Gave up on canvas textures for my digital paintings, now I use real photo overlays instead

I used to spend forever trying to get that painterly canvas look with just brushes and filters in Procreate. Nothing ever looked right, it always felt fake or too smooth. Then about 3 weeks ago a friend told me to just take a photo of actual canvas from an art store and layer it over my paintings at like 30% opacity. I tried it on a landscape piece I was stuck on and it was a total game changer. The texture actually shifts with the brushstrokes underneath and gives it a real physical feel. I even started collecting photos of different paper types and fabric textures to use as overlays. Has anyone else tried this method or found a go-to source for texture photos?

3 comments

3 Comments

milesbarnes5d agoMost Upvoted

Yo that's actually so smart! Do you find the overlay messes with the colors or contrast at all? Like does it dull things down or add weird tones depending on the lighting in the photo?

emma_lee225d ago

Nah, I actually see it the opposite way. "Messes with the colors" - for me the overlay keeps things more consistent so I dont have to tweak as much in editing later. If anything I've noticed it handles harsh lighting better than trying to fix it in post.

val9745d ago

Wait, are you finding it actually handles harsh lighting better? Because I've been going back and forth on trying one and my biggest worry is exactly what you said about harsh lighting. I shoot a lot of outdoor portraits around golden hour but sometimes I'm stuck shooting at like 1pm in direct sun and the shadows are just brutal. If this thing softens that up without making everything look washed out or giving it that weird fake HDR look I'd be all over it. I've tried messing with curves and masks in Lightroom but it's such a pain and half the time I end up making it worse. What kind of lighting conditions have you tested yours in so far?