Portrait of a little girlLearn how to paint a portrait

Ben Lustenhouwer

Portrait of a little girlLearn how to paint a portrait

Ben Lustenhouwer

An explanation in pdf format accompanying the video tutorial Portrait of a little girl.In a concise form the text will follow the narrative on the video.

This document can be viewed on any device, and can also be printed.

PAINTINGPORTRAITTIPS.COM

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For me, it is vitally important that when using a photograph to paint from I take it myself and that it is o f good qua l i ty. Ty p ica l l y, I w i l l t ake se vera l photographs of the subject, for "Portrait of a Little Girl" I made a total of sixty from which I selected one. To create contrast between the subject and the background I decided to place her in front of a window. I used an umbrella flash light on a tripod, situated to the right of the girls head at a distance of approximately 180 cm. and a height of (70.8 inch). I set my digital camera to RAW format. This ensures I have maximum flexibility in altering colour, contrast and any other visual values I may wish to play with. This is achieved using Photoshop. I always crop the image to the same aspect ratio of the canvas upon which I intend to make the painting and I will adjust the image and printer settings until I achieve a print I am entirely satisfied with.

Here is the equipment I use:Camera: Canon 5D, on a tripod.Flash: Speedlite 580 EX + Speedlite Transmitter ST-E2.Printer: Epson Stylus PHOTO R 2400.Paper: Premium Glossy Photo Paper.

Photography

Think about how you want to depict the person before starting to shoot. Do I just want to paint the face? Do I want full front or a three-quarter position for the subject? Take your t ime dur ing the photographic session. The model may be tense so think about how you will put them at ease. This is important not only for ch i ldren , e ven adu l t s may fee l uncomfortable sitting. Experiment with multiple exposures and also remember that a face has often a good and a bad side. Therefore, make sure that, when the model sits at a slight angle to the camera, you take pictures not only with the face looking to the right but also to the left. Shou ld you be pa int ing a d iptych , remember that it might be nice if the first person is depicted from the right, and the second from the left. If the model is very stiff, and that happens frequently, never allow your frustrations to show instead, encourage them with praise, tell them how well they are doing and how good they are looking. I have told this white lie

many times and it always contributes towards a successful result! In addition you will give the model the confidence that you are in control.

I always have a flash unit on hand in case the ambient light is poor. My lighting consists of a flash with umbrella on a tripod. Usually I recommend the flash falls obliquely from above on the face, so that about two-thirds is in light, and one third in the shade. If shadows are very dark, I will sometimes use a light reflector to bounce the l ight back to l i f t the shadows and reveal a little detail. A large sheet of white paper (A3 or more) is a good subst i tute for a profes s iona l reflector. Frontal lighting provides little shade and it is precisely this shade that makes it easier to create a likeness. A flash snapshot with a fixed flash on the camera rarely produces good results. Also do not stand too close to your model with the camera. You run the risk of wide-angle

distortion that is ugly: big nose and small ears. Make enough pictures. Very often it is only one single picture out of a series that has just the particular magic that you're looking for. Never accept second best, keep photographing until you get the image you really want. Do not expect to fix a poor image in photoshop or on the canvas because you won't. Take short breaks when necessary especially when shooting children for whom the session should be kept shorter.

A final note with children, "helpful" parents can often cause more problems than they solve, so learn the art of politely keeping them out of the way.

Some thoughts on taking the photographs of the model

The finished painting.46 x 46 cm.

The canvas.

Before the canvas can be even sketched on, the linen has to be we l l p repared . L inen straight from the shop even if so ld a s pre pr imed i s not sufficient for a good result often sucking the oil from the paint and preventing it from flowing. Therefore, apply at least three extra layers of gesso.

The drawing & underpainting Video

part 1

Watch video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEAzdQXP-Fchttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEAzdQXP-Fc

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Colour pencil

Parto de una buena fotografa que hago yo mismo. Esta es para m una condicin fundamental.

