I did this recently. the paper is Master’s Touch mixed media black 160lb. The pencils are Prismacolor Premier. This picture looks fine here but in a frame with room light it is not very saturated. Is there any way to increase the saturation of the color short of getting a new paper. Thanks for whatever help you can give. It is greatly appreciated.
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Really beautiful flower! As far as saturation goes, I think you have a few options…
- Scanning the piece in and tweaking it digitally(ex: Photoshop), then reprinting it(but I don’t think this is what you’re going for
) - Buy a frame that has lights built-in, or perhaps back-light, maybe you can control the light that the art is getting?
- I just read that on dark paper you can lay down layers of white to help increase saturation, because the more the black shows through, the more the saturation is decreased. However, I’m not sure if that’s something you have to do BEFORE starting, or if you can do it as a layer OVER the art(which doesn’t seem quite possible…)
Add a light above the frame? The only pencils really, Really suggested for Colored Pencil on black base is the Caran d’Ache Luminance line which appear about twice as saturated and bright with better coverage than any others. However, I can’t justify a $300 colored pencil set to draw on black, you can get a whole lot of LED spotlights for that much money. 
It looks great in the photo with a great gradient from light to dark and the lower right side is saturated without black pointing through, just hard to get neon colors from a semi-transparent medium without dozens of layers, and some papers won’t take that many.
I think it is beautiful. As for the saturation, A lighter color will help.
Thanks MSL. I was thinking of trying the last suggestion you wrote about. I thought if I put down some sort of underpainting in white that might make the colors appear deeper. Thanks again for taking the time to reply. I greatly appreciate it.
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When I did colored pencil on black paper, I also found that the black eats the color. Probably what we should both have done is make squares on the black paper and tried the color out with different underlying colors. Personally I like the Berol white pencil best for black paper. I went to the art store and bought several brands of white pencil and tried them all out. The Berol laid down a good opaque layer. As for your current problem, try different lights, and chalk it up to experience.
Thanks for the idea of other pencils. When i win the lottery (HAHA) I’ll try that. When i use these pencils on white paper the colors are wonderful. I am much too new at drawing and that makes my knowledge at the elementary level trying to work at an apprentice level. Thanks, I will look into the new pencils.
Thanks for replying Denise. I used the lightest color I thought would define the subject here. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. Take care.
Jane, I am so new to the art world I have to chalk everything I do to experience. Thanks so much for the smile. It is greatly appreciated. Take care.
I think he’s already got as much onto the paper as possible. The paper in use is mid range I think Hobby Lobby brand and so there isn’t a whole lot of “tooth” to start with, and he’s got it full and seems unable to get more color onto the drawing. I think that is his question about “saturation” anyway.
Quality paper really does make a huge difference but the higher mid end is good for where you’re intending 20+ hours on a colored pencil, the extra $8 for the piece of paper doesn’t seem that expensive then and it lets you get a few more layers down into the tooth.