☀ ️ What is backlighting?

Backlighting is the opposite of forward light, which is light coming from the front. It literally means light coming from behind an object. Using backlighting can give a more dramatic effect and complete an atmospheric picture compared to forward light.

Depending on the intensity and color of the backlight, you can create a variety of atmospheres, so I will briefly explain the method below.

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☀️ Types of backlighting

Backlighting can be divided into two types.

 

First,

 

☀️ Natural light backlighting: Backlighting from nature, such as the sun and the moon, changes in direction and angle over time, so the intensity and direction of the backlighting can indicate time.

 

Second,

 

☀️ Artificial light backlighting: Backlighting from artificial lighting, such as fluorescent lights and neon signs, can be displayed in various places, such as indoors or outdoors, and has the advantage of being able to express various colors.

☀️ How to draw backlighting easily using natural light!

I would like to show you two examples of backlighting using natural light.

 

The first is in a gymnasium where dawn~morning light shines,

 

The second is outdoors where the sunset is setting, where the confession takes place.

☀️ Gym in the early morning

1. Prepare the basic characters and background.

2. Apply a multiply layer to the character, matching the background color.

3. Create a part that receives light according to the character's brightness /

Here, since the current situation is a situation where strong light comes in in the morning, paint it with a tone close to white.

4. Use an airbrush to paint softly in the direction of light drawn with the plus glow to make the light more effective.

5. Using the overlay layer, use an airbrush to gently paint in warm tones little by little to match the original skin tone.

6. Finally, draw lines that match the tone of each part of the outline of the character (brown for hair, blue for clothes, etc.) and then describe the overall picture.

 

I added light from top to bottom with a gradient using the Addition glow, and then added about 5% opacity to the Addition layer to spread the light spread.

 

In addition, I processed the gymnasium, which was the background, with Gaussian blur to blend in with the character and make the character stand out.

 

 

!TIP!: If you use this brush, you can easily express the tiny particles that appear when light shines on them!

☀️ The sunset that makes you confess outdoors

1. Prepare the basic characters and background.

2. Apply a multiply layer to the character using a warm color that blends in with the background color.

3. Express the part that receives light along the outline of the figure. At this time, since the figure is currently in a sunset background, paint it with a tone that mixes warm colors.

4. I paint in the middle tone little by little so that the areas receiving light and the areas in shadow are not too sharp.

In addition, since this is a scene of confession, I added blush.

5. Finally, add warmth by using an overlay layer with a warm color, and use an airbrush to paint the additional glow layer on the areas receiving light to express the light more clearly.

Additionally, describe the wrinkles in the clothes and the expression of the hair to make the character stand out more.

☀️ Free expression of artificial light

As I mentioned earlier, artificial light allows you to set the colors more freely than natural light and then draw.

So what exactly is the difference between artificial light and natural light?

 

First of all, artificial light has a stronger contrast than natural light. The reason is that natural light is mostly light that appears outdoors and the subject of the light is far away,

while artificial light is mostly indoors and the subject of the light is often close.

 

Of course, there are cases where artificial light is outside, such as neon signs. However, even in these cases, the contrast is stronger because it is closer to the person than the sun and moon and the intensity of the light is strong.

+ Additional tips

As I mentioned before, there is a difference between natural light and artificial light, do you remember?

 

Natural light has a light source far away, while artificial light has a light source close by,

 

If you remember this, you can express strong contrast even with natural light, and weak contrast even with artificial light.

 

Why is that?

 

The farther away the light source is, the wider the area of light it spreads, while the area of the shadow of the object naturally continues.

 

On the other hand, if the light source is close, the area receiving the light becomes limited, and the area of the shadow of the object appears strong.

 

In addition, the shadow created by the object also becomes weaker the farther away the light is,

while the shadow appears strong when the light is close.

 

 

☀️ In conclusion

We learned about the expressions and directing methods that change depending on the intensity and color of light using backlighting!

 

Do you all understand it well?

If I get a chance, I will explain the next tip easily!

I hope you have a fun drawing life!

Thank you!

+Please refer to the speed painting of the backlight picture that I have uploaded as an additional reference :)