[Michael Georges]

Administrator's Note: John Finnegan's earlier post where he refers to the "gutless advice" given by artists before him was deleted. The following posts refer to the one that was deleted as being outside proper etiquette for this Forum.

It's about what makes a good painting vs. what makes a good photograph - further, it is about stacking the deck in your favor by using only the best reference you can get.

Bad reference only makes your job that much harder. Portraiture is not about copying photographs - it is about creating good paintings that are somewhat timeless and "live" on the wall.

In this case, the reference photo is not good and I feel that I would have a pretty hard time making a good painting out of it. It is lit by a flash which has reduced the value transitions and created a lighting situation which is not appealing. The left arm of the lady is odd and subtracts significantly from the composition. The figures are not in very interesting poses - it looks like a photograph does - a captured moment, not something that is timeless like a portrait should be.

That said, if you do decide to take the commission, then you will need to do a significant amount of rework and extrapolate some forms in order to make it a better painting. You will want to move the lady's arm into a position where it makes more sense and it shows her interacting with the baby a bit more - a lot of extrapolation there. You will want to expand the field of view so we are not so close into the forms - there are too many edges cut off - at least extend it on the bottom. Again, you will have to determine the position of the lady's legs, how the rocking horse extends down, and define the baby's feet and legs.

You will hear the professionals on this forum arguing a lot for using the best reference - that is because we have experienced the tragedy first hand by fighting bad photos and trying to make a painting that is good from them. After one or two of those, you begin to realize that it is just not worth it - not for your head, not for your heart, not for your portfolio, and certainly not for your wallet. A lot of extra work and time to make something good from something not good - you end up making pennies on the commission if not losing money all together.

So it is not about guts, it is about being a professional portrait painter and what that really means - jaw droppingly good paintings every time, without fail. You don't get there from bad reference.