Another attempt at my first posting
 

After my first attempt to upload my jpg I have made several changes and have now successfully attached the image. So, again I am asking for a more unbiased and educated comments concerning my portrait of Dr. Kevin Watson. It has been delivered and he along with his entire family were quite pleased.

Thanks for your comments and patience in finding my first posting.

John,

Did you use a polarizer on your lens when you photographed this oil? Some of the details seem washed out, especially in the blue suit.

That said, I find the portrait well designed and the various elements, ie. books, picture quite elegantly balanced. The pose is appropriate,relaxed and the shape of the suit is nicely done.

Some minor points, I would have liked to see some more variation and richness in the color. The background could have use more light to dark ratio to create some drama, with a darker yellow behind the light of the face, the reverse of what you have, to emphasize the light side of the face and give it more form. The skin-tones need some more richness as well, something that could be solved by a quick on site color study from life. The eyes are a bit strong and could use some softening. I would have liked to see some depth in the folds of the suit but that maybe the problem with your image. The shoulders need some smoothing out and more attention could be paid to the drawing in the neck and collar area.

These are not glaring and do not diminish this commendable portrait, which you should be proud of and your client deservedly happy with.

Thank you, Sharon. I feel as if I need help in photographing my paintings in addition to the paintings themselves. The suit is actually a very dark black and it shows some reflection of the varnish. That may be the polarizing effect you are seeing.

Also the picture appears flat compared to the painting. I tried to correct this but it affected the lighter areas too much so I settled on a medium contrast.

I have adjusted it and attached for your reference.

Thanks again for taking your time to respond. I appreciate it.

Welcome to the Forum, John! We're looking forward to your participation here.

I especially like the hands and the reflections of the fingers on the polished table.

Dear John,

You have delivered a very successful painting. Of course it would be well received!

I have very few comments beyond what has already been mentioned, and they have to do with edges, focal point and eye patterns of the viewer. The strong red note in the tie is very effective as a directional element to the face. The hands are beautifully rendered. That being said, the fact that the hands, at least on my monitor, represent the area of sharpest edge and greatest contrast, makes them compete with the face for the center of interest.

I love the design of the diploma's placement, as well as the bookcase acting as a compositional vertical element. Given that, my immediate impression is that the value of the yellow row of books is perhaps lighter and more saturated than it might be in order to subordinate the bookcase in the overall design.

Of course, with such an accomplished painting, most of your critique comments will be on miniscule details. Congratulations!

Hi John,

I'm blown away by the progress you've made in the last year and a half. This is a very fine painting and I'm glad to see your clients were thrilled to receive this.

If I had to change one thing, I feel the diploma is too light and therefore comes too far forward, even though in reality it is white. I would have lowered the value of the white and added a trace of the wallpaper color to pull it back. I would have grayed down the blue mat as well. Just nitpicking really, but you asked.

Hi John!

How have you been? It's wonderful to hear from you. Your painting is very nice, your client should have been happy indeed. You've received some excellent comments on it as well. I hope to hear much more from you in the future!

Cheers,

Holly

Thanks everyone for your encouraging words and the criticism. You're right, Marvin, I did ask for them and I take them seriously. I kept hearing your voice when I worked throughout the painting, especially the background. The diploma is a very important element for my client and the blue mat is the school's color, although somewhat taken down a bit. I was afraid to go too far.

Holly, I haven't taken much time to visit the forum but I did discover some postings of yours and I'm glad to see you are still active and enjoy seeing your work. It's very nice. My hope is that I'm around for a long time.

Again, thanks to all.

Hello again John!

It's so very nice to see your smiling face and this beautiful portrait. I also think the hands are wonderful and your soft colorings look very good (the values) together. One reason I don't post my paintings here is still the dreaded horrible jpeg issue. I cannot get it right still!

Congratulations on a beautiful painting and hope to see you again.

Denise

Hi Denise,

It's good to hear from you.

I was recently told that a gif file looks better than a jpg and I will try that next.

Thanks for your nice comments.

Hope to run into you again.

John