Spring is in the air, and what better way to celebrate than by capturing the delicate beauty of a bumblebee in pastels? In this step-by-step tutorial, Jo Smith guides you through the process of creating a lifelike bumblebee using pastel pencils. From mastering light and shadow to achieving fine, fluffy textures, you’ll learn how to bring this charming insect to life on paper.
 Free reference photo from Pixabay.com. Photographer: Wfranz |
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Apply masking tape to the edges of your paper and secure it to a flat workstation. You can trace the outline using TraceDown, an art projector or freehand. Here, I sketched the main subject freehand – do what works for you! Once you have your outline, load your Sofft tool with a generous amount of PanPastel Bright Yellow and Green Extra Dark and plot in the mid and dark tones of the background. Have fun with it and don’t worry about being too careful at this stage – remember to really cover the tooth!
Using the same Sofft tool, deepen the darker areas using a combination of Neutral Grey Extra Dark and Turquoise Extra Dark. Now add in your lighter tones, Turquoise Tint, Bright Yellow Green Shade and finally, a frosting of Titanium White on the lightest areas. Keep your hand loose and work in rough circular motions to build up the pigment. To achieve the ‘bokeh’ effect, gently refine your circles using varying pressure to create depth and an ‘out of focus’ effect.
Plot in the dark areas of the bee using a Unison Colour Soft Pastel CB1 and then add in the yellow components using Dandelion Derwent Pastel Pencil. Next, using medium pressure, go in with the Crimson to achieve that slightly darker area of the yellow underneath the wing. Blend out everything using a cotton bud, being careful to keep the structure and shape of the yellow against the black. Take the Pale Olive Derwent Pastel Pencil and fill in the ‘tail’ of the bee before moving on to the head and second yellow area around the neck. Use Dandelion to fill this area, followed by Crimson and a light coat of Violet to soften the edges.
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