hand-drawn portraits from your photograph

sample portraits

Graphite drawings on white paper are notoriously difficult to photograph with full detail. Nevertheless, I believe you can get an idea of the quality of my drawings from these samples. Click on the smaller images to see a larger image.

I've drawn several portraits of this model. There may be more in the future, when I get better photographs.

14" x 17" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.

This was a recent portrait drawn as a commission for a Father's Day present. It turned into something of a rush job due to some unforeseen delays. However, the portrait was finished and mounted with a passe-par-tout mount in time to be shipped before Father's Day.

10" x 12" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.

This portrait is a portion of a larger commission drawing. The full drawing includes three portraits of men from the same family covering three generations - all in uniform. The time periods involved were World War II, Vietnam, and Desert Storm. I took great pleasure in drawing this piece. I know it will be treasured by many generations in that family.

14" x 17" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.

Ed was a particularly difficult person to draw. The original photograph was barely usable. In fact, I would reject it if I were to draw this today. It was more usable after editing in Photoshop. I think the portrait still turned out fairly nice.

14" x 17" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.

This drawing looks much better in person that it does in this reproduction. Much of the shading and contour of the face was lost during photo reproduction. It is still a good example of the likeness I am able to achieve when working from a photograph.

14" x 17" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.

This was a self-portrait I drew and framed for my son. I am a lousy photographic model. Perhaps that is why I prefer to be behind the camera. People tell me it is a good likeness. Of course, I don't agree, probably because I only see my face in a mirror so it is reversed. This is a problem with most people. They are so used to seeing their face in reverse that they don't like photographs of themselves.

14" x 16" Graphite pencil on 80lb. Strathmore drawing paper.