[spyroteknik]

oil on 10" x 14" canvas

My first real painting (non digital), i was pretty surprised at how the transition went, there's not that much of a difference between the way i do stuff digitally and this, took a bit of adapting to it of course but i was quite pleased that i could make something half decent on my first attempt, painted from memory, i don't have a mirror upstairs and i wanted to see what i could come up with without reference, it actually looks like me hehe

any comments/tips in this medium are greatly appreciated as i'm incredibly new to traditional stuff

[fukifino]

Well, I'm certainly impressed.

[Ylla]

did you do this all in one sitting? dry-brush? it's very good for a first try.

oil is the kind of paint that usually produces better results if you come back every couple of days, after it dries, and continue, instead of all in one go.

also, the face looks kind of flat. the parts that face the front are all very close in value and then at the edges it quickly turns away, but things don't come forward. like the nose for example.
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[spyroteknik]

thanks guys, i did it over about 2 weeks, a little at a time, scrubbing the paint in thinly with a fine hog detail brush then letting it form a skin overnight before attacking it again, and yep, i know what you mean, i'm so used to subdued colour shemes when i do digital stuff but i'm not sure it works with oils (think i should use the richness of the medium next time), also working from memory hasn't helped on lighting and depth, i can definately see the flatness now, it doesn't show up as bad on the canvas so i hadn't noticed while painting (the scan is a bit dodgy but it's still no excuse hehe), i'll definately use refs or from life in future for portraits, was really just a test of the paints to see if i could blend with them as i've never touched a real paintbrush before (apart from a bad experience with the demonspawn watercolour). I'd like to know whether working really thinly with the paint is a good method or should i be concentrating more on building depth and slapping it on impasto style, the foremost more suits my style but i'm not sure if it's the way to go.

[xheadinthecloudx]

Spyro, you might want to invest in a small bottle of liquin next time. It REALLY increases drying time, but it allows you to make very thin, muted washes. Using either that or linseed oil will allow you to thin the paint, muting it a bit and making it more workable. I prefer liquin though. Not sure why.

That said, that's what worked for me... I had to make several experiments before I got the hang of it.

One of the great things about oil though, is that you can build a ton of depth with it... you should definitely try it just to see what happens.
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