La imagen es una, de una serie de sesenta, aproxi-madamente. Por razones de contraluz he puesto mi modelo delante de una ventana.

Uso un flash luz paraguas en un trpode, situado por encima de la cabeza de la nia aproximadamen-te a 180 cm. de altura (70,8 pulgadas). Hago la foto en la opcin de RAW para obtener la mxima posi-bilidad de correccin de color y el valor despus en Photoshop. Recorto la imagen para el formato cua-drado de la tela. Hago todas las copias hasta que est completamente satisfecho.

Cmara: Canon 5D, en un trpode.

Flash: flash Speedlite 580 EX + Speedlite Transmi-tter ST-E2.

Impresoras: Epson Stylus Photo R 2400.

Papel: Papel fotogrfico Premium Glossy.

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I sketch the models face on the canvas with a red pencil. The black graphite of a normal pencil will always come shining through your painting at some point.

In this portrait I projected the image onto the canvas. This can be done with a projector or beamer.

Three other methods to get the picture on the canvas:* Marking up both the photo and the canvas into a grid.* Using tracing paper. Trace the photograph on thin transparent paper. Rub the back with charcoal, turn the paper over and lay it gently on the canvas. Trace the drawing again, so that the charcoal line is pressed on the linen.* Copying the image on the canvas simply by observation.

I generally recommend you fix the red pencil drawing with a thin application of fixative spray with a shellac / alcohol solution.

The purpose of underpainting is to capture the drawing and retrace basic forms and features of the face. In a simple statement I will start to set tonal values. With great care I set the main marker points for the face, paying particular attention to the corners of the eyes, the eyelashes, the nostrils and the corners of the mouth. This visual groundwork is vital because if, as the layers of paint build up, I start to get lost, I can simply scrape it back or lift it off with pallet knife to reveal my underpainting. I use acrylics for the underpainting because it dries immediately. And at the same time it fixes my pencil drawing without the need to spray an extra layer of fixative in advance.An alternative way is to do the underpainting in oil but you will have to wait at least a day for it to dry completely.

I use raw siena for the underpainting as it complements the flesh tones and is not too dark.

The underpainting

The drawing

Watch video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrNXS86xXNIhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrNXS86xXNI

Getting started in oil

Video

part 2

The colours on my palette

Raw Siena* Optional.Alizarine Crimson* Can be replaced by Madder Lake Light.

I rarely use medium in the beginning because the paint is already quite oleaginous or oily: Royal Talens - Rembrandt. Some brands are more resistant and less flowing. Then the use of medium might be needed to obtain a more fluid viscosity. But in general try to use as little as possible. In this particular example I have treated the canvas with an alkyd medium that was dry the next day. But somet imes I s ta r t the day wi th a th in application of neutral drying medium which I wipe down with a dry rag. The surface is now a little damp and it makes the canvas more receptive to my brush strokes. I like to vary my methods and I urge you to try different approaches yourself. Self-made discoveries are always very valuable! In this portrait I also used Painting-paste.

On the picture you see from left to right:A lkyd medium, Neutra l d r y ing medium, (turpentine / linseed oil).Odourless solvent to rinse brushes.

The brushes I used in this portrait demonstration.

1. First of course the palette knife with which I mix my colours.2. A big and a small synthetic bristle, filbert,cats tongue Size: 26, 12. 3. A small round point, synthetic. Size: 4.4. Hog bristle, filbert cats tongue. Size: 6, 8, 10,12.5. Soft synthetic, filbert cats tongue. Size: 10, 12.6. A synthetic, flat. Size: 8.7. Watercolor brushes. Size: 9, 22.

Medium and solvent

Brushes

Watch video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hPHPxQTZ40http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hPHPxQTZ40

Video part 3

Getting started: Hair & Shadows

Video part 4

Finishing the dark areas

Video part 5

Painting the halftones

In advance I give the eyes a special treatment with a thin layer of a dark brown mixture. After that, like always, I start with the darkest parts in the portrait: the hair. In simple shapes I block in the planes, without making any indications of curls or single locks of hair.I then move on to only the darkest shadows in the face. I dont use any medium.

