Jerry Thomas
 

This is a painting I recently finished for a Family Friend. It was a special project since he was killed in a car crash when he was only 15 years old. Any advice to make the painting stronger would be greatly appreciated.

Close-up
 

A closer view of the face.

I think you've rendered the face well, though I wonder about the shadow on the lighted side of his face.

Was he wearing his dad's suit in the reference photo? It looks like his clothes are much too large for him. This could be symbolic of the boy who never got to grow into manhood (is that what you intended? If not, feel free to use it).

That reminds me of one of my favorite Norman Rockwell illustrations. It was made after the war. The young GI was back home in his old bedroom, surrounded by his kid stuff, and trying on his old clothes. The clothes were at least two sizes too small. I was really touched by the thought that so many young boys grew into manhood on the battlefield. The painting was lighthearted, as Rockwell's paintings tend to be, but I was touched by the imagery.

Bryan, you're doing a fine job with a very difficult photo; is it a school photo? The dark values are clumped together; establish what the darkest values in the subject are (probably hair and eyes) and work up from there. For example, the shadows around the edge of the neck ought to be somewhat lighter in value than the hair, though you may not be able to tell this from your photo. Ditto for the shadow in the left ear.

Try to build some three dimensionality in his hair by adding subtle lights and highlights where the flash hits it.

A couple of drawing points: I think that right ear might be too small. Also, the edge of the left neck edge is concave where it should be either straight or convex.

I agree with Jeff about the suit. You might try looking at another boy's class photo (similar lighting) for another suit.

Good luck with this and keep us posted. All your hard work will be treasured for years. My condolences to this boy's family.

The boy's neck appears too long to me. The knot of the tie would rest at or slightly above the hollow of the neck, and that should be about one third of a head height below the chin. Instead, the distance is at least half a head height. I read this as a long neck; I think it may have contributed to Jeff's interpretation of oversize clothing slipping down.

Thanks
 

Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. The suit was in fact his fathers'. He grew up in the Great Depression era and his family didn't have much money, so he used his dad's suit for the picture. Actually the picture I used was a 2x3 inch black and white photograph, which made it more difficult to paint. I do think that the neck is too long, now that I compare the painting to the photo. I will adapt the suggestions here to complete the portrait and to make it stronger. Again, many thanks.

Bryan

Photograph
 

Here is the reference photo used.

After reading Chuck's post, I used my "country calipers" to measure the neck. That's no illusion, The neck is definitely much longer than in the photo. But I still see the body as over-sized. The left shoulder (his right) extends much farther on the painting.

Bryan, would you consider calling this a study and starting fresh? You've done a pretty nice job here, but you could take the lessons learned on this version to perfect the final piece. This young man has such a pleasant face, I'd like to see it developed to its potential.

Bryan,

Well, I think the reference bears out some of the posted comments and concerns.

A few things:

I think you can easily

Just another couple of quick notes.

The shadow in the [what?] (the dent in the middle of the upper lip between the nose and mouth) is too dark, which is suggesting a much deeper and more angular form than is in the photo.

Also, get some (a little, not a lot) warmer color into the lips. The bottom lip looks almost white. The top lip, not in direct light, should be considerably darker in value. (I'm not saying "should" as a rule, I'm taking a reading from this particular photo in this particular lighting.)

I hope it was clear in the earlier illustration that when the shirt collar and shoulder line go up, so does the collar button and necktie knot and lapel cut and everything else.

By the way, a REAL tough job having to invent color from a monochromatic photo. But you can probably pull it off.

Nice start, Bryan. What strikes me most about the painting versus the reference photo is that he actually looks younger than you've painted him, and much of that has to do with the jawline. In the photo it looks fuller and lower than you've got it, and the chin is therefore less pronounced. I think he would look closer to the true age in the photo with those amendments. Do keep posting as you work on it. He has such an appealing face; isn't it hard to paint those posthumous commissions?

Jerry
 

Leslie and Steven,

Many thanks for all your suggestions. I will definitely take all suggestions to heart and color correct the painting in the areas suggested.

Steven,

Thanks for the color suggestions, I can see where these improvements will make the painting stronger. I will begin making these corrections this weekend and will post the corrected version at a later date.

Bryan

Jerry Thomas corrected
 

Here is the corrected painting of Jerry Thomas that I posted a couple of weeks ago with your suggestions. I think that this painting taught me alot about realing studying values and making good judgements. Any comments or suggestions on how to improve this painting would be greatly appreciated, since I'm still learning.

Looking good, Bryan. Much improved.

There are two things I'd work on, though. The shadowed side of the neck is catching too much light. It's as bright as the lit side. I find it distracting. In the photo, it goes to nearly black, which would not be appropriate in a painting, but it tells you that this area is as dark as any dark you use elsewhere.

Also, the bridge of the nose is too sharply defined. In the photo, the nose is softly rounded.

You're almost there. Nice work.

Thanks
 

Jeff,
Thanks for the suggestions. I do see what you're talking about, the neck is too light. I will adjust the values and also correct the nose. This painting has been a great learning experience for me. Hopefully one day I will be able to render a portrait as absolutely photo realistic.

Very big improvement overall.

The new background could be more effective, I think. The hue on our left is very intense. I believe you would benefit by cutting that back a little (moving away from the yellow toward the blue on the spectrum. Please note that I'm NOT saying make the background blue, just cut the intensity of the yellow-orange on our left. It's competing very strongly with the subject. As has been said by others, backgrounds should stay back.)

And I think the depth of the piece overall would be enhanced by slightly lowering the value of the background on our right (the subject's lighted side), which will increase the value contrast between the subject and the background and thereby separate them.

Very nice work on the "rebuild".

Ouch! Don't do that! Read the recent thread on Cafe Guerbois. It's not about photo reproduction. It's about capturing the essence of the person.

But let's face it, if you did make paintings that were photo realistic, there would be a market for it.

Repy to suggestion
 

Steven,

Thanks for the advice it really paid off. Actually the background value on the lighter side of the subject is darker, The camera just didn't capture it. But I do agree with you on toning down the yellow orange to a more cooler color. Again thanks for your time and comments.