A week or so ago, Maryanna asked me to draw a portrait of her, much like the one you see residing to the right of this very post. I’m always looking for an opportunity to push my abilities, so I set forth. I’ve broken down the evolution of the image into intervals, saving out a jpg at key points in the process. If you’ve ever worked with Adobe Illustrator, you know that the results can often turn out flat and plastic looking if you’re not careful. I’ve made it a point in my process to fight this. I always bring the final results into Photoshop for further treatment.
You can see the progression unfold below. I start with the most basic shapes in the composition and layer on texture and detail. Maryanna, who’s a phenomenal portrait artist, helped point out a few things that could use more attention. Things like subtle shading around the lips and cheek bones, that add that extra touch of reality in the image. Such is the benefit of being in a relationship with such a talented woman! We can always give each other informed feedback.
