Bad photo resources

[Chris Saper]

One of the biggest obstacles I see my students face in their commission work is that they start with inferior, doomed resource material.

I hear many reasons repeatedly:

"But the client insisted"
"But I needed the money"
"But that's all I had"
"But, but, but I am not responsible here"

These are all reasons to warn aforehand, that the portrait will fail, and that the artist is not responsible.

Think about it this way: If Sargent wouldn't attempt it, why in the world would any of us think we should?

[Carol Norton]

Originally Posted by Chris Saper

One of the biggest obstacles I see my students face in their commission work is that they start with inferior, doomed resource material.

I hear many reasons repeatedly:

"But the client insisted"
"But I needed the money"
"But that's all I had"
"But, but, but I am not responsible here"

These are all reasons to warn aforehand, that the portrait will fail, and that the artist is not responsible.

Think about it this way: If Sargent wouldn't attempt it, why in the world would any of us think we should?

As one of Chris's students, I confess...GUILTY! (not the "responsible part)

Part of this huge learning process is learning that a good photo does not necessarily make an effective painting. Having used bad photos and making frustrated attempts to make things up I thought I'd finally realized how to say, "No". And NOW I finally had to learn after working on a 16 x 20 portrait of two dogs that I took, that the lighting & composition worked, but that due to the colors of the two dogs, it made a poor painting. Several of the students in Chris' class discussed this topic at lunch, saying that it was very helpful for Chris to review her students' photos as she has this session, telling us which photos would make good paintings and why. One student explained that she really thought her photos were good, but didn't know until yesterday that they wouldn't make good paintings.

So, for those of you who teach, here is a great lesson: show slides of photos, explaining why they make good or bad resource material. As always, a hard and costly lesson learned this time.

Thanks, Chris, for making me chant your mantra...("I will never again paint from....")

[Steven Sweeney]

Originally Posted by Carol Norton

One student explained that she really thought her photos were good, but didn't know until yesterday that they wouldn't make good paintings.

This can be a most difficult bit of instruction to impart successfully -- that even what we generally accept as great photos may not be good reference sources for paintings. A candid assessment of the displayed photos in most professional studios would reveal that, however cute or gorgeous the subject, however accomplished the arrangement of reflectors and fill-flashes and the like, a painting based on the photo would be lacking.

I had the occasion of having to explain to a client the reasons why his favorite photograph of his young grandson would not be the best choice for a painting reference. I went through the whole value design philosophy. He essentially said that that was all very interesting, but he wanted the painting nonetheless. And he got the best little painting I could produce under those circumstances, and it paid two months' studio rent, so good came of it. The caveat is this: It no doubt helped that I knew the way in which the photograph was "deficient," so that I could, first, make my case to the client, and then make necessary adjustments. If you have not learned to "see" the problems with your photo as a reference, you won't be able to see them, either, as you very carefully transfer them to your canvas.

As a bonus, my photography results improved dramatically in every genre when I began looking through the viewfinder for the composition, value range and design, and color harmonies that I would expect to see in a painting. If I don't see those things, I don't take the picture. And when your photos do display those qualities, viewers very much notice the difference, even if they cannot quite articulate why the photos have something "extra." But you will know.

[Dianne Gardner]

Thank you for reminding us again of this crucial point. I have a few beginning students myself and cannot stand to see them struggle with poor photos. Our next class will be devoted to 'getting the reference material right'. It's amazing how painting from a good source just seems to flow on the canvas without struggle. Thanks for this thread Chris!

Dianne