Coloring Tip: Background color creates the feeling of a particular time of day. Never trust your memory because many objects look one color during the day and a different color at night. Are you coloring daytime fire with midnight campfire color? Research to match your colors to time and setting.
Your background color tells a story
We’re used to hearing how color palettes set a mood or feeling for your coloring image.
Your background is part of the color palette.
The background is actually a very special part of the color palette— it’s usually twice the size of your image and it sends out secret messages to your viewers.
Not kidding.
A background isn’t just negative space. The background is the room or environment— the setting for your image. It even gives hints about time.
A black background sends a nighttime message. Most people just automatically grab black paper for Halloween images because the nighttime black vibe is so embedded in our brains.
But we rarely pause to consider that the reverse is also true:
White backgrounds create the feeling of bright daylight scenes.
The marker and pencil colors you choose should match the time of day set by your background.
We create continuity issues when we use daylight colors on a night image or night colors on a daylight image.
Read more about night colors here:
Which Copic Markers should you use to color fire?
Close your eyes and think of a fire.
Are you picturing a campfire with burning logs and maybe some kids toasting marshmallows?
Which colors do you see in the flames?
Red? Orange? Yellow? Maybe a little bit of blue?
Great! You’ve figured out which colors we will absolutely, positively NOT be using today!
But wait, Amy! Fire is red!
No, it’s not.
When you closed your eyes, you were picturing a campfire AT NIGHT.
Now look at our cupcake here.
Does it look like this cupcake is sitting out in the woods in the middle of the night?
No.
So why would you color the fire red?
Our background is white.
White creates the impression of a cupcake sitting in bright light.
If you use nighttime fire colors on daytime candles, it’s going to look odd.
Your viewers may not be able to express precisely why it looks weird but they’ll know something’s wrong. Spidey Senses tingle when you color daylight flames with campfire colors.
To color with realism means creating a believable scenario.
Red, orange, and yellow fire on a white background is not believable because flames are never red, orange and yellow in a brightly lit scene.
So how did I figure out which markers and pencils to use?
Research.
I walked into my well-lit kitchen, grabbed a box of matches, and sat there for 10 minutes lighting matches and taking note of the colors I saw.
Pale yellow, peach, violet.
And frankly, a whole lot of nothing in the center.
Fire only looks dramatic at night which is why photographers wait until after dark to capture fiery campfire scenes. Flames in the daytime are mostly invisible.
If you want to color with realism, you must use realistic color.
Research before you color.
Folds & Waves
People frequently ask for a class on clothing. Here you go!
Ready to try challenge level coloring?
Celebration Cupcake an Intermediate Challenge level Marker Painting Workshop
Learn to color gentle waves of frosting & crisply folded pleats. You can use this technique on skirts, shirts, curtains, anything with folds!
Real time coloring, recorded live
Live Workshops are unscripted demonstrations which provide students with a real look into the authentic coloring process. You’ll see mistakes being made and corrected. It’s just like visiting Amy in her home studio.
Log in and color with Amy at your convenience. Anytime access, no expiration dates.
Class was recorded in March 2021 and featured a live student audience. Amy answers questions from the students and offers many tips for better colored pencil art.
Select supplies used in Celebration Cupcake
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