Isabella

Julia Reynolds · 11-25-2002, 06:10 PM

Hello fellow artists,

This little cutie lives in California and I live on Long Island, NY so I have not even seen this child in person.

Her grandmother is a very good friend of mine and I told her I would attempt to paint her portrait from this photo. I told her all the drawbacks to painting from a photo and in my experience I have been more successful painting from life. I have been thrown off by photos before.

Could I get some input, advice, caveats...you get the picture, on how to approach this painting. My friend does have a few more shots just to get a different view of her head. Should I use them as well?

I am concerned about the neck of her shirt. Should I cut if off as in the photo or extend it or crop it up even further. What kind of background color? I want the curl to really be a point of interest but not the focal point.

Please help. Thanks.

Chris Saper · 11-25-2002, 06:53 PM

Dear Julia,

At the risk of starting a very long, repetitve thread, I might possbily paint from this photo, but I would certainly first explore the others available.

That is not to say this isn't a fantastic photo of a gorgeous child. It is; it also has light that can be worked with, no compostitional problems, and terrifc color harmony. The photo, more than anything, is quite overexposed, but overexposure can sometimes be corrected by the photo lab (underexposures can be easier to correct). If you're lucky, she shot this with a digital camera, where you can be more successful in adjusting the brightness.

Quote:

My friend does have a few more shots just to get a different view of her head. Should I use them as well?

Ask to see the other photos. The expression, while perfect for a photo, is not, in my opinion, one that will translate as well to a painted work as would a more relaxed expression. I have never found it successful to try to use two different photos of a subject's facial expression as painting reference, although they can be useful in gaining visual information about the subject's appearance. I would suggest sticking with one facial expression once you start. You can often, though, successfully combine photos of body language expression, or gesture, so long as the angle and lighting remain consistent.

Alternatively, ask the mother to shoot a roll of film in natural light (turning off her flash), and to give you 24 (or 36) choices. She is a beautiful subject - I would love the chance to paint her myself.

The color harmony is a classic as is. I would not leave the shirt collar cut off as it directs the out out, rather than returning it to the face. Extend the canvas below the image's crop.

Chris Saper · 11-25-2002, 07:11 PM

One last (?) note; you will want to be very careful not to overstate the darkness of the shadow in the creases is the face, most particularly the nasal-labial fold on our right. Don't rely on the values in the photo, or it will come out too dark.

Julia Reynolds · 11-25-2002, 10:11 PM

Dear Chris,

Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom.

I work in Photoshop a lot in my line of work (not portrait painting...yet), in graphic design. Do you think I can make some adjustments through that software?

Also, being I am not contracted to do this professionally and am only being asked to try I think I would like to give it a try. I will try to post my progress on the forum.

Your answers about the shirt and background are duly noted and I will abide by them.

I think I may do a sepia toned sketch first to see if I find any difficulty with the values as you have cautioned me about the nasal-labial fold. I'll post that and see if you have any input on that if you have the time.

Your response has been greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Chris Saper · 11-25-2002, 11:01 PM

Quote:

I work in Photoshop a lot in my line of work (not portrait painting...yet), in graphic design. Do you think I can make some adjustments through that software?

I have had very poor results in making adjustments in Photoshop to scanned images' values; it seems that I can not get beyond the limits of what I scanned in to begin with...which doesn't mean you shouldn't try. (However, I'd note that I have just the right amount of knowlege in Photoshop to be VERY dangerous..to myself, possibly to others.)

Your best bet is to get the negative, if you can, and see what the photo lab can do for you, presuming the image was taken with film. Once you begin compounding third, fourth, fifth generation images, the values get so badly blocked up that you can't do much with them. If the image was taken digitally, you should get much better results in Photoshop, but only if you are manipulating a digital image. Even if the image was taken digitally, once it's committed to film and printing paper, you can't regain the advantage of millions of tiny individually colored pixels.

Regarding the values, take careful note as you progress. The darks in places like the N-L fold will be blocked-up (compressed), but the lightest values will also be fairly significantly compressed in the over-exposed areas as well.

Good luck, and you are very welcome.

Chris Saper · 11-25-2002, 11:08 PM

Oh, just a thought on the background. pretty lucky to have it ready to go in color and value! Even in the photo, it darkens and cools slightly as it moves from right to left behind your little subject. I would experiment value-wise with a thumbnail as to whether you want the light background next to the light half of the head, or vice versa.

Michael Georges · 11-26-2002, 12:48 AM

Have to agree with Chris on this one Julia. While a nice photograph and an adorable child, it will be hard to get that expression just right and not make her look like she is about to try to eat you.

Karin Wells · 12-04-2002, 11:21 PM

Unless Isabella's childhood is long gone, I would make every effort to get another picture asap. In the photo this child is definitely cute. As a painting, the skill required to keep her cute and not make her appear monstrous is probably beyond my level of ability. Good luck (and I sincerely mean that).

Julia Reynolds · 12-05-2002, 12:02 AM

I am not yet near being a professional portrait artist and I believe all the wise suggestions of those who are doing this for a living. But I have nothing to loose by attempting this (which I am currently doing) and a lot to learn. And I am learning how difficult this photo is to work from. I will valiantly continue until I can continue no more, and will post the end product if I don't slash it to bits. Ah, nothing like finding things out for yourself

Thanks for all the time and input. It is always greatly appreciated.