Try These 10 Digital Painting Exercises to Grow Your Skills

Digital painting is its own planet in the vast universe of CG art. And on that planet, although it may seem like there’s an infinite number of paths to go down, in reality, most intertwine and overlap along the way. That’s why trying one new exercise, no matter how niche, can help bolster and refine your existing toolkit of techniques. Here are 10 digital painting exercises to help you do just that:

Composition eBook + Exercise Pages

This tutorial on composition is unlike any other, teaching you to take control of your artwork through the mood and energy you’d like to create. It covers elements such as arrangement, the pros and cons of typical composition guides, how you can manipulate the perception of a scene through camera placement and orientation, and more. This crash course is best for beginner or intermediate artists, but also suits professionals who are looking for an ‘essentials’ guide to reference from time to time.

This pack includes:

23-page PDF with example illustrations
27-page PDF with exercise pages
100 practice sketches

Color and Light Masterclass Bundle

This bundle consists of four distinct lessons and correlating demos about color and light. This first discusses harmonizing color, the second focuses on the creation and uses of atmospheric lighting, the third covers volumetric lighting and its benefits, and the fourth summarizes the masterclass while throwing in a few new techniques.

The tutorial set contains:

4-part video tutorial (4 hours total)
12 demos

Graphic Sketching 2.0

This sketching lesson covers the thinking behind ‘graphic reads,’ starting with a sketchbook demo. The tutorial then runs through the entire process of translating a sketch into its blocking stage, and finally, its transformation into an atmospheric environment using a square brush.

With this purchase, you’ll receive:

2.5-hour HD video tutorial with commentary
PSD file
Brushes used

Form Lighting

This set of digital painting exercises strips lighting of its enigma and helps you develop your painting intuition so that you can perfect form lighting over time. The guides cover the anatomy of lighting, carving form with value, value compression, types of brushes, and much more. Each exercise is designed to upskill your lighting techniques one stroke at a time.

This bundle includes:

24-page guide
Exercises
Reference images

Planes and Rhythms of the Head

In this tutorial, you’ll learn the technique of using planes and rhythms for drawing human heads. The lessons cover a brief history of this method, how to leverage this technique to the max, how others use it, and how to practice this skill yourself. The bundle also comes with actionable practice templates to assist in measuring your progress.

The tutorial set contains:

3-part 30-minute video tutorial
3 PDF guides

Grayscale to Color Painting with Procreate

This Bob Ross-like tutorial presents a step-by-step straightforward guide to transform your grayscale digital painting using color in Procreate. It walks through the fundamentals, from value and contrast to color palettes, and shows you all the common pitfalls to avoid, making it great for beginners and advanced artists alike.

With this comprehensive pack, you’ll receive:

Multi-part video tutorial
Layered Procreate file
PSD file
6 step-by-step JPEGs

TRIADS: Painting with Three Colors

In the world of digital painting, you’re probably used to having an unlimited selection of colors at your disposal. That’s why this exercise is an excellent challenge for anyone looking to mix it up. With this kit, you can put your skills to the test by painting with just three colors plus white, and see just how far it will take you. This video workshop will present both a walkthrough and exercises so that you can take your technique to the next level.

The tutorial set consists of:

90-minute HD tutorial
PDF guide

Keyframe Pirates

If you’re looking to master the art of developing key-frames, this exercise will help you do just that. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to create various black and white thumbnail ideas from different angles, as well as one complete color painting.

This bundle contains:

2.5-hour tutorial with commentary

Morning Stroll

For those of you feeling overworked and are looking for a fun and light exercise to spark your excitement and creativity, we have just the thing for you. This tutorial will walk you through painting a lively robot character on its morning stroll while covering key technical aspects, such as color and light.

The tutorial pack includes:

Video tutorial with commentary
Layered PSD file
Reference images
Brushes used

Having Fun With Master Studies

If you’re a beginner artist who was advised to focus on ‘master studies’ but have since found them pedantic and tiring, this tutorial is perfect for you! This bundle will help you make the most of your master studies, transforming them into exciting and engaging digital painting exercises in which you don’t have to sacrifice your personal style or creativity. It gives you step-by-step tips and insider secrets that can be applied to any medium, including digital painting, drawing and sculpting.

This set consists of: