Friday, September 9, 2011

Blog 16 Does a Landscape Painter Paint dogs?

     After a number of years spent trying to master digital painting, brushes, printing on canvas, applying accent colors and brush strokes...I am ready to begin. WHAT!
     They say it takes 10 years to truly get in the groove...to really begin to see in your work and understand others...details that the casual observer would miss.  10 years to notice what you do over and over and begin to call it your "style".  10 years to be able to identify what pictures kept you moving the brush (electronic or wet) long past bedtime.  I have a long way to go.
     I thought I only painted landscapes like this gallery http://www.strengthinperspective.com/Pictures-Oregon/BlueMountains-9/BlueMountains.html  and then...I met Wispy.
     






I totally love this dog.  No, I don't own him, I just know him.  And to know him is to love him.  He was visiting one day and along came this capture taken by my son Nick.  I thought maybe this image  could tell the world WHY he was so special.

















I removed the background and filled with a gradient fill...dark in the area of exaggerated shadow.  As always, I set up the picture as a 16X22 aspect ratio in Photoshop.
I did Wispy fur in Photoshop CS5 using a Mixer Brush...the Round Curve...with Bristles 7% Length 137%  Thickness 40%  Stiffness 50%  Angle 0   Spacing 2%.  It was a joy to sweep  his curly locks in the pattern he was born with!  I smoothed away the hair in his eyes and then made a few prominent locks of my own that crossed his eyes.
     Finally to Corel Painter for Wispy's nose.  I used Image Hose-Gravel!
     So what is my trick??  Realize that absolutely ANY project you do helps you grow...and only through a ton of practice will you get where you want to be!