[Will Enns]

Sharon,

I've not posted back till now because everything was in limbo. But I just talked with them again and they have finally come to their senses. I'll be able to get up close and personal, do away with the big background, and take a peek at the whites of their eyes. Things are looking up.

Essentially, the goal is to portray these folks as though there is still some romance in their relationship, which in fact there is. It calls for a certain interaction between the couple that is more often seen in wedding photos than in formal portraits of couples. To achieve such a feeling of intimacy is my challenge in this effort.

If I have my way, it will be a very simple background.

I am starting to think educating the client is as much work as the painting itself. Sheesh! I wonder if we can charge extra for that?

To answer your implied question, I had not seen your couple. In any case, I was not making judgements, but commenting that none of the couple portraits I had seen at that point generated a resonance with me. I think this must be a very dificult thing to achieve.

Thank you for taking the time to seek out those examples.


Peggy,

Thank you for these good suggestions. Even though I won't apply them directly in this instance due to the change in composition, the lessons are not wasted. From reading your original post on the subject, I know I can apply all this even to a simple head and shoulders portriat.

I promise I will never again make a mistake involving 3-value massing. (And a chorus of voices issues forth from our speakers, "Riggghhht!")