Week 8 - Progress 3: Vast Improvements

Another two-ish hours was spent on this last night after my journal entry, and I spent a few more on it today. Hopefully this is the last time I'll have to move either eye, because I was pleased enough to add the irises and pupils, etc. Mom was right, it looked a bit... creepy... before.

I think I'm mostly done with the skin shading. Not so sure on the hair but I'm almost done. I can feel it.Also trying to decide on a background color/texture. Also, the hair should be wavier. Dad had natural curls, which he passed down to me and my brother.

Music: Some Hanson again, but today watched "The Jungle Book" while working as well.

Week 8 - Progress 2: Subtle Improvements

I was kind of kicking myself after reading yesterday's feedback (and thank you all for that, really), realizing that I'd forgotten more about facial anatomy than I'd thought. I am working from a photo (sort of), but yesterday I didn't have it propped up right beside my computer screen like I did today. I think it helped a lot.

Since working on the nose without a solid outline was messing me up, I added a temporary one to serve as a guide for the lighting. It will be erased for the final image, but it's helping a great deal. I also re-did the eyes completely, but something about the left one still bothers me.

It was nice to finally start blending the shadows so it doesn't completely look like some weird "paint by number" thing anymore. Hopefully tomorrow I can at least start adding hair. My dad was balding, but in the back, not the front.

Music: Hanson, again, mostly the song "With You In Your Dreams"

Week 8 - Progress 1: Huge Undertaking

Even as I upload the first progress on this, I'm in the "what was I thinking?!" phase of it. I'm not only trying to digitally paint a portrait, but one of someone that I've never managed to get on paper without disappointing myself; my father.

So far, attempting to accomplish it digitally is working better, as mistakes are taken care of with a simple "CTRL + Z" command. But still, with three hours of work down and several more to go it looks really odd and I'm asking myself if I can really finally do it.

Already I'm seeing that the eyes are uneven and scratching my head as to how to make hair look realistic. Cartoon hair I can do in color. Human hair I can do with graphite or grayscale media. But human hair in color? Already dreading it.

Music: Hanson album "Middle of Nowhere" (...I owned the cassette thanks to my dad. Don't look at me like that.)