Myles and Hope

Katherine Annon · 11-04-2003, 08:06 AM

Hello Everyone,

I'm a fairly new member, and hope that it's okay that I post this photo for suggestions. If not, my apologies; please disregard.

This was a photo I recently took for one of my first color commissions. Would it qualify as a good resource photo? I'm still hammering out how to do this properly (the photography, work in a color medium) even as I'm actually doing it for real.

Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Chris Saper · 11-04-2003, 05:11 PM

Hi Katherine,

While this is a very cute photo, I think it should stay a photo, and not become a painting. The flash on the camera has flattened the features, and leaves you without any interesting light and shadow patterns.

The broad smile creates bags under everyone's eyes, even young children, and while we are willing to accept the open-mouthed smile in a photo, it is really hard, if not impossible, to pull off in a painting.

Cropping the photo as you have shown, notwithstanding compositional preferences, cuts off the hands at an awkward position, and the ear of the girl on our left will form a tangent with the frame rabbet.

I think your time would be very well-spent by going through the sections on photographing subjects, using light as a compositional tool, and also the sections on three-value massing. You can use the search icon at the top of any Forum page.

Best wishes,

Katherine Annon · 11-04-2003, 09:36 PM

Thank you so much for your help. I'll go back and read some more.

Katherine Annon · 11-06-2003, 11:28 PM

In my new-poster enthusiasm, I failed to be as thoughtful as I should have been regarding this topic. All sorts of issues were addressed relevant to the picture I posted - before I'd posted it.

Chalk it up to trying to learn everything at once, now that people are approaching me about my work. I'm trying to figure out what to do when, how to do it, and where to find that information - yesterday! I'll continue the steady reading. Thanks for your patience.

A note: I've talked to three people who've given me resource photos that don't fit the bill according to this forum. Since this posting and the subsequent re-reading of relevant topics, I've told all three of them that I'd have to retake the photos.

Everything's a learning experience.

Thanks again for your patience. I'll try not to make a similar mistake.