If you want to paint someone's portrait, you will find it to be a very specific project as you are trying to capture the essence of someone specific. The technique and the style of how you present the subject matters a lot in your painting and should therefore not be distorted or incomprehensible. Learning how to paint portraits would mean a different curriculum than painting abstract or landscapes, so it is important that you know certain tips and techniques so that you have an idea on what to do and how to make your portrait the best it can be. A lot can be accomplished with just a handful of cheap modern art supplies and a vision of what you want.
Looking at the Person...
Creating a likeness of someone entails looking at them closely to discover the traits that make them special. It's crucial that you have honed your ability to carefully study your subject because your task will now be to push and pull the paint until you capture a live person in paint. Some particulars about a person's appearance are really unnecessary to include. There is no point in trying to dot every freckle into the work. Certain aspects of the way people look tend to strike us immediately. This is what you want to capture in your painting.
People Painting...
A lot of art students who learn to do portraits, whether with an oil or acrylic based paint set, have a problem with the skin of the subject. Not only that, they have to learn how to paint using light and shadow to really bring out the beauty of their subject. People are featured in several colors. That is why there isn't one way to mix paint together and get the proper tone, and also what makes this a sticking point for those just starting out in portraiture. The answer to this is simple trial and error until you come across just the right mix to match your subject's pigmentation. Other aspects of a person that can take time to get right are areas such as the ears or the upper part of the nose. The only cure for these roadblocks is, once again, constant experimentation until you get to the point where you are comfortable enough to develop your very own way of capturing delicate features.
Leave the Backgrounds in the Back...
The person you are painting could have too much going on behind her. If you want to feature a background in your portrait, try not to throw-in a jumble of things happening, as this will only serve to make the viewer focus on things that you don't want them to. What you can do in addition to this is to craft the colors that surround the person with the goal in mind of highlighting him. Just like in photography, if you know how to use light and shadow, your portraits will definitely have a much stronger effect on people than a portrait that is plainly the way it is with no touch of light whatsoever. Making this real impact on a viewer is what every artist strives to achieve, no matter what the chosen subject may be. It's what makes creative endeavors so rewarding. Where else can you achieve such a response using nothing more than a quality cheap stretched canvas and a handful of other low-cost supplies.
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