Portrait Drawing Techniques...Pastel 2

The quest to conquer pastel portraits continues! I found an amazing product image in a fellow Etsian's shop and she gave me permission to use this gorgeous product photo.

This practice portrait is on grey mat board, so it is a very smooth surface. I liked working on the medium grey - one of my favorite colors - because I can use lighter and darker colors on the surface - and with the beautiful bright light that is so crucial to the feel of this photo, I wanted to be able to emphasize that glow - I don't think a white background would have been as successful.

Anyway...I still feel like I am getting to know my pastels - each one - whether is is a hard Nupastel or a regular soft pastel - has such a different texture and feel to it. Some are very dense and don't lay on a lot of colors, others are so soft you can hardly control how much layers on the page.

I am learning more about succesful layering - this time I started much lighter with my sketch, so I didn't feel like I was fighting my initial sketch thru the whole drawing. I love when two very different colors work so well in layers - a cranberry under a sap green gives a beautiful glow to the shadowy side of the face.

Anyway...I am enjoying the challenge and LOVING the hunt for inspiration photos on Etsy!

This fabulous photo and scarf is from http://bymariannes.etsy.com/. Thank you for the inspiration!

Oh...and I wasn't alone in my studio today...Jack was hard at work on a watercolor!