Portraits from Photographs

[Albacore]

I started doing this at work when customers started asking for potraits from small photo's i we did it in PS with reasonable sucess. I then thought how about doing this in AI with a decent background and it would be quicker and the resulting drawing would be more pertinent to the subject and in most cases more artistic. The drawing took longer to complete and not ecconomical to do so I thought about doing it in Xara.

This is the third one I have done in xara and they are getting quicker but to get a decent return from the customer and profit I need to get it down to 1 hour so that's why it is nearly a cartoon in style. The style needs a bit more work done to it and maybe the eyes need a bit more work but it is nearly there.

The photo starts in PS where they are very quickly Desaturated, then a duplicate layer is inverted and a blending colour dodge is done to that layer along with a gaussian blurr and then finally the levels are adjusted to the right. this only takes minutes because of shortcuts and it is then imported into Xara to be traced. the tracing is very crude on the highlights but time is money and so long as the finshed out come is nearly like the photo the customers so far have been happy. The one that I do in AI take normally twice the time that the Xara ones take although the brush styles in AI are much better to use and more convincing.

I wish from my experience when doing this is for "ClipView" not to destroy the layers as you have to save one copy of the drawing without clipview and then one with, just in case that you want to edit it still in the layers.

[ZEBtoonz]

I was very glad to see this post as I had been contemplating doing the very same thing for an upcoming project. I need to do caricatures of some people and had thought of using photos for the basis of my drawing. My thought was to put the photo on one layer, lighten it by making applying a flat transparency, and then drawing over it on another layer.

Can you more fully describe your PS process?

"The photo starts in PS where they are very quickly Desaturated, then a duplicate layer is inverted and a blending colour dodge is done to that layer along with a gaussian blurr and then finally the levels are adjusted to the right."

Thanks! I had also thought of possibly using some sort of distortion filter, like KPT Goo, to exaggerate the proportions a bit. Or, after the lines are done in Xtreme, shrink and enlarge the different parts to acheive a more comic look.

Can you post other examples of your portraits for inspiration?

[-=Drifter=-]

Wow! That is really cool!

[Ron Duke]

Albacore,
Actually, I think the eyes are the best part of the drawing right now. Very well done.
ron

[Logo Kid]

Here's my last two - they were done from Photos - one was of Robert Wyatt when I went on my Pilgrimage to see him and the other was when I caught Damo Suzuki (ex Can Singer) before a sound check at the Spitz.

If you don't know who either are then shame on your musical knowledge!

[parahandy]

Excellent work from both of you. especially like the hair and eyes Logokid
I wish I could draw noses like that as well.

norman.

[-=Drifter=-]

Yes, those are MOST EXCELLENT!!! GOOD JOB!!!

[jamesmc]

Excellent artwork Logo! I like the choice of shading you used.

Hmmm, my shame meter hasn't moved. I still don't recollect who this musicians are. Perhaps they don't visit the middle United States often?

[Seagull]

Hey Logo Kid

Really hurting myself doing this but I'm giving you three, yes three thumbs up, all at the same time. My chiro is going to love this. Keep posting if you can, your work is really fantastic.

P.S. I am shamed but proud of it....who are them

[ankhor]

Here's my last two - they were done from Photos - one was of Robert Wyatt when I went on my Pilgrimage to see him and the other was when I caught Damo Suzuki (ex Can Singer) before a sound check at the Spitz.

If you don't know who either are then shame on your musical knowledge!

Do you know how many musical styles there are, and how many bands?

But still, the artwork is outstanding, I like the second one the best however.