Let’s draw the sunlight through the leaves

It’s really beautiful the way the sunshine filters through the tree leaves.

It is a popular scene that many artists want to draw.

 

So today, we are going to draw sunlight through leaves.

 

 

Draw the shadows

• Add a layer for the shadows
• Draw the shadows
• Adjust the shape of the shadows
• Adjust the opacity

 

 

We are going to draw the shadows of the trees first.

 

Add a layer for the shadows

Merge the layers of character painting, and add a new layer for the shadows. Clip the layer then.

(I myself duplicate the painted files and save them in case it needs to be revised.)

 

 

 

Draw the shadows

Use the pen brush to draw the shadows roughly. I selected the bluish gray.

 

 

Adjust the shape of the shadows

Use the Eraser tool (or the Pen brush with the transparent color) to erase the edges of the shadows, and make them in shapes of leaves.

Add the leaf shadows in different angles and shapes to make it natural.

 

After you’ve done with the leaf shapes, add a little blur with the Gaussian Blur which you can select from the filter menu.

 

 

 

Adjust the opacity

Set the layer blending to “Multiply” and reduce the opacity a little.

 

 

Now we’ve finished the shadows.

This time the shadows are partially cast.

 

If you are drawing scenes in deep woods, you can add the shadows to the whole body of the character.

 

 

Draw the sunlight

 

 

Finished with the shadows? Then let’s move on to the sunlight.

 

I use one of the following three methods.

• ①: Erase shadows with the eraser tool
• ②: Draw the sunlight
• ③: Compound the methods ① and ②

 

①: Erase shadows with the eraser tool

 

 

Erase the shadow layer and add the lights coming from the spaces between the leaves.

Use the Watercolor blush with the transparent color.

 

Erase the shadows while continuously adjusting the brush size.

・Larger brush creates soft sunlight

・Smaller brush for sharp shadows

 

If you think you’ve erased too much, you can correct it with the shadow color.

 

 

Draw the shapes of a circle with a slightly angular edge, or you can draw them in the shape of branches in your mind.

Blurred edges will create a more natural image.

 

 

②: Draw the sunlight

 

With the Watercolor brush, draw the shapes of circles or snowmen. Then set the layer blending to “Add (Lighten)”.

 

Then, use the Pen brush to draw the lights as if the sun were shining through the leaves and branches.

Adjust the shapes of the lights with the Eraser tool (or the Pen brush with the transparent color).

 

 

Adjust the opacity.

 

 

Now you’ve finished creating the sunlight through the leaves.

 

 

 

③: Compound the methods ① and ② 

 

 

You can only adjust one of these two methods: “Erase shadows with the eraser tool” or “Draw the sunlight”.

However, the combination of the two methods allows you to render both the strong lights and weak lights, so I mix them up depending on what I want to draw.

 

 

Draw the sunlight in the background

 

 

Once you have drawn the character and the lights and shadows, you can move on to painting the background.

This time, I used “Broadleaf M”, a paid brush in MediBang Paint to draw the trees and enlarged them to add the Gaussian blur.

(The colors are also adjusted using the gradient.)

 

As I wanted to draw the background as if the sun was also shining behind the trees, I painted lights in the gaps between the leaves or at the bottom of the tree silhouette, and set the layer blending to add (lighten).

 

Now finish the painting by drawing the lights using the Airbrush and the Add (Lighten) layer blend.

 

 

Conclusion

So far, we’ve learnt the method of drawing the lights coming through the leaves.

• 1. Draw the shadows
  ・Add a layer for the shadows
  ・Draw the shadows
  ・Adjust the shape of the shadows
  ・Adjust the opacity
• 2. Draw the sunlight
  ①: Erase shadows with the eraser tool
  ②: Draw the sunlight
  ③: Compound the methods ① and ②
• 3. Draw the sunlight in the background

 

When I first tried to draw the lights through the leaves, I had no idea what to do.

But these methods introduced above allowed me to draw dramatically easily.

 

I hope this will help those who are struggling to draw the lights through leaves.

(Text・Illustrations／Amane)