it so that it is directly over the top of the first. Now go to image, scroll to adjustments and then scroll to saturation and hue. Turn up the saturation to +157. Go to image, scroll to adjustments and scroll to brightness contrast. Turn up the contrast to +40.
11. Go to filter, and scroll to blur and then select Gaussian blur again. Set the blur at about 3.4
12. Select the layer you are working on by double clicking on the layer in the side bar (not the title of the layer). Turn down the opacity to 19% or something similar. These last steps give your hair a softer, more misted feeling to them. Now you can merge the two hair layers together in the same way you merged layers before. Remember, if you make a mistake, you can always use the undo button, by going to edit, and then clicking on undo.
13. This last step is all about bringing out the color a little. Now that you have one layer for your hair again, go to image, scroll to adjustments, and then scroll to saturation hue again. Turn up the saturation, but just a little. I turned it up to +10. The hair is now done. And by keeping it on a separate layer, you can color the clothes and the skin and such directly under it without worrying about going over the hair with the colors.

Related tutorials using the same picture:
General anime drawing guide, click here
drawing a three quarter angle face, click here
drawing Ko-Chan’s hair, click here
drawing clothes, click here
shading clothes, click here
coloring skin, click here
coloring Ko-Chan’s clothes, click here

Description
How to color dark hair in photoshop

Step by step

Before coloring this, it will help if you have a large file to work with. I always scan my pictures at 300% its actual size so that it is easier to do detail. I can shrink the file later, when I am finished if I wish to.

When all the coloring and shading tutorials are up, I will provide a copy of the picture uncolored so that you can try out the coloring on it if you wish.

Prior to coloring hair, you need to draw it. For a tutorial on how to draw Ko-Chan’s hair, here is a link: How to draw Ko-Chan’s Hair, click here

1. First, you need to select the hair that is already drawn. To do this, you need to:
• Use the lasso tool and outline the hair
• Go to the color select tool, which looks like a dropper, and select the color of the hair (the black from the pen marks) by clicking on the hair with the color select tool
• Go to select, scroll down to color select, and click okay
• You will see the hair in the selection box, and click ok
• Go to edit, scroll down to copy, and click
• Go to edit, scroll down to paste, and click.
Now you have the black pen marks of the hair in a new layer. I am not showing this step because after doing all this, the picture looks the same. But it isn’t! Click on the back ground, then go to layer, select “new” and click. You want he layer to be 100% opaque. You are now ready to color under the lines you’ve drawn. For dark hair, it is helpful to do it this way, because then you don’t loose the black by coloring over the top of it. When actually, color, you need to first select a dark color and color everything in. The color I used for this part is # 090061. Then select a mid range color, and go over the lighter areas with it. For this part, I used color # 675DC3. Finally, the lightest color, I just do a little of this here and there. For this part, I used color # B8B2FC. Don’t worry about being precise, you can fix it later. Of course, you can be careful, because it does help a little to stay mostly in the lines.
2. This next step is easier. You want to blur everything together. To do this, go to Filters, scroll down to blur, and then scroll to Gaussian blur. Select that. The amount of blur you want to set when the box shows up is about 8.2. That is what I used for this picture.
3. Now you need to select the smudge tool. I love the smudge tool, and it is my best friend on photoshop. It allows me to correct all my mistakes. If you are having trouble finding it, the tool looks like a white gloved hand with a finger pressing down. You can find it in the same box as the sharpen tool and the blur tool. The blur tool looks like a drop of water, and the sharpen tool like an art knife thing. You want the smudge tool. Set it so that it is100% hardness. I used an 18 pixel sized tool. You can see in this step how I use the tool to just push the color back into place.
4. Do this with all the edges of the picture, so that no color is sticking out. Feel free to zoom in if you think it will help you.
5. Using a smudge tool that is 7 pixels big and still 100% hardness, scribble up and down on the colors inside the hair. This will give the impression of individual strands of hair.
6. Now you want to select the dodge tool, which is next tot eh smudge tool. At 0% hard and 7 pixels big, scribble up and down some more in all the areas that you want to have a little extra shine. Be careful with this too, it is easy to get carried away. This is just to add a little more shimmer into the hair.
7. It is time to make a new layer over the top of all the other layers. Click on the top layer first and then go to layer in the tool bar, scroll to new, and select layer. You want this layer to be 100% opaque as well. With the paint brush tool. Select black. This is to help with touching up the dark parts. There are places that you want to be absolutely black, so color them black. Just like with applying the colors before, don’t worry too much about being perfect.
8. Again, like before, now you use the smudge tool to push everything into place, and to scribble up and down to give the impression of strands of hair. I used the same sized smudge tool as before.
9. Now you want to merge the layers that have the hair. It is strongly advised that you keep the hair on a separate layer from the background layer, because this way, you can color under the hair later without worrying about you colors getting over the top of your work. It is just easier this way. ^__^ To merge, go to the side bar that shows all the layers, and select one of the layers you want to merge. Then click in the boxes next to the other layers you wish to merge. You will see a chain link appear in the boxes if you have done this right. Once you have the three layers connected (linked) you go to “layer” in the tool bar, and scroll down to “merge linked.” Now you have them all connected together. This is just the first part of this step. Once you have all three layers turned into one, go back to the smudge tool, and change the size to a 5 pixel sized tool, and start touching things up. Unlike before, you want to be a little careful with this that means that you do NOT want to scribble, but rather use the tool by making strokes that follow the direction of the hair flow. It is easiest to do this with quick and short strokes. Up, up, up. Down, down, down… This step turns it into a polished looking piece, but it isn’t necessary if you are going to later shrink your work. The rest of the steps are also optional.
10. Select the whole layer. Go to select and scroll down to select all. Then go to edit, and scroll down to copy. Then go to edit and scroll down to paste. Now you have the same thing on two layers. If the hair shows up in the wrong place, you can move it so that it is directly over the top of the first. Now go to image, scroll to adjustments and then scroll to saturation and hue. Turn up the saturation to +157. Go to image, scroll to adjustments and scroll to brightness contrast. Turn up the contrast to +40.
11. Go to filter, and scroll to blur and then select Gaussian blur again. Set the blur at about 3.4
12. Select the layer you are working on by double clicking on the layer in the side bar (not the title of the layer). Turn down the opacity to 19% or something similar. These last steps give your hair a softer, more misted feeling to them. Now you can merge the two hair layers together in the same way you merged layers before. Remember, if you make a mistake, you can always use the undo button, by going to edit, and then clicking on undo.
13. This last step is all about bringing out the color a little. Now that you have one layer for your hair again, go to image, scroll to adjustments, and then scroll to saturation hue again. Turn up the saturation, but just a little. I turned it up to +10. The hair is now done. And by keeping it on a separate layer, you can color the clothes and the skin and such directly under it without worrying about going over the hair with the colors.

Related tutorials using the same picture:
General anime drawing guide, click here
drawing a three quarter angle face, click here
drawing Ko-Chan’s hair, click here
drawing clothes, click here
shading clothes, click here
coloring skin, click here
coloring Ko-Chan’s clothes, click here