How to Paint Black Fur in Acrylic

🎨 Welcome to Your Tutorial

Welcome! In this step-by-step tutorial, you’ll learn how to paint a realistic black Labrador using simple, effective techniques.

Painting black fur can feel challenging, but in this lesson I’ll show you how to break it down using colour, light, and layering—so you can create depth without getting overwhelmed.

Take your time, enjoy the process, and remember—progress is more important than perfection.

What You'll Learn

How to paint black fur using warm and cool tones
How to mix rich blacks and greys without using flat black paint
How to simplify fur and avoid painting every hair
How to build depth using layers and glazes
How to create a realistic, lifelike result

🖼️ Reference Image

Use this reference photo to follow along.

👉 Download Reference Image

🧰 Materials You’ll Need

Watch this video to find out what we will be using for this tutorial.

A Handy Guide

Download a handy materials and colour mixing guide.

👉 Grab A Copy Here

🎥 Step-by-Step Tutorial

Step 1 – Your Pencil Sketch

Step 2 – Preparing Your Palette

Step 3 – Starting the Painting

Step 4 – Adding Your First Blacks

Step 5 – Painting with Greys

Step 6 – Refining Your Painting

Step 7 – Final Thoughts

🎉 Share Your Work

I’d love to see your finished painting!

Tag me or send it through:

👉 Head to Instagram

🎨 Continue Your Learning

If you enjoyed this tutorial, you can explore more step-by-step painting tutorials here:

👉 Browse More Tutorials

Thank you so much for your support—it really means a lot and allows me to keep creating more tutorials like this.

Happy painting!

Alex