Guidance from a Professional

Original art by @jnart
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Many of us has some friend that like to draw, and some even tried to be a live model. But most of us think it is really hard to capture likeness in a few minutes. As a professional live portrait artist I have some advice for you. So let's dive into it:

Five Simple Tips to Be a Better Live Portrait Drawer

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1

Place the model so that the eyes are on a horizontal line, not tilted. It will help you to compare the eyes, nose, ears, mouth and jaw that are all parallel to some point. And then practice a fixed way to go about the face. I do left eye, right eye, nose, mouth, jaw, hairline, neck and clothes, overall correction and background.

2

Sit really close so when you look at the face of the model it turns out to be a good size on the paper so you can copy it straight onto the paper. And remember to tilt the paper so it is flat when you look at it to not screw up the perspective.

3

Imagine drawing a skull or head instead of a face, it make it easier to really see the shape turning from flat where most facial features are to really steep angles towards the side of the head.

4

Use a pen which you can draw broad strokes and thin strokes, or use two pencils. It takes too much time to render a shadow with a propelling pencil. It takes a lot of practice to draw quick. The ones shown in this post are made in 15-20 minutes. Practice to put down what you see in a few strokes.

5

Go bananas with your different pens and try everything you can. Likeness is nice but being able to go wild artistically can help you get away with a less detailed picture. A bold drawing with energy always win the price in my opinion.

So this is not all to know put hopefully something to start with for both the newbie and the skilled.

Short about JNArt: So I am alive and back in business again. I contributed a lot to Steemit a couple of months ago but had to stop due to an aching back. Boosted by my friend @reko's success I am eager to start sharing my artistic skills, contribute, co-create, level up as an artist and part time work as a crypto-artist. My aim is to have fun working for a more sustainable world. We desperately need a better system for sharing wealth and power, creating opportunities for each other and finding sustainable solutions, crypto can be one helpful tool. I decided to work half time as an illustrator and artist and the rest as a coach. To bring those two together will be fun. Really looking forward to work together with some amazing people further on. Get in touch if you need help from a professional illustrator.

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