( *** IF YOU DO NOT HAVE PHOTOSHOP AND A DIGITAL CAMERA, THIS GUIDE MAY NOT BE HELPFUL TO YOU ***
I recent painted a VERY large portrait (acrylic on 30x40 stretched canvas) with only a 4x6 photograph as a reference. Anyone who paints knows what a challenge it is creating a large scale piece from such a small photo with limited detail. One thing to keep in mind is that when you enlarge a small photo, it wont necessarily fit the same proportions as the large canvas. This seems like common sense, but even the most experienced artists create work that is skewed and oddly proportioned due to improper enlargement. I have seen many professionals make this very mistake.
Many Artists use various forms of graphing to map out large scale work. A very simple technique is to draw lines vertically and horizontally across the photograph, separating it into equal segments in either direction. Drawing as many or as few segments as you like. You can do this by hand of course, but In this guide I suggest using PHOTOSHOP to help you with this. You can use the LINE tool in PHOTOSHOP to draw perfectly strait lines across your photo like this:
Many Artists use various forms of graphing to map out large scale work. A very simple technique is to draw lines vertically and horizontally across the photograph, separating it into equal segments in either direction. Drawing as many or as few segments as you like. You can do this by hand of course, but In this guide I suggest using PHOTOSHOP to help you with this. You can use the LINE tool in PHOTOSHOP to draw perfectly strait lines across your photo like this:
Using this photo as a reference, you can now measure out the same grid on your canvas using a measurment tool such as a yard stick. If your plan to do a piece larger then a meter in lenth in either direction, I would suggest purchasing an industrial sized T-Square tool, trust me.....it will be a worthy investment.
This is an example of a grid on canvas:
When you have finished maping out your grid on the canvas, you can use the original photo and grid to piece together your drawing, one segment at a time. It is much easier then trying to scale out our drawing by hand. And the best part is that when you have an outline and basic details drawn out, you can take a photo of your canvas scetch, and put it on PHOTOSHOP. The benifit of doing this is the ability to morph your scetch over the original photograph, lining up the grids, and seeing how acurate your drawing is compared to the original photo.
To do this morph, pull up both pictures side by side on PHOTOSHOP, select the canvas photo and drag it over the real photo. The photos will be layered, with the canvas photo on top. On the top of the PHOTOSHOP screen, click the WINDOW tab, and select LAYERS. This will open a LAYERS tab on the side of your screen. Under the Layers tab you will see the word Opacity with a % number and slide bar. If you move that slide bar or type in a % number it will make the canvas photo transparent, reveling the real photo beneath, thus showing you how accurate your drawing was compared to the accual photo. Choose an appropriate level of transparency and then click the LAYER tap at the TOP of the PHOTOSHOP screen, and at the bottom click flatten image. This will permanently merge the two photos.
This morph allowed me to see that I had to drop the shoulders and raise the eyes, hair and jacket of my drawing. If I had not done the morph, my drawing would not have been properly proportioned. It allowed me to correct my outline before I continued my drawing, and saved me the hassel of having to redo the entire thing when I realized that it was wrong.
This morph allowed me to see that I had to drop the shoulders and raise the eyes, hair and jacket of my drawing. If I had not done the morph, my drawing would not have been properly proportioned. It allowed me to correct my outline before I continued my drawing, and saved me the hassel of having to redo the entire thing when I realized that it was wrong.
Using a Tecnique like this is quick and easy to do, and will help get you the results you want without all the guess work.
I hope that this tip is helpful. It definitly helps me with several different tasks. Good Luck!!
I hope that this tip is helpful. It definitly helps me with several different tasks. Good Luck!!
Guide created: 12/01/08 (updated 12/01/08)
Thank you for voting. If your vote meets our 
