Warden of Cherry Blossoms

I started with a greyscale painting for this illustration. I wanted to make sure to pin-point the focus areas with contrast first. This means lightening or darkening the picture with your brushstrokes, until you end up with a rough painting or better.

After finishing the greyscale painting, it will be colorized. It is possible to do so at the very end of the painting process or sooner - and continue working with color afterwards.

I usually use this technique as follows: I work in greyscale until I am happy with the overall look and feel of the painting, colorize and continue working out the details in color.