Skill Up in Digital Art
Create a digital character using a tablet or computer drawing app, practicing basic shapes, colors, layers, and simple shading techniques.
Step-by-step guide to Skill Up in Digital Art
How To Make Digital Art | Full Tutorial For BEGINNERS
Step 1
Open your drawing app.
Step 2
Create a new canvas at a size you like.
Step 3
Add a new layer and name it Sketch.
Step 4
Use a soft light brush on the Sketch layer to draw basic simple shapes for the head body and limbs.
Step 5
Add a new layer above Sketch and name it Lineart.
Step 6
Trace clean outlines over your sketch on the Lineart layer.
Step 7
Hide the Sketch layer or lower its opacity so only the Lineart shows clearly.
Step 8
Add a new layer under the Lineart layer and name it Color.
Step 9
Fill in flat base colors on the Color layer for each part of your character.
Step 10
Add a new layer above Color named Shading and set its blending mode to Multiply at about 30 to 50 percent opacity.
Step 11
Use a soft brush on the Shading layer to paint simple shadows where the light would not hit.
Step 12
Add a new layer named Highlights and paint small bright highlights on hair eyes or shiny spots.
Step 13
Save or export your character as a PNG or JPG.
Step 14
Share your finished creation on DIY.org.
Final steps
You're almost there! Complete all the steps, bring your creation to life, post it, and conquer the challenge!
Help!?
I don't have a drawing app or a stylus — what can we use instead?
If you don't have a drawing app or stylus you can open a free program like Krita or the web app Kleki and use a mouse or your finger to make a new canvas and follow the Sketch, Lineart, Color, Shading, and Highlights steps.
My lineart looks messy or my shading doesn't show — what should I check?
Check that the Lineart layer is above the Sketch layer, hide or lower Sketch opacity after tracing, confirm the Color layer is beneath Lineart, and set the Shading layer to Multiply at about 30–50% so shadows combine properly.
How can we adapt this activity for a 5-year-old or a 12-year-old?
For younger kids simplify the Sketch step to big circles and rectangles and use a large soft brush for flat Color fills, while older kids can add finer Lineart, multiple Shading layers, and adjust brush settings for more detail.
How can we extend or personalize the character after finishing the basic steps?
Add a Background layer under Color with a simple scene or gradient, use textured brushes on the Color layer, paint extra lighting on an Overlay layer, or make a quick two-frame blink animation before exporting as PNG or JPG to share on DIY.org.
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Facts about digital art for kids
🌈 Complementary colors (opposites on the color wheel) make each other pop, a handy trick for eye-catching character outfits.
🎨 Digital art began in the 1960s when artists and researchers first used computers to generate images — early exhibitions appeared by the mid‑1960s.
🗂️ Layers are like stacked transparent sheets — artists often use dozens so they can edit colors, lines, and shading independently.
🖊️ Many modern drawing tablets detect up to 8,192 pressure levels, letting you get super-thin or thick strokes just by varying pressure.
💡 Simple shading with just 2–3 tones (base, shadow, highlight) can make flat shapes look convincingly 3D fast.
How do I help my child create a digital character using a tablet or computer?
What materials and apps do I need to create a digital character?
What ages is this digital character activity suitable for?
What are the benefits of children learning digital character creation?
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