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Photo Uploading 

What makes a good photo for a portrait painting?

Uploading your photos may leave you with a lot of questions.  Like, what makes a good photo?  Below are some good and bad examples of what makes a good photo for me to paint from.  You do not have to be a professional photographer to send me a photo I can use, However you do have to follow these simple rules.

Ellis_CORSE_2017.jpg
Not So Good

This photo reference is not so good. True the photo was taken out doors and at a 3/4 view but the reason this photo doesn't work well is because the eyes are squinting, his mouth is open, and his face is more in shadow than in light.

Squinting is Not Good

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Good Idea

Seat the subject in front of a window and snap a photo. The lighting will be good and the person's face will relax as they observe the world outside.

Face Of Observation

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IMG_4768.jpg
Good Photo

A serious expression is exactly what I am looking for as a painter. You may not consider this a good photo, and it may be low resolution but there is a distinction between light and shadow which helps when painting facial features.

Serious is Good

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Click on the images to find out what makes these good, or not so good.

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