Father's Day Commission - Father & Daughter

The profile portrait of the father is nearly completed. The hair needs more texture added both darks & lights which I have just started adding. The shadows needs to be darkened just a little and the rest of the skin blended out in some areas, especially the ear once the graphite has settled a bit.

I just love the expression on the dad's face in this once, it is worth a thousand words. I think anyone that has just become a parent can relate, it is such an amazing thing to hold your new baby and wonder who is this person!

Father's Day Commission - Daughter

The daughter is nearly completed now so I will move onto the profile of the father and come back to her again near the end. The forehead needs to be blended a bit further and the hair darkened in areas but I want to give it a chance to settle in more so as not to damage the paper. Her eyebrow now appears a tad to narrow in spots so I will touch that up as well before the next update.

It is starting to look very cool with all of the family together, the balance of lights and dark are coming out really nice in the overall piece.

Father's Day Commission - Father update

More darks have been added to the father's face and areas have been touched up and softened. The hairline will be softened more by adding wisps but that will be left until the end to keep them crisp.

I am not sure if it is due to taking the photos under indoor lighting but the transitions are really not showing up well for either the father or the son. I will take a photo tomorrow, hopefully in light as it has been raining and gloomy here and there is no end in sight!

The father's lips are still too dark I think but will wait until morning to fix. I did a few minor adjustments to the son but more are needed. His face looks dirty online but on the original the transitions are again much smoother. Will see how things shape up in the morning!

Father's Day Commission - Father update

This is an update of the father's portrait. The transitions between the dark and lights look much harsher online than on the original but still a fair bit of work is needed to darken/lighten areas. His hair is looking a little pointy and too round on the side but the darkness is getting there.

The mouths looks a little odd with the outline of lighter skin around the lips but I want to leave it to nearer the end to fill in so that I do not loose the contrast of the lips. The moustache has just been placed in for now and will be shaped shortly as will the teeth.

This is the first portrait I have done with the darker skin tones and due to the size it has been a bit of a challenge to get the darkness tonally without getting a shiny surface as so often happens with graphite. I am happy to say that I have learned a few tricks on this portrait!

Father's Day Commission - Son

The portrait of the son is nearly complete so I will move onto the father and come back near completion. The hairline needs to be softened, the chin is a bit too pointy and his right eyebrow needs a bit of work. The eyes look very dark online but in the original portrait they blend in nicely but add sharp contrast.

Father's Day Commission - Father & Son Outline

This is the rough sketch of the father with his son. There is still much to be done to bring life to the portrait. The eyes already twinkle even at this stage. The eyes are my favorite part of the portrait to draw, I used to spend hours just drawing eyes :) My teachers used to think it was a waste of time but I think it was time very well spent!

Family Portrait Commission - Sketch and Reference Photo

This is the start of my latest commission. It is a sketch of the grandparents, father and children which will be a birthday gift for the father from a very nice friend. The artwork is 15 x 19 on a sheet of 16 x 20 Arches Hot Pressed watercolor paper.

The layout took a bit of reworking both by the client and myself and I think it was well worth the effort. It has a very nice flow which draws the eye from the father around the portrait to the other family members.

As this is a larger commission, I will start with the grandparents and work my way down from right to left, top to bottom, to the kids, house & then the father to avoid smuding and keep the drawing fresh. Generally each portrait is completed to roughly 90% before moving onto the next and then final adjustments and tweaks are made at the end. Time to jump in!