《Even More Sparkle! Even More Transparency! How to Draw Eyes in a Flat Color Style》

This time, the theme is "Drawing Sparkling, Expressive Eyes".

Although eyes don't take up much space in an illustration, drawing them with precision and high detail can significantly elevate the overall quality!

 

In this tutorial, I'll challenge myself to draw sparkling eyes using a 100% opaque brush, and I'll also demonstrate how to add more transparency to the eyes. If you like flat color block styles, feel free to give this a try!

 

As always, the methods shared below are just my personal preferences and do not represent the "only" way to draw!

Now, let's begin✨

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【Around the Eye Socket】

The eyes are located in a slightly recessed part of the head, and with common small eye structures like aegyo-sal and eye bags, deeper colors than the face are usually used.

This not only expresses three-dimensionality but also serves as a color transition between the eye socket and the skin, making the image appear more natural and smooth.

• Female Characters: Often use reds with higher saturation to emphasize cuteness or charm, usually linked to blush.

• Male Characters: Tend towards browns with low saturation and low brightness, emphasizing the depth of their features.

【Whites of the Eyes】

Use a light gray as the base color, then add a darker gray on top to enhance the three-dimensional feel of the eyeball.

 

Using a gray with a slight tint is also a good option, which can be fine-tuned based on ambient light, iris color, etc.

In the example image (bottom right), I used a gray with a hint of pink to add more color interest to the illustration:

【Eyelids and Eye Rim】

Besides using a single dark color, we can also add more colors to enhance the detail.

 

A. Inner corner of the eye, under the eye: Tends reddish

B. Upper eyelid above: Tends towards hair color (simulating eyelash color)

C. Upper eyelid below: Tends towards iris color (simulating iris reflection)

D. Above the eyelashes: Light highlight reflecting hair color

E. Below the eye rim: Lower eyelashes (Note to leave a small gap between the eyelashes and the eye rim)

F. Top of the eye rim: Highlight dot

【Iris】

🔧【Steps】

1. Lay down the base color.

2. Add the pupil and the upper shadow, roughly coloring the inside of the eye from bottom to top, light to dark.

3. After confirming the colors, add radial strokes centered around the pupil.

3a. Note that the outer color should be slightly darker than the inner color.

3b. The outer rim of the iris doesn't necessarily have to maintain a sharp shape; adding moderate irregular strokes can enhance a natural feel.

4. Use a dark pupil color to refine the iris texture.

5. Use a mid-tone pupil color to outline the pupil.

6. In the upper dark area, add some lighter, grayer subtle reflections.

7. Below, use an off-white color to draw the reflections of the iris texture.

8. Add the overall reflection of the eyeball, preliminary completion.

【Even More Sparkling Eyes】

After completing the basic eyes, want to further draw even brighter eyes?

Feel free to try the following steps!

 

1. Add more highlight points.

2. Add some shapes symbolizing sparkle, such as stars, to further increase visual interest!

3. Use a glitter-shaped brush to add more colors.

 

Done!

【Even More Transparent Eyes】

How to increase transparency?

It's actually very simple, just add light colors around the eyes!

 

Method:

• Create a new layer and set the layer blending mode to "Screen".

• Clip to the target position.

Detailed positions (positions marked on the right eye, effect can be seen on the left eye):

• A. Around the iris

• B. Eye rim (*Instead of using a "Screen" layer, you can also directly adjust to a slightly lighter color.)

• C. Inner corner of the eye rim and sclera (whites of the eyes), use a near skin tone.

Done!

【Conclusion】

Thank you for reading this far!

 

What do you think of this tutorial?

Actually, the purpose of this article is to supplement a less common topic – drawing sparkling and expressive eyes based on a flat color block style. I hope it can provide another reference and option for everyone💡

 

If you enjoyed this article, feel free to like or leave a comment to let me know!

See you next time✨