The next preliminary steps in the process toward a completed
painting involve the gathering of reference material and then organizing the
ideas into a number of quick sketches or thumbnails that indicate a crude
composition.
Reference
Material
Now that I’ve chosen a subject
(Osprey) and decided what I want to say (Osprey is flying back to its nest),
it’s time to start working on a composition. The photo gives me an idea of what
will be in the painting but none are clear enough to get any details, so the
next step is to gather reference material. I need photos of osprey in various
poses – flying, sitting on the nest, pictures of young birds, pictures of
nests, pictures of trees similar to the ones in the photo.
Composing the Picture
Between the reference material and
the photo taken by the client ideas begin to flood my brain. I want something
similar to the photo but with more impact. The osprey has to take center stage
and that’s the way I need to compose the picture. So, over a period of days I
sketch out rough thumbnails, different layouts that tell the story I want to
tell. In doing so, I try to keep in the back of my head as many principles of
composition as I can. Those principles that I find most important are:
1.Think in terms of shapes and values.
Simplify the things in the painting by doing thumbnails.
2. Lay out the things quickly to
get the placement within the borders feeling comfortable. You can feel when the
painting seems balanced.
3. Fit the things into some kind of
pattern that directs the viewer’s attention through the picture to the center
of interest.
4. Keep the things interesting by
varying the shapes and sizes.
5. Do something to make the center
of interest stand out. Use values color, contrast and intensity. Place the
center of interest at one of the intersections of lines that divide the
painting both vertically and horizontally into thirds.
I worked up some thumbnails based
on the photograph provided me by the client.
I wanted to create more interest and drama so I decided to
bring the osprey closer in – make it the center of interest. I increased the
size to make it dominate the painting and placed it one third of the way in and
one third of the way down on the left side. I placed the nest on the right side
and decided to add a mama and one or two chicks in the nest to give it some
interest. They will be subordinate to the flying bird because of their size and
pose. Then I placed some branches both in the nest and on the left bottom to
direct the eye toward the bird in flight. The group creates a sort of triangle
that leads the eye from one to the other – around and around.
You’ll
notice that I’ve drawn two different views of the bird in flight. One is
similar to the one in the photo, while the other is a bit more dramatic, with
the wings outspread. I worked out 5 thumbnails in all and you can see them all
here.
Since the
drawing is much different from the original photo, I decided I wanted the
client to look at the sketches and also the two choices of the bird in flight
to see how they coincided with her mental picture. Maybe she’ll be more happy
with my more close up view of the birds – but maybe she is thinking more in
terms of the photo view. I want her to be happy with the composition before I
proceed. The pose of the bird is also important. She’ll let me know which bird
she likes best. From there I’ll start to work out more details.
Next week
I’ll discuss the client’s reaction to my thumbnails and what view she prefers.
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