How to Paint Beach Portraits
While anybody can hold a paint brush, it's hard to paint well. In order to paint a beach portrait the painter must already be familiar with portrait painting techniques. However, composition rules are equally important when it comes to painting a beautiful surrounding but at the same time not loosing focus of the main subject, which is in this case, a person.
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Instructions
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Paint from a photograph. Live subjects may be difficult for inexperienced artists, and in this case it would be better to use a photograph. Photographs are convenient because you can finish the painting whenever and wherever you want. However, live subjects provide a feeling of authenticity to the experience for the painter.
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Pencil a sketch before you start. Keep the sketch rough, as its only purpose is to help you determine where you want to place the model, skyline, sea and shore and how much of space each one of them will take up on the canvas. Draw it very gently to avoid it being visible after you paint over it.
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Position your subject on one side. This is the best way to make the person stand out on the painting. At the same time this type of composition will enable you to paint a beach surrounding to your subject because you will have space on the canvas to do it.
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Make the person dominant. Always keep in mind the person is your subject and the beach is there only for decoration purposes. Don't make the person too small or try to blur them too much. At the same time, don't go into too much detail with the beach.
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Paint the background last. Start with painting the person and move to the beach last. This will allow you to use the other features in your painting like the sky, umbrellas or piers, to lead and keep the viewer coming back to the focal point, which is the person you are painting.
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Tips & Warnings
If you are working with a live model, head to the beach when others avoid it. It will be much easier for you as well as the model if the beach around you is not flooded by people.
References
- Photo Credit artist image by graham tomlin from Fotolia.com
