My daughter will be graduating next summer, and one of the things she asked for was a portrait painting—something personal and handmade to mark this milestone.
I started by taking several photos of her near our pond. A full-frontal shot didn’t feel right for the portrait I had in mind. Instead, a slight profile caught my eye. That angle offered richer shadows and a more interesting play of light—perfect for bringing depth into the painting.
Before transferring anything to canvas, I brought the photo into Photoshop. I enhanced the colors in her hair and skin and made her eyes a little more vivid, giving the reference image the life I plan to capture in paint.
To make sure the proportions stayed accurate—and to save a lot of time—I printed the reference as four separate 8×10 images and pieced them together like a puzzle. My canvas for this project is 16×20, so this method helped me scale everything precisely.
I love to sketch, but I’m not as accurate as I’d like to be. Some artists consider tracing or projecting an image “cheating,” but I see it as a practical tool. In the future, I’d love to invest in a projector so I don’t have to keep cutting, taping, and assembling large photo grids just to get the right image. Efficiency lets me put more energy into the actual painting—where the real magic happens.
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| Sketch on a 16x20 canvas |
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| Four 8x10 photos stitched |
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