Now that I’ve gotten past my obsession to paint the eyes, I’ve continued on blocking in the dark areas of fur around the face. Blocking in the dark areas helps to see the form and values correctly. This is a rule of thumb I follow most of the time. However, there are always exceptions to the rule. For now, we’ll just stick with “dark to light” to keep things simple.
how I Create PET PortraitS
- Quality materials: paint, ink, canvas, paper
- Great photos of the animal
- Knowledge of my subject’s personality
- Understanding my client’s expectations
- Attention to detail
- Relying on practiced artistic techniques
- Commitment to excellence
Over the past 25 years I’ve had the pleasure of creating hundreds of portraits.
While the subjects change – the process I use never does.
I only use materials of the highest quality for my paintings, the portraits I create will last for many, many years to come.
Steps I take when I create a pet portrait:
- Prep the canvas/cut paper to size
- Sketch the subject onto the surface I’m using
- Portraits on canvas – painting the sides
- Paint the background elements
- Paint the border elements (if this style has been chosen)
- Paint the animal
- Spray the finished portrait with a matt spray varnish
- Attach hanging wire/attach double mats (to portrait on paper)
THE STAGES OF PAINTING A PORTRAIT
As you can see, I put a lot of work & effort into the creation of a pet portrait!
Please click on the boxes below to learn more about my custom pet portrait paintings
If you’ve decided that you’d like to have me create a beautiful portrait
of your favorite animal in one of my unique styles
email me – or better yet call me at 602.770.0529
to schedule your FREE portrait consultation to discuss!
Step 1 – Sketch The Dog Onto The Canvas
Below is a closeup of the sketch I started for this painting. First, I toned the canvas with acrylic yellow ochre. I skipped doing a charcoal drawing and went straight to sketching with acrylic raw umber thinned down with water. You can also tone the canvas and do your sketch with oil paints.
If you are new to painting a portrait of a dog, I would definitely sketch in the initial stage with vine charcoal, which is very easy to wipe off.
Starting the sketch using acrylic raw umber.
I used a proportional divider to help me measure key landmarks for the eyes and nose. A proportional divider is an excellent tool for beginning artists.
Step 2 – Create An Under-painting Of The Dog Portrait
Here I have the under-painting of the dog portrait roughed in which helps me establish values. It’s not looking pretty, but it doesn’t need to at this point. I’m checking my drawing against the photo for differences and make adjustments along the way.
Under-painting of dog portrait with burnt umber in acrylic
The canvas looks much lighter in the image above compared to the previous image due to changes in lighting.
Step 3 – Block In Dark Areas Of The Dog Portrait
The Dark Areas And A Detour
Step 3 is where I began using oil paint. You can paint oil over acrylics, but never the other way around. If you think of acrylic paint as “water” and oil paint as “oil”, oil floats on top of the water. If you put acrylic on top of oil, your painting will crack when it dries because oil dries slowly while acrylic dries fast. You want the fast drying paints to go on first in very thin layers t to avoid cracks.
I usually block in the dark areas first. However, I have a problem when it comes to painting portraits. A detour is usually taken as I get impatient and have to paint in the eyes as soon as possible.
Blocking in dark areas and roughing in the eyes
Eyes are magical to me in paintings and when they are painted, they make me feel like the subject has joined me in the studio. In this painting and many of my other dog portraits, the eyes end up following me wherever I go. It’s cool and a bit creepy at the same time.
