Robbie's Whippet portraits
Karen commissioned not one, but two portraits of Robbie the Whippet as a birthday gift for her brother.
She'd chosen two very different photographs: one of Robbie looking rather smart from the side, and another tucked under a colourful blanket with his head resting down.
Both had everything I needed, although each needed a little artistic licence to make the pose work naturally on paper.
The result was two original hand-drawn Whippet portraits showing two quite different sides of Robbie.
Breed: Whippet
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Medium: Coloured pencil & wax crayon
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Size: 2 x A5
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Commissioned by: Karen, Chelmsford, UK
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Created from: Two reference photographs
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Occasion: Birthday gift
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Breed: Whippet ★ Medium: Coloured pencil & wax crayon ★ Size: 2 x A5 ★ Commissioned by: Karen, Chelmsford, UK ★ Created from: Two reference photographs ★ Occasion: Birthday gift ★
Two portraits for one birthday
Karen wanted to surprise her brother with portraits of his Whippet, Robbie, for his birthday.
Rather than choosing between her two photographs, she commissioned both.
It was a good decision. One showed Robbie alert and looking off to the side, while the other caught him doing something Whippets are particularly good at – getting very comfortable under a blanket.
Two photographs. Same dog. Very different portraits.
Making the photos work as portraits
Both photographs were strong references, but that didn't mean I had to copy every part of them exactly as it appeared.
For Robbie's side-profile portrait, I adjusted the lower part of his neck so the pose flowed more naturally once the surrounding photograph was removed.
The blanket portrait needed a similarly small change. I repositioned his chin slightly so it looked as though his head was naturally resting down rather than floating just above the surface.
Nothing dramatic. Just a little artistic licence where the photographs needed it.
Choosing the right photo is important, but it doesn't always have to be perfect. My photo guide explains what makes a good starting point.
Creating Robbie's portraits
The two drawings needed slightly different treatment.
For the side-profile portrait, the focus stayed firmly on Robbie – his long Whippet profile, dark eyes and the warmer brown and grey tones running through his coat.
The second had a lot more colour to play with. Rather than removing the blanket, I kept it as part of the portrait, building its pinks, blues, oranges and purples around Robbie's much softer grey coat.
It made the two finished portraits feel connected without looking like a matching pair for the sake of it.
Two finished portraits
Once finished, the two portraits showed Robbie in completely different moments.
One alert and looking off to the side. The other head down, blanket on and clearly taking things rather less seriously.
Both were carefully packaged and sent to Karen in Chelmsford, ready for her brother's birthday.
And Robbie apparently passed the likeness test.
What Karen thought
★★★★★
“Was extremely pleased with the portraits and care that has gone into them. Jonny has managed to capture my brother’s Whippet perfectly.
Will definitely recommend him to others and be using him again for my dog. They arrived beautifully packaged, showing once again that this artist cares about his work.”
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Got more than one favourite photo?
You don't necessarily have to choose.
Whether they show two completely different sides of the same pet or you simply can't decide between them, I can create individual hand-drawn portraits from more than one favourite photograph.
And if a photo needs a small tweak to work better as a portrait, that's all part of the process.
Multiple portraits available
Small photo adjustments included
Drawn entirely by hand