Danielle In Progress

[Marvin Mattelson]

Her eyes are too close together and her jaw is too wide. The most important thing is the shape of the head. We can recognize someone we know from a block away because of this.

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

Marvin, I knew there was something off about the space between the eyes and that general area but couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was. I think I've been working on that portrait way too long and can't see it clearly anymore. This is the first time I've had this much of a struggle since I started doing commissions. Thanks for pointing that problem area out. And you're right about the jaw. As soon as I can get back into the studio I'll tackle it with a will. Thanks again!

[Michele Rushworth]

Here's what I do when I can't see what I'm doing anymore, because I've been staring at it too long: I put the painting and the reference upside down and work on it that way for a while. It gives a fresh perspective.

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

Michele, I tried that - it got me to where I am now. I think the computer technologies, although they get me away from the studio, do a much better job of showing where a person has gone astray. Turning the painting upside down, or looking at it in a mirror, can often help a mistake to pop right out. However, seeing how much more obvious errors are with computer aids makes me wonder whether any of the more classical methods would have worked with this one. Maybe turning its face to the wall for a few weeks might have helped but I'm not sure.

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

Okay, here's the latest version. I've tried to incorporate all the tips. It's a bit grainy but it was the best I could do photographically. Her right jaw (to our left) may still need to come in slightly. Reactions, please!

Oh, and you can see the complete portrait at its current stage at http://leslieficcaglia.org/robin.htm
Colors are a little too saturated but otherwise it's not bad for a digital.

[Terri Ficenec]

Hi Leslie!

Just taking a quick look at this, it's looking much closer. I think the left side of her face is in about the right place now, with the exception of just the 'corner' of her jaw on our left which seems to be a smidge higher in the reference (at the green dot that the pink arrow is pointing to)... It's the side of her face on our right that just seems a bit wide along most of that edge from her temple down.

The angle of the eye on our right still seems a little off (or maybe it's that the shadows in the reference are so much darker on that eye? and the iris is in shadow on that side). Her eyebrows still seem a little too long too me and maybe could be still softer towards the tips.

Her lips look a little thick near the 'corners' (mostly about even with the ends of where her upper teeth are visible - above and below, if that makes sense). and I think the shadowed interior swoops a little too deeply into the center of her lower lip... Making that curve a little shallower there would make her lower lip just a little fuller at the center and take away some of the sort of undulating effect that it seems to have right now.

Hope that makes sense!

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

Terri, you're a trouper! Thanks for working your magic green lines with this again. Interestingly, I saw the extra "corner" on our left side of her jaw but I thought the right side needed to be fuller than I have it and than your green lines show. I went out to the studio this morning and reworked the whole mouth, bringing it up a little. I seem almost to have gotten it. It's hard because once I scrub it out I have no reference anymore to show me where it should begin and end using the green lines.

Not sure what you mean by "Her lips look a little thick near the 'corners' (mostly about even with the ends of where her upper teeth are visible - above and below, if that makes sense)" The rest is clear and I'll tackle her again tomorrow. I have never seen a mouth that's that hard to capture!

I think the shifting of the ear and widening of the nose between the eyes made a really big difference.

Thanks again!

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

Okay, I've worked on the shape of the face, tilted that eye on our right down slightly, raised the lefthand corner of the mouth and smoothed the lips, both upper and lower, evened out the skin tones and made them slightly tanner, and played with the eyebrows. I just sent the url to the clients and we'll see what they say. I think it's a good likeness now and I only hope that if I'm right, they can see it. Sometimes after being dissatisfied with a likeness people have trouble recognizing when it's finally achieved.

Here's the closeup of Danielle and the url for the new version of the whole portrait, although it's slightly cropped on the right.

http://leslieficcaglia.org/robin.htm

[Michele Rushworth]

I think it's improved, but it seems to me that the value changes in the lower half of her face are still too harsh, taking away a lot of her prettiness. Softening the shadow shapes in the lower cheeks, on and under the end of the nose and in her chin area would help a lot, I think.

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

You're right, Michele. I just spent a lot of time softening those; just came in from the studio. Part of the problem is getting a photo that's true to the original in value and color, and then getting it up on the web retaining those qualities, but I agree that the value changes are too harsh. Just for comparison, here's a less-doctored image of the reference photo; don't know if it will come up as contrasty as it is, but that's another thing I'm fighting against.

And I still haven't heard from the clients as to whether they feel I'm on the right track. This may be a portrait that never gets delivered since I won't release anything that the clients aren't completely satisfied with. And at this point I'm not sure I'll know, since they're trying to be polite.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help I'm getting here! I've never had a commission that I've struggled with this much.