How I paint portraits
Recently, I received several comments which suggested that I took "heads from pictures and then ran them through filters." and possibly "stole the bodies too." Now I was annoyed, and the matter has been dealt with, but I would like to set the record straight. There are people who are justly proud of their photomanipulation and photoshop skill, but
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Comments 37
There is such a strange complex around fanartists and photo references online. It's one of those 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' situations, depending on who is seeing (and judging) your art. But again, I'm glad you took the unwarranted accusations in stride and only came out looking even more skilled and and gracious.
<3
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I enjoy looking at tutorials and find artist's works in progress fascinating, too. Plus, next time someone asks how on earth I did this, I have something to show them. *g*
I've almost only been in TV & movie fandoms, was around during the zine era, and I hadn't come across the concept that using references=copying=bad, until the last year or so. It was a surprise to find that attitude. I always had the (fannish) impression that using photo references was simply a choice based on personal artistic style (for certain styles they are purely optional, for certain styles they are very useful, and for photorealism they were essential unless you had a photographic memory).
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As an aside I visited Drew Struzan's web gallery recently and had a bit of an artistic epiphany (and then felt silly not to have realised sooner since I used to have several of his posters on my walls *g*). His is the style I most often see in my head when I picture how I want a painting to look. My own style is different, (and probably looks nothing AT ALL like his) but that is what I've been unconciously aiming for. Suddenly the black outlines and the cartoony realism, the colours etc make more sense!
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I just looked up the Chuck poster- its so cute, and very 80s.
That whole issue where some people think using references is copying, and therefore somehow cheating, surprises me, too, though I guess that one leaks across from (internet) art theft or using art or photos etc without attribution. It is tied into the whole misunderstanding about use of references, though.
People have odd ideas about various art styles. I'm guessing there are whole swathes of misconceptions about cartoon style art, too.
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I hope its clear from the post that the only thing which annoyed me was the implication of lying (well, and a little for the way the comments were expressed). I admire all kinds of graphic art, photo manipulations and paintovers. I've always been in TV based fandoms where the attitude to graphic art, collages, manipulation and paintovers was the same as for paintings and drawings ("ooh, pretty!).
Yes, I can definitely see a point with commercial art and with giving proper credit, but some people's attitudes to using references (that it's somehow cheating - whut?), and fannish use of promo pictures and screen caps etc is surprising.
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Yes, I'm treating it as a slightly twisted compliment - and a bit funny, because I truly can't do any decent Photoshop manipulations. The ONLY way I can do this is by painting. *g*
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