Speed painting from direct reference, process and tips.
(note - the only brush I'm using is the hard round with default presets, It varies in diameter and opacity only)
1-2
I only use 2 layers on a speed paint, one for background and one for the unfortunate muggle I'm going to paint.
Never start your painting on a white background. You will be amazed at the difference this makes to the speed of the over all painting. I Try to choose a mid tone that fits the mood or is dominant in the piece I'm trying to paint.
Next, Get yourself a small palette together of the most prevalent hues that you can see within your chosen reference material. Usually I'll take a big hard round brush and make some loose bold marks to get the rough layout and composition together.
Once you're happy everything's kind of in the right place, take a smaller brush and begin to better define the initial shapes.
3-4
Once I have a basic idea of what's going where, I'll usually start mapping the face in more detail first. When it comes to a speed portrait at least, the likeness is the most important bit to get right. The other details can work around it once you've nailed the face. Because it's a speed paint, try not to labour over all the tiny details straight away, you can refine later.
5-7
Once you're happy with the face you can start adjusting the proportion of the other elements to fit properly. I usually pan out from the painting at this point. It's too easy to get involved in details rather than proportion when you are working up close. You can get in closer once you're happy with where everything is.
8.
This is when I will go over the piece and tidy up, zoom in and add detail and adjust the levels if if I need too. Just tweaking Shadows, mids and Highlights ever so slightly.
then I'll Flatten and add sig :)
I know that wasn't crazy in depth and I'm sure I've missed loads of information out but I hope it helps a little bit ;) My ask box is always open if I've missed something you wanted to know ;)
