Pro tip: Using a clipping mask for texture in Procreate saved me hours

I was working on a digital painting of a forest scene last week and the leaves looked way too flat. I spent maybe two hours trying to paint each leaf shadow individually, which was a total pain. Then I remembered a tutorial I saw about clipping masks, so I made a new layer with a photo of some crumpled paper, set it as a clipping mask over my leaf layer, and changed the blend mode to 'overlay'. It added instant depth and grit without messing up my line work. Has anyone else found a simple trick like this that fixed a big problem in their workflow?

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3 Comments

grant7286mo ago

Oh man, that's a total lifesaver for adding grit.

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skyler_mitchell4mo ago

Heard somewhere that people call overlay textures "digital dirt" for that exact reason. Really stuck with me as a way to think about adding that extra layer of depth.

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riverperry6mo ago

Yeah, clipping masks are a total game changer. I read a blog post once that called them "digital stencils" and that really clicked for me. I use them all the time for adding quick fabric textures to character clothes or grunge to backgrounds. It just makes things feel finished without the manual work. What other blend modes do you like to use with your texture layers?

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