Digital portraits are a product of the computer age.
Portrait painting is a traditional genre of the fine arts. For hundreds of years the traditional media for portraits has been oil paint. In the digital age, computers and paint programs have replaced brushes, canvas and paint. Painted digital portraits are either photo-based or created from scratch, using computerized drawing and painting tools to mimic traditional effects. The same artistic skills are required to make a successful portrait when using either a computer and software or the time-honored methods and materials.
Instructions
1. Try painting a photo-based digital portrait if you have little experience in drawing and painting. Use a digital camera to take a well-lit and sharply focused picture of your subject's face. Import and store the picture on your computer's hard drive. Open a painting program such as Photoshop, Photopaint, or Pixelmator. The procedures are essentially the same for most art programs. Read the manuals for a better understanding of use the software.
2. Click on "File" from the top toolbar. Select "Open" from the pull-down menu. Open an image from your computer by clicking on the thumbnail. Click on "Effects" from the toolbar. Choose a filter such as watercolor or colored pencil. Experiment with the choices until you get the look you want. Combine different filters such as chalk or charcoal with an embossing or cross-hatching filter. Use the altered picture as the basis for your digital portrait painting, following the same steps as for a freehand portrait.
3. Try painting a digital portrait from scratch if you have the ability to capture a likeness. Click on "File" and select "New" from the menu. Pick a canvas size. Select a drawing tool such as pencil, marker or paint brush. Adjust the size of the tool to draw a thin line. Select a color from the palette. Draw your subject's portrait in outlines using your mouse. Or, use a digital pen and tablet for finely detailed work and greater accuracy.
4. Continue drawing until you're satisfied with the results. Correct your work by using a clone brush, eraser tool or by drawing over your lines using white as your selected color. Click on "Edit" from the toolbar and choose the "Undo" option from the pull-down menu to remove your last action. Follow the same procedures to correct your painting brushstrokes as the work progresses.
5. Choose a brush tool. Adjust its size, shape and transparency level. Mix your flesh-tone colors on the palette or build them up with transparent layers of color. Paint your digital portrait using traditional shading and tinting techniques. Blend your hues with a smoothing brush. Save your work in case you want to retrieve an earlier version. Use the magnification tool when working on highly detailed parts of the picture such as the eye's iris and its points of reflected light, called catch-lights. Add the accented highlights to finish your portrait.
