How to Paint a Portrait
If you have never drawn a portrait before, do as Van Gogh did: draw yourself!, Find a piece of paper that is larger than your head so your drawing will be the same size as your portrait subject, in this case yourself., Look at how the upper lid is...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: If you have never drawn a portrait before
Using a drawing paper pad, or even some xerox paper taped to a sturdy board, a conte crayon or piece of vine charcoal (a soft pencil will do, too) and a mirror, sit in front of the mirror and study your features.
Set up your working area so that there is a light coming from one side.
If you are right handed, the light should be on your left side and slightly above you. -
Step 2: do as Van Gogh did: draw yourself!
Hold your head steady while drawing.
Use your eyes, not your head, to look down at your paper.
Don't move your head from side to side.
There are several approaches artists use.
I will start with my favorite portrait artist's, Richard Schmid's: look at one of your eyes.
Study it carefully.
You will draw the eye first and work gradually out from there, comparing proportions and measuring carefully. , Is there a prominent fold above the eyeball or not? Are the eyebrows bushy or thin, arched or straight or sloped? Very lightly draw an oval on your paper that is approximately the proportion and shape of your left eye. , It's easier to draw a face the first time if you are looking straight-on to the mirror.
Most faces are fairly symmetrical but not perfectly so.
Notice the distance from the right eye to the left.
Using the width of the eye as a basic measuring unit, gauge the width of that space between the eyes and carefully draw the outline, lid and iris of the left eye, then mark the space between the eyes; then draw the outline and some detail of the right eye.
Indicate the direction and width of the eyebrows. , This will help keep your drawing symmetrical. , Make a light, short line at the bottom of the nose.
Compare the width of the eye to the width of the nose.
Make a mark on either side of your plumb line indicating the width of the nose.
Then compare the distance between the bottom of the nose and the separation of the lips.
Keep checking those proportions! Getting those proportions right is what makes a good portrait or likeness. , The ear is a very complex thing to draw, and quite unique to each person.
The top of the ear is usually somewhere around the level of the eyebrows, but again, look carefully before you draw.
Each person's face is unique! ,, Don't worry about details! When you look at someone's hair, you notice the color and shape, not the individual hairs.
It should be the same in your drawing. , Gently shade some of the darker areas to get a sense of dimension.
Work on the darkest areas first
-usually the iris.
Leave white for the curved highlight on the iris.
Notice that the eyeball is curved and that one side of the eyeball is slightly in shadow.
Look carefully at the proportion and location of the highlights. , Don't worry about lashes
- they can be gently indicated by a darker line later on. ,, That is another characteristic point of the face. ,, The lower lip casts a shadow but don't make too much of it.
Finally, indicate the shadow side of the jaw, indicate the neck and collar, with some shading on the neck to make it believable and pick out a few lights in the hair with the corner of your eraser.
You're finished! But don't stop there! Keep at it! You will only get better! , Keep doing self-portraits until it comes easily to you, then ask a friend to sit for you for an hour or so.
They can watch tv, which you can set up behind you, perhaps? Or have them read a book.
Their eyes will be looking down and not towards you, however.
Working from life is always better than working from photography, especially at the beginning.
Photography doesn't show all the detail or the subtle changes in value that are essential to a good portrait. -
Step 3: Find a piece of paper that is larger than your head so your drawing will be the same size as your portrait subject
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Step 4: in this case yourself.
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Step 5: Look at how the upper lid is in relation to the lower one.
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Step 6: Don't worry about the rest of the head
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Step 7: hair or neck for now
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Step 8: but leave room on the paper for them later.
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Step 9: Draw a very light plumb line down the center of that space between the eyes to the bottom of the chin and up to the hairline.
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Step 10: Measure your eye-width unit and compare that distance to the distance between the inside corner of one eye to the bottom of the nose.
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Step 11: Look for the width of the cheekbones and make a light mark to indicate those
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Step 12: then work sideways to the ears.
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Step 13: Indicate the character of the chin and jawbone.
