Portraits and Reference Photos

People have always been one of my favorite subjects. Portraits or images of people tell a story, and I love a good story. For a long time I avoided drawing portraits because I dislike using photos for reference. Also, the photos that interested me were taken by famous photographers in Vogue magazine or by professionals online, which meant using them would be a copyright issue. But the fall of light on skin kept seducing me, and I decided to do some research about copyrights. I discovered that the one who takes the photo has the rights to it. As long as I had the permission of the model, I could also use the photo for reference to create works of art without getting sued. This meant that whether I liked it or not, if I wanted to draw portraits again, I had to learn about taking better pictures and staging my model volunteers. When I was visiting my sister, she and my nieces gave me permission to take a few shots. This model is my niece Abby, an artist herself. She chose to wear a cloak and I chose her positioning. I draped the cloth around her and told her to look serious. I had her put her hand out and hold her cloak shut. I was delighted with the outcome of the photo! I'm also mostly pleased with the drawing. But I'm not discouraged, rather I'm encouraged because this is only the beginning. With more practice the drawings will become more accurate, polished, and faster. The photos and staging ideas will come more quickly and give me more of what I need. And as my skills grow in portraits, they will grow in the other kinds of art as well. I'm a firm believer in using what you have and continually learning.