Create an accurate portrait using these simple tips.
Painting accurate portraits can be a difficult task. Because oil paint dries slowly, it can be difficult to correct large mistakes during the painting process. The simplest way to preventing large mistakes is to get numerous accurate reference pictures of your subject, and take the time to measure and map out your subject's face.
Use a Whole Body Reference Picture
A reference picture is one of the most valuable tools in your toolbox, as an artist. Trying to paint a portrait from memory can be difficult to accomplish with accuracy, while painting a portrait using a fidgety model can be frustrating and lead to an unsuccessful finished product. Make sure that the reference picture captures the entire body or portion of the body that you would like to paint, and it is in color to help you copy accurate color tints and tones in the final portrait.
Enlarged Face Reference Picture
Along with the reference picture that may include the head and shoulders or total body of your portrait subject, create an enlarged picture of the subject's face. Creating an accurate rendering of the human face is one of the most difficult feats an oil painter can achieve. Having this enlarged picture can help you accurately duplicate elements of the subject's face that make it original.
Measure
Take measurements of the subject's face to determine the proportions. Mark up your enlarged reference picture and use a ruler to measure the width of the nose, mouth, and distance between the interior and exterior of the eyes. Taking accurate proportional measurements and using them to outline your painting can help you to avoid creating a mis-proportioned portrait that looks amateur.
Sketch
Sketch out a outline for the portrait subject's face and body. Use the dimensions you measured, along with a ruler, to create accurately proportioned facial and body features. When sketching out an outline for an oil painting, use a stick of charcoal, which you can find at any art store. Graphite pencils show through oil paint, while charcoal does not.
Flesh Tones in Oil
To create a flesh tone for your portrait, make sure you have the following oil colors on hand: titanium white, cadmium yellow light, cadmium red light, cobalt blue, yellow ochre, alizarin crimson, burnt sienna, burnt umber and ultramarine blue. Use cadmium yellow light, yellow ochre, white, and a proportionally small amount of cobalt blue to make a basic light complexion flesh tone. For darker or tan complexions, add burnt sienna and burnt umber to the mix. Gradually combine the colors, altering the proportions of the color combination until the tone matches the portrait subject's coloring. Adding cadmium red light to the mixture will make the skin look more mature, while alizarin crimson will give the skin a youthful and pale tone. To create flesh shadow color for oil paints, add a small amount of cobalt blue to your base flesh mixture and blend the combination thoroughly. To create highlighted flesh color, add a small amount of white to your base flesh mixture.
Shadowing and Highlighting Tips
Paint shadows to define and distinguish broad facial features, such as the nose, mouth and eyebrows. When you are painting, keep the light and shadow areas distinct, to avoid rounding the flesh too much and to give the face its unique shape and appearance. Make sure to highlight the cheeks and chin with warm colors to prevent the subject from looking ashen.
