Thanks Karin and Sharon,

Your points are good ones. To ignore the advice of such an accomplished pair would be folly.

Thanks for taking the time to advise. As I said, my goal was to help her give dad a nice Christmas present. But you never know, dad may be loaded and ask to have them all painted 5 by 7 feet. If that happens I'll share one with each of you. Stranger things have happened.

Mike, you take very good pictures. These ones in particular remind me of a book I purchased last December. It is published by Stoddart and features black and white photos by the famous photographer Yousuf Karsh.

I bought this book because I like to study value changes in black and white photos. Take a look at it if you ever get the chance someday...

I do love black and white. I think it's the quiet drama that it presents. I hope to do more monochromatic paintings in the future.

I think the camera is a tremendous tool which allows us to practice and experiment with composition and light.

I will look for this book, and thanks for the compliment.

Mike, I also like photo #2 best, because it minimizes the heaviness under her chin. (Another tip for minimizing fullness in that area is to photograph the subject from slightly above, and to have them lean forward somewhat.)