Child's photo

Marvin Mattelson · 12-31-2002, 01:57 AM

Jean,

I think a common mistake that artists on this site seem to make is that they confuse a good photo with a good reference photo.

When we paint we are trying to recreate what the eye perceives, a 3-D reality. Our eyes are able to see tonal variation in the lights as well as in the shadows. When looking at photos we can excuse the lack of highlight and/or shadow detail because we are looking at something that we know is flat (a photo).

I think that the lack of highlight detail and shadow detail will be a big handicap if you want to create a good painting from any of your photos.

I think the reason so many artists need to work from life is because they are incapable of taking good photo reference. Obviously working from life is always preferred since no photo can recreate human vision exactly, but in order to be a portrait artist today this isn't always practical.

It's not enough to just be able to draw and paint well these days but also to master photo and computer skills as well.

I know Karin is doing a photo demo in Connecticut in February with the CSOPA and I will be leading a one day photo workshop on January 29th in conjunction with the Portrait Society of Atlanta.