Realistic Acrylic Portrait School

Category Archives for Uncategorized

How to Trace for an Accurate Portrait Sketch

How to Trace for an Accurate Portrait Sketch

Did you know that tracing doesn’t always result in a high-quality portrait? And it won’t even guarantee an excellent sketch?

I’ll show you how to do it. Many artists trace for their portraits and paintings. It’s just the way it is. Although I spent years doing freehand sketching and got pretty good at it, As a professional artist, illustrator, and instructor, I am going to be very open with you about my methods. I DO use a projector to trace from time to time, to save time.

However… Did you know that tracing will not guarantee a great portrait? Did you know that it won’t even guarantee a great sketch? In this video, I’ll show you HOW to trace effectively. When you’re done tracing, you still have more work to do, if you want an accurate, detailed sketch that will serve you well as an excellent foundation to paint upon.

But tracing the right way will help. Let me show you how in this video. I’m using a 16″ x 20″ commissioned book cover illustration of Paul the Apostle praying as an example. I’d like to demonstrate how to trace with your acrylic portrait, so we’ll be using an overhead projector with a transparency.

It’s not cheating to trace and I have a video on that if you’re more curious about my thoughts on tracing just to say, I’ve done freehand sketching for many years, but sometimes, I just like to trace, because I want to get into the painting process without spending so much time freehand sketching or even gridding.

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to trace for an accurate portrait sketch.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

 

Adding Raw Umber Dark and Ultramarine Blue to Battle Scene Painting

Adding Raw Umber Dark and Ultramarine Blue to Battle Scene Painting

I am working on the 30 x 40 battle scene of Moses, Aaron and Hur again and I’m adding some raw umber dark and ultramarine blue glazes.

Also, I’m talking about going through trials and difficulties and how prayer can make a difference. Watch over my shoulder as I paint and I hope this helps and encourages you! I’m going to demonstrate you how I make my paintings using the acrylic glazing technique.

I’m going to take some raw umber dark here and some ultramarine blue, and we’re just going to start darkening the values here, as you can see. I’m not sure, I might even put a glaze or something over the whole thing to really convey that essence. To convey the essence of light emerging from darkness, I’ve been going over some of Caravaggio’s paintings and studying his technique, as well as seeing how he did more of a sepia toned background.

Watch the video below to learn more about adding raw umber dark and ultramarine blue to battle scene painting.

LEARN MORE:

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

 

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

 

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

How to Make Your Own Raw Umber Dark

How to Make Your Own Raw Umber Dark

Raw umber dark is my favorite color. In this video, I’ll show you how to make your own.

It’s a wonderful pigment for creating rich, dark values, shadows and skin tones in your acrylic portrait. But, to my knowledge, you can only buy it at Nova Color. So, many artists following my method don’t have this color to use. However, I will show you how to mix your own using a few colors you should have on hand.

Let me know how this helps! I teach the classical or at least the pseudo-classical acrylic glazing technique you know that I love my raw umber dark. I don’t know what I would do without raw umber dark it’s like the chocolate and peanut butter part of my painting. I mean I’ve got to have it I went without real amber dark for a little while or pretty close to going without rob or dark because I ordered a bunch of paint from nova color.

It’s a completely different color, and I don’t know what I’d do without my raw umber dark, I figured, hey, there’s a lot of people who watch my videos, and a lot of students overseas who can’t buy raw umber dark because it appears to be only manufactured by nova color, and that’s where I order all of my paints from, but a lot of people overseas can’t get it.

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to make your own raw umber dark.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

 

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

Use this Secret Color to Paint Vibrant Reds in Your Acrylic Portrait

Use this Secret Color to Paint Vibrant Reds in Your Acrylic Portrait

 Did you know there’s a certain color you can add to your reds to make it more vibrant as you paint in acrylic?

In this video, using my 24 x 30 acrylic portrait of 30 people as an example, I’ll show you what the color is and how to apply it. It will make your reds pop!

Watch my tutorial to learn more on how to use the secret color to paint vibrant reds in your acrylic portrait.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

 

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

How to Paint White Clothing in Your Acrylic Portrait

How to Paint White Clothing in Your Acrylic Portrait

Painting clothing can be tricky, especially when the color is white.

