Artists who, using paint or pencil, can convey on paper a reliable portrait, indistinguishable from their real prototype, seem to many people of incomprehensible skill. In fact, if you make an effort, you can also draw a realistic portrait - for this you need to have some idea of how a person's face works, as well as the technique and techniques of painting and graphics.
Instructions
Step 1
When creating a portrait, you first work on the composition, then on the drawing, and lastly on the painting.
Step 2
Any artist's work should always begin with the elaboration of the composition. Think about how the lighting of the model with which you will paint the portrait should be; in what perspective will her face be; whether the shoulders will be visible in the portrait; in what position the model's hands will be - it is important to determine all these parameters in advance so that there is already a mental portrait that you want to draw in front of your eyes.
Step 3
All details and subtleties of the portrait must be harmoniously combined and obey the overall composition. Consider linear and aerial perspective to add dimension and realism to your portrait. You will lay a linear perspective at the drawing stage, and an air one at the stage of working with paints and a brush.
Step 4
It is also worth considering the future background of your portrait, in which you can use various artistic techniques that complement the general atmosphere of the picture (contrasts, play of light and shadow, contours, color spots, and more).
Step 5
Once you've thought about the composition, start sketching the model graphically. When drawing the head, neck and chest of a person, be guided by the location of the cavity between the collarbones - determine the location of this cavity and draw an auxiliary vertical line through it, from which the rest of the drawing elements will be built. Also focus on the position of the chin in relation to the hollow and vertical axis, and on the position of the ears.
Step 6
After that, determine the position of the bridge of the nose and the base of the nose, from which you can build all the other fragments of the face - the nose, mouth and eyes.
Step 7
In the construction of the head, mark the vertical and horizontal lines passing through the point of the bridge of the nose. Mark the location of the eye sockets, the width of the face, hairline, cheekbones, and other elements.
Step 8
Remember the proportions - the height of the face is three quarters of the height of the head as a whole. At eye level, the width of the face is two-thirds of the height of the head. Draw the eyes on the bridge of the nose, exactly between the crown of the head and the tip of the chin.
Step 9
The width of each eye in proportion is one-fifth of the total width of the head, and the distance between the eyes is equal to one eye. The base of the nose should match the width of the eye. Draw the ears on the midline between the face and the back of the head.
Step 10
Draw the upper edge of the ear at the highest point of the eyebrow. The neck should be half the width of the head. When drawing the head, depict the planes - this is an egg-shaped oval (face), a trapezoidal prism (nose), a spherical shape (eyes). Observe symmetry when drawing eyes and ears. They must be exactly the same.
Step 11
After the drawing is created, modify it in a painting technique, highlighting the most important thing - the emotions and beauty of the drawn person, using different painting techniques and different textures of strokes and paints.
Step 12
Transfer the drawing to the canvas, underpaint with warm pastel shades, outline the main hair color, and then outline the main fragments of the shadow, partial shade and light spots. Start drawing the face with larger and more general shapes, and end with working out small details.