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Step 14: Indicate the height and width of the hair
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Step 15: and carefully draw the outline of it
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Step 16: adding masstone in the value of lightness or darkness of the hair.
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Step 17: When you have your proportions indicated
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Step 18: look at areas of light and dark in your subject.
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Step 19: Notice the shape and proportions of the upper and lower lids of the eyes.
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Step 20: Indicate the shape of the skull and the curves of the flesh that cover it by gradually shading the sides of the face and jaw
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Step 21: the eye sockets
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Step 22: the dip in the skull above the eyes
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Step 23: then pick out some of the lighter areas in the masstones of the hair.
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Step 24: Gently shade the shadow side of the nose and try to capture the unique shape of it
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Step 25: especially the tip.
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Step 26: Notice the dip between the two halves of the upper lip and gently shade the shadow side of that and the shadow side of the upper lip
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Step 27: toward the corner of the mouth.
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Step 28: Notice the areas of light and dark on the mouth and gently shade those; then the receding area below the lower lip.
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Step 29: Don't work from photos!
Detailed Guide
Using a drawing paper pad, or even some xerox paper taped to a sturdy board, a conte crayon or piece of vine charcoal (a soft pencil will do, too) and a mirror, sit in front of the mirror and study your features.
Set up your working area so that there is a light coming from one side.
If you are right handed, the light should be on your left side and slightly above you.
Hold your head steady while drawing.
Use your eyes, not your head, to look down at your paper.
Don't move your head from side to side.
There are several approaches artists use.
I will start with my favorite portrait artist's, Richard Schmid's: look at one of your eyes.
Study it carefully.
You will draw the eye first and work gradually out from there, comparing proportions and measuring carefully. , Is there a prominent fold above the eyeball or not? Are the eyebrows bushy or thin, arched or straight or sloped? Very lightly draw an oval on your paper that is approximately the proportion and shape of your left eye. , It's easier to draw a face the first time if you are looking straight-on to the mirror.
Most faces are fairly symmetrical but not perfectly so.
Notice the distance from the right eye to the left.
Using the width of the eye as a basic measuring unit, gauge the width of that space between the eyes and carefully draw the outline, lid and iris of the left eye, then mark the space between the eyes; then draw the outline and some detail of the right eye.
Indicate the direction and width of the eyebrows. , This will help keep your drawing symmetrical. , Make a light, short line at the bottom of the nose.
Compare the width of the eye to the width of the nose.
Make a mark on either side of your plumb line indicating the width of the nose.
Then compare the distance between the bottom of the nose and the separation of the lips.
Keep checking those proportions! Getting those proportions right is what makes a good portrait or likeness. , The ear is a very complex thing to draw, and quite unique to each person.
The top of the ear is usually somewhere around the level of the eyebrows, but again, look carefully before you draw.
Each person's face is unique! ,, Don't worry about details! When you look at someone's hair, you notice the color and shape, not the individual hairs.
It should be the same in your drawing. , Gently shade some of the darker areas to get a sense of dimension.
Work on the darkest areas first
-usually the iris.
Leave white for the curved highlight on the iris.
Notice that the eyeball is curved and that one side of the eyeball is slightly in shadow.
Look carefully at the proportion and location of the highlights. , Don't worry about lashes
- they can be gently indicated by a darker line later on. ,, That is another characteristic point of the face. ,, The lower lip casts a shadow but don't make too much of it.
Finally, indicate the shadow side of the jaw, indicate the neck and collar, with some shading on the neck to make it believable and pick out a few lights in the hair with the corner of your eraser.
You're finished! But don't stop there! Keep at it! You will only get better! , Keep doing self-portraits until it comes easily to you, then ask a friend to sit for you for an hour or so.
They can watch tv, which you can set up behind you, perhaps? Or have them read a book.
Their eyes will be looking down and not towards you, however.
Working from life is always better than working from photography, especially at the beginning.
Photography doesn't show all the detail or the subtle changes in value that are essential to a good portrait.
About the Author
Jacob Brown
A passionate writer with expertise in creative arts topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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