How can you put a limit on learning more? The next section may contain that one little bit of wisdom that changes everything.
Create a setting
You can have some of the most fabulous backgrounds to make your dog portrait look even more spectacular. If your dog’s fur is on the lighter color side, try having a darker colored background. You could have an old fashioned brown log house in the background of the oil painting replete with a nice well and lush green countryside! Or else you could ask your portrait artist to suggest what will look best.
Editing
You can also choose to edit portions of an existing photograph of your dog. This way you can erase out any imperfections. For example you may find that the eyes are not so perfect in the photo. You can ask the expert in the photography studio to correct these flaws using photo editing software. What’s more, you can easily use many of the freely available royalty free backgrounds for your dog portrait. These look fabulous and are categorized based on specific themes.
The final picture
If you want a certain look and theme to your dog portrait you can easily accomplish it these days. Using various photo editing tools you can erase paws, tail or parts of the dog you don’t want in the oil painting. You could even choose to do some research on the Internet to find out which pose looks best for your dog. What’s more, the final outcome maybe so good that it maybe a masterpiece suitable for decorating an art gallery!
Multiple colors
If you have many dogs and wish to put them all together in your dog portrait you need to balance the various colors of their furs. Try using a background which is contrasting to their colors. This will highlight their color much better against the background of the oil painting.
If you've picked some pointers about oil paintings that you can put into action, then by all means, do so. You won't really be able to gain any benefits from your new knowledge if you don't use it.
My personal preference is to begin my oil paintings by first sketching out the composition using acrylic paint or with water-soluble oil paints. The popular approach to oil painting is to thin the paint with turpentine to apply your initial layers. Turpentine is quite toxic and I prefer not to work with it. Acrylic or water-soluble oil paints can be thinned down with plain old water and are more pleasant to work with in my opinion.
You can also begin your oil painting by first drawing out your composition. There are a few drawing mediums that work quite nicely with oil paints. My two favorites are vine charcoal and water-soluble pencils. I prefer vine charcoal because it doesn't smudge like other charcoals and it can be erased easier. Water-soluble pencils are wonderful because they can be applied like ordinary pencils and can be spread around like paint with a damp brush.
If you are the impatient type, you may want to try your hand at the Alla Prima oil painting technique. The Alla Prima method is when you complete the painting in one sitting rather than paint in layers and wait for the paint to dry. Although I usually prefer to work out my paintings in layers, I occasionally enjoy this exciting and spontaneous approach to oil painting.
If you are the careful, patient type of painter, you may be interested in working with the glazing technique. Glazing has lost popularity these days, partly because of the time needed to complete such a painting and it's difficulty, but the results are something truly unique to any other type of oil painting technique. The composition is first painted with an opaque monochrome underpainting, usually in shades of gray. After this initial underpainting is thoroughly dry, thin layers of transparent oil glazes are applied. Colors are not mixed directly but added in separate layers to get the desired color.
If you are the adventurous type, put the brushes aside and try a set of painting or palette knives. You can achieve some very interesting results with knives that aren't possible with brushes. The oil paint can be spread on thickly and scraped off with ease. What I enjoy most about using knives is the tendency to not focus on the small details. I am forced to paint in a more relaxed fashion that creates an impressionist style painting. Get yourself a set of painting knives and try to complete an entire painting with just the knives. It's challenging at first if you are used to brushes, but it's an enjoyable exercise.
Perhaps you would like your painting to have more body and texture. You could try the impasto painting technique and apply your paint in thick heavy strokes, leaving evidence of all those wonderfully artistic brush strokes. Take a look at a Van Gogh painting and you will see this technique in action.
It's really no wonder why oil painting is such a popular choice for painters. There is so much to discover in oil painting. You will never get bored trying out all the wonderful tools, mediums and techniques.
Both Doug Ames & Ralph Serpe are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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