Search and Rescue round 1-3

The funny thing about this goal I made for myself is that it's not difficult for me to create once a week; but it is to haul my camera in to take pictures, upload them, and then post.

It's silly, I know. So I'm late again.

I have never had a harder time laying out my initial "drawing" for a painting as I did with this one. This part usually comes pretty easy for me, there is no color to mess with, I have a decent eye and I've learned how to measure. I'm not sure if I was being overconfident or if I was just off my game, and it doesn't help that I'm not working from the greatest photo, but this sure humbled me.

The first try I didn't get a picture of. It's biggest issue was that I had made the overall face too small, and I had measured one eye wrong, and so then all other measurements made from that eye were also off. It was fixable, but I decided it wasn't worth it since I wasn't pleased with it overall.

I took the thinner and paper towels to it. Heartbreaking after 2.5 hours, I won't lie.

Try #2 seemed to be going better initially. Then I started feeling like something was off and when I stepped back to evaluate I realized the composition was a disaster. As such it was not worth saving again. Here is try #2, before the second thinner attack and a minor breakdown on my part.

Finally, after some meditation to calm myself down and sacrificing Sunday dinner, I got to here:

When I'm feeling like things are pretty good with my drawing, I like to take a photo and look at it that way,  that's what the above was for. Being disconnected from the piece for a minute helps me see my errors better.

Then I went back and finished up my under-painting/drawing. I had to put lights back in because at this point there were none left in the leather, and I also went ahead with some black on the shirt and some cool colors behind the face. Having cool colors on the canvas helps me fight my natural tendencies, and keep the warm tones on the skin under control when I start the color.