After I have finished the darkest parts of the face I move on to the mouth but again only in a simple schematic way.

I look for the subtle blue, mauve and green accents in this darker parts of the skin. Wherever they appear I try to accentuate them. They add interest to the portrait.Notice that I paint the lighter parts darker and the shadows l ighter than you see on the photograph. I do this on purpose. It is easier to make light tones lighter and dark tones darker.

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Finally I finish the light areas of the face but without painting any highlights.I make sure that the whole face is covered with paint and that the planes are well connected to each other. I pay attention to ensuring there are no "white holes". However, I am certainly not working out details yet.

In a painting you always have active and passi-ve zones. I describe the active zone part of the portrait as the part to which the viewers atten-tion is naturally drawn. To achieve this the area is well defined and crisp. On the other hand, the passive zone should recede from the viewers attention and will tend to be both "sof-ter" with less defined edges and subtler colour values. In my portraits I almost always want to draw the maximum attention to the eyes.The mouth is the second in this order of atten-tion. As discussed the background is generally a passive zone but I nevertheless pay attention to making attractive brushwork. It is worth no-ting that I take care to ensure there is a soft connection between the background and the subjects hair, I want to avoid hard edges here!

Now that the whole face and background is painted I am able to check the relationship bet-ween colour and contrast or tonal values. I then retrace the whole portrait in the same order as I started it. First the dark areas, then the halftones and finally the highlights.

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Video part 6

Painting the light parts

Video part 7

Completing the first stageVideo part 8

Retracing the portrait

In this part I assess the details around the eyes, mouth and nose. At this point I will stand back and survey the whole painting frequently from a distance. This avoids lingering on one single detail, over-finishing one part of the painting which allows a problem to develop unnoticed.

At random I continue with the details and contrasts. Some lights must be lightened. I try to keep the whole painting in the same stage of execution.

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Video part 9

Assessing the details

Video part 10

Finishing procedure

Video part 11

Checking the transitions

Now I check all the transitions from light to dark tone and the blending of colours. I ensure I am making soft edges and crisp connections as appropriate. Variety of hard and soft edges adds interest to the painting.

I have held back a long time but now it is the right time: use pure white for the highlights of the eyes.These are the key parts in the painting that brings life to the subjects face. Dont make the dots too small, it does not work, too big makes and it looks "gimmicky".I finish the hair by adding some highlights and the odd lock of hair in the background.

This is the second day of painting.I am not happy with the background and the colour of the shirt. So I want to change it. The paint is still wet so I can easily correct that.The underlying colour blends easily with the new paint. I now make a final check of the details of the painting. The portrait is now finished and can be allowed to dry.

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Video part 12

Last highlights & background

Video part 13

Come to an end

Keep your palette clean and organized.

Fat over Lean.Fat over lean refers to the principle in oil painting of applying paint with a higher oil to pigment ratio ('fat') over paint with a lower oil to pigment ratio ('lean') to ensure a stable paint film.The system of "fat-over-lean" (or: flexible over less flexible) must be followed if a painting is built up of various layers. A following layer can only be applied once the previous layer is dry enough for them not to dissolve together.

Always work from the darks to the lights.I notice that some student are afraid of creating dark shadows. They avoid them and start with the lighter parts. I emphasize the working method: "from the darks to the lights." Keeping to that rule makes portrait painting a lot easier.

Warm-cool contrast.If you cannot identify a colour in a shadow think of this often applicable rule: Lights are cool, shadows are warm, deep shadows are hot.

Some rules of thumb

I really hope you enjoyed this demonstration and I wish you success in portrait painting.Feel free to write me at www.paintingportraittips.com

Kind regards.

Ben Lustenhouwer

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