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Portrait: Breaking it down into 3 main values (Patreon)

Published:
2020-09-13 01:19:49
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

In this tutorial I show a simple approach to starting a portrait. I start with an accurate drawing and divide the face up into 3 basic shapes. Dark, midtone, and light. Then I work around the face dialing in the transitions between these shapes.   

Colors: Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Red, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Lemon, and Titanium White.   

Medium: None 

 Surface: Acrylic primed linen

Files

Previews only

Lydia Portrait: Starting a portrait by identifying dark and light shapes

In this tutorial I show a simple approach to starting a portrait. I start with an accurate drawing and divide the face up into 3 basic shapes. Dark, midtone, and light. Then I work around the face dialing in the transitions between these shapes. Colors: Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Red, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Lemon, and Titanium White. Medium: None Surface: Acrylic primed linen

Comments

Tina Sloan

great tutorial, thank you!

Ann Lenaert

Hello Chris! I am completely new here, today I co-painted this portrait but I already read a lot about the use of warm and cool colors. I miss this a bit here as it is important for the vividness of the portrait. Could you make a tutorial around that? I'm totally confused about this. thank you very much!!

Chris Fornataro
>>44056736

I understand what you are saying. The best advice I can give for warm and cool colors is to try your best to match the colors you see. If you match it exactly the warm and cool colors will take care of themselves. This is why I recommend beginners stick with a limited palette of the primaries and white. This way as you're trying to match a color you are only thinking "does this need more blue, red, or yellow? I know this may sound too simplistic but getting a strong hold on the primaries really makes a lot of other aspects of painting much easier. If you haven't watched my short cut to color mixing video it could help explain this better. I will for sure figure out a video to address the concept of warm and cool colors.

Mary Thompson

1) are you concerned with getting in trouble for copyright infringement for using celebrity photographs or movie stills (since it is the intellectual/creative property of others)? If not, why not? 2) I noticed that you left a lot of white space between the areas of differing values, especially in the first hour. Why is that? 3) Did you mean to leave spots of white canvas showing through, even around the face, even after deeming it ‘finished’? Thanks!

Chris Fornataro
>>44060410

I am not concerned with copyright. I am not selling the painting or prints of it. Copyright these days is so weird. There are tons of painters who have made very lucrative careers online just painting movie characters. If Winona Ryder emails me I'll cross that bridge lol. The white space between values is actually a sign I was painting too safe. If there's a little white it's okay. the key is to get all the major values in so you can compare them. The small white spaces at the end would be touched up if this was more than a demonstration

Mary Thompson

I wasn’t referring so only this portrait of Lydia/Winona Ryder...fair use applies to class & teaching settings. But I noticed in another video a large detailed portrait of Johnny Cash in the background, so I assumed you did a lot of celebrity portraits.

Fran Zygmunt

Hi Chris, I would really appreciate a video on mixing skin tones....it is completely baffling to me and even though it looks like you are breaking it down I just can’t get it. I’ve watched most of your portrait videos here on patreon . I am hoping you can find another way to explain skin tone mixing?