How do you make it look realistic? What shadows do you use? Let me show you in this brief video tutorial, using my commissioned 24 x 30 acrylic portrait of 30 people as an example!

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to paint white clothing in your acrylic portrait.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

 

How to Easily Transition from a Sketch to a Painting

How to Easily Transition from a Sketch to a Painting

Once they apply paint, many artists struggle with losing proportions and likeness in their sketch. I want to help you with that.

If you’re new to the acrylic glazing technique or have never heard of it before, let me introduce you to it. I’ll show you how to use it to slowly, predictably transition from your sketch into a painting. Without the frustration! This video is about how to make the transition from a sketch to a painting look realistic. It features step-by-step instructions and techniques that are helpful for beginner and experienced artists alike.

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to easily transition from a sketch to a painting.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

 

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

 

Building Up Color on an Acrylic Pet Portrait

Building Up Color on an Acrylic Pet Portrait

 Ever wonder how you to paint rich color tones in the fur of a pet portrait and make it look real?

I’ll show you how to Building Up Color on an Acrylic Pet Portrait, using the acrylic glazing technique.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

 

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

How to Paint Dark Clothing Using the Acrylic Glazing Technique

How to Paint Dark Clothing Using the Acrylic Glazing Technique

How do you paint dark clothing with glazing technique?

I’m working on this 24 x 30 acrylic portrait of 30 people again, and in this video, I show you how to paint dark clothing using the acrylic glazing technique. With the acrylic glazing technique, we mix a little bit of paint into a large quantity of matte medium, and apply many translucent layers. This allows for more blending, depth, and helps you to not lose the likeness from your sketch. Now, this is just one step of many, so please subscribe to this channel so you see the entire process as it unfolds!

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to paint dark clothing using the acrylic glazing technique.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

Painting a 24 x 30 acrylic with 30 people

How do I apply the first skin tone layer using acrylic glazing?

In this video real-time portrait painting demonstration, I begin a 24″ x 30″ acrylic portrait with 30 people in it! This is a commission, and it features full-length figures with an immense amount of detail to capture. I am painting this on hardboard so I can get in the fine shading and nuances, especially on the faces. I use a modified version of the classical glazing technique. It allows you to capture a lot of detail and blend smoothly, with precision. Watch over my shoulder as I paint! I hope this helps you learn new techniques you can apply to your portrait. Be blessed!

Portrait painters know that it’s not easy to paint realistic skin tones. In acrylic, this is especially true. But what if there was a way where you didn’t have to have a perfect recipe or make it all happen in one shot? What if you could slowly, but predictably build up skin tones one layer at a time? And what if you could do it without losing your likeness in the sketch? That’s what I am going to show you today.

Now, this is just the start. But it’s a very good start. I’ll demonstate, real-time, in this 24 x 30 acrylic portrait of 30 people, how I am putting in the FIRST layer of skin tone color, using the acrylic glazing technique. What is the acrylic glazing technique? Watch over my shoulder in this video tutorial, and I’ll show you.

Back to that 24 x 30 acrylic portrait again! This time, I’m showing you how to block in the color for the hair. We’re using the acrylic glazing technique, where we mix a little bit of paint into a large amount of clear acrylic matte medium, and create blending with many faint layers.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

How to Sketch an Acrylic Portrait with a Grid

How to Sketch an Acrylic Portrait with a Grid

How do you sketch in you acrylic with a grid?

 

Watch my tutorial to learn more about how to sketch an acrylic portrait with a grid.

LEARN MORE

Read more about how to paint a portrait that you can surely be proud of!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this video. Please share it with your friends and family. Let me know if you have any further questions. I’ll greatly help you.

If you’d like to learn more, sign up for my free email tips and video class today.

Learn How to Paint Acrylic Portraits With My Free Mini-Video Course!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this tutorial and watch the video. That means a lot to me.  I hope you find it very helpful in your portrait painting.  

 

Yours for Better Portraits,

Signature_200dpi_sm.jpg

P.S. Did you find this post helpful or encouraging? If so, send it on ahead! Let others know with the share buttons below. I’d love to hear your comments. Thank you so much! Also, do you have a question on acrylic portrait painting you’d like answered? Let me know, and I’d be happy to help!

 

 

 

1 2 3 4