Children’s book illustrations are become increasingly more digitised with sometimes only the initial idea sketched and drawn out by hand and the rest of the process being carried out in Photoshop, Illustrator or another illustration program. This way of working can pose challenges for traditional artists and means there’s never a bad time to brush up on your children’s illustration skills with digital software.
Children’s book illustration tutorials are not only useful for beginners, but also for more experienced illustrators looking to practice and perfect their techniques. There are a wide range of styles and skills to be learnt from tutorials which makes them incredibly helpful for children’s illustration. If you’re looking to learn more and find some new designs to try, then take a look at this list of 15 amazing children’s book illustration tutorials for children’s book illustrators to give you some ideas.
Create a Children’s Picture Book Illustration in Photoshop
This lovely tutorial uses a photomontage as the basis for the illustration which is then transformed with masks and filters. The resulting image wouldn’t look out of place in a published children’s book and you can download the project files to learn the techniques and create your own image.
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Create a Children’s Illustration in Photoshop
This lovely winter themed children’s book illustration was created by using digital painting techniques in Photoshop and you can follow along to see how to paint digitally.
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Two Children’s Book Illustrations Using Illustrator
If you’d like to learn how to illustrate children’s book in illustrator then this tutorial will be a big help. You’ll create two images, one of a girl and one of a tea set, in bright colours and a modern style.
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How to Draw a Children’s Book Illustration
This simple tutorial will give you an insight into the process of creating a book illustration with digital painting and drawing. The artist shows you their process which you can apply to your own work.
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Illustration Tutorial Using Illustrator and Corel Painter
This video tutorial will show you how to create a bear illustration from a sketch by starting in Illustrator, then moving to Photoshop and Painter.
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Scary Children’s Illustration Tutorial
This cute and scary drawing would be great for a Halloween theme but could also be used for children’s books all year round. You’ll learn how to create each character and element, then add some life to the drawing. This is one of the best children’s illustration tutorials and you’re sure to get some new tips that you can use in your own illustrations.
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Simple Photoshop Illustration
This beginner’s tutorial will take you through the process of creating an illustration in Photoshop, showing you each step so that you can create your own image. This is a great tutorial for those just starting out in children’s illustration and teaches you some helpful Photoshop tips too.
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Digital Watercolour for Children’s Illustrations
In this video tutorial, illustrator Tracy Bishop will teach you how to get a realistic watercolour effect for your drawings and illustrations in Photoshop. The tutorial is helpful, informative and uses techniques that you can apply to many types of drawings and sketches.
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Photoshop Layer Masks for Children’s Book Illustrations
Children’s book illustrator Tracy Bishop shows you how to use layer masks effectively for character illustration which will give you a great insight into her techniques and how you can apply them to your own illustrations.
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Cartooning Tutorial
Cartoon styles are always a big hit with children so learning how to create cartoon illustrations will progress your skills and add new techniques to your repertoire. Starting with a sketch, the image is processed through Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, and even though the video uses older versions of the programs the process is still helpful.
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Create a Vector Pirate Character
Learn how to create a vector pirate character with this great tutorial that will take you from sketch to finished image. You can use this technique on any character (not just pirates) to create simple vector graphics for your illustrations.
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Creating Convincing Characters
In this simple tutorial you’ll see how to create convincing characters by sketching out ideas and then building on them to make dynamic images full of personality.
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Illustrate a Beautiful Watercolor Children’s Book Illustration
Using watercolors is one of the easiest and most creative ways to make a children’s book illustration. Explore what techniques the painter uses in this beautiful demonstrative watercolor tutorial video to master the skills of painting a children’s book illustration in watercolors.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgjWjPOcoCI
The Process of Illustrating a Children’s Book
Children’s illustrator Jane Massey talks you through the process of illustrating children’s books from understanding the brief to checking for continuity. This is a great tutorial for new and aspiring illustrators to learn about how to work with clients and develop upon their ideas.
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Digital Collage Illustration in Photoshop
In this video tutorial you’ll learn how to create a digital collage children’s illustration using scanned textures and art to give a really unique feel. You’ll be able to take these ideas forward to use in other illustrations and projects for an interesting and textured effect.
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Great tips & techniques to Create Children’s Book Illustrations
This is a great post on how to make children’s book illustrations and become a children’s book illustrator. Remember, creativity and patience is the key and you will start winning when you start practicing more and more.
Follow the tips and techniques to become a children’s book illustrator here.
Did you enjoy these children’s book illustration tutorials. We hope you will learn some great tricks and techniques to create your own children’s book illustrations in no time. Enjoy and be creative.
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