Services - Portraits & Painting
I'll paint you an awesome portrait from your photos in oils or acrylics on canvas.
Original photo
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Finished Painting
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Likeness and character, together with composition and quality of finish are my ultimate goals with portraits.
It's the tactile quality of the painted surface that gives a portrait that extra dimension that even the finest photographic print lacks, breathing life into its subject. |
Please take a look at the following guide before completing & submitting the contact form at the bottom of the page.
A guide to pricing, quotes and things for you to consider.
The commissioning process:
- Complete & submit the contact form, attaching any relevant image files and including as much additional information as you can about your commission (To upload multiple image files use a .zip folder or submit multiple forms).
- I will get back to you as soon as I can (usually within one working day) with a quote or request for additional information.
- Send me a confirmation email When you're happy with the quote.
- I will send you details of how to pay the 50% deposit.
- Once the deposit has been received I'll get straight on with the work.
- I'll send you a photo of the finished painting approx 2-3 weeks later.
- If there's anything you don't like I'll make further adjustments, and email you again.
- When you're happy with what you see, you pay the outstanding balance for the commission.
- On receipt of the full payment I'll dispatch the final work to your address, or arrange a time for collection.
Pricing:
The way I price portraits & paintings is primarily based on the time it takes to me to resolve the final piece. Every painting is different so I supply quotes on a project-to-project basis.
Portraits tend to range from around £300 for domestic-sized, single subject paintings set against a neutral or coloured background, to £2500+ for large, full length, scene-rich paintings. Additional subjects usually add between a third to a half of the cost for one subject.
Paintings depicting other scenes & subjects also tend to start from around £300, but it all depends on the nature of the piece.
The quote I give you will be affected by factors such as:
Detail - by far the most influential factor in terms of cost is the amount of detail to be reproduced in a painting. For example, intricate braiding of hair, patterning on clothing and detailed jewellery can all take a significant amount of time to paint and will add to the cost. I often remove some of the detail that appears in the original photo reference where possible and agreed with the client to reduce cost, for example by painting a patterned shirt as a plain coloured one. Removing background detail is another example - I tend to set simple portraits against a plain or coloured background.
Size - surprisingly not necessarily the most influential factor in terms of cost, but does play a part. I supply canvases on pre-made stretchers but can have custom sizes made up if required which will affect cost.
Medium - I paint by far the majority of portraits in either oil or acrylic on stretched & primed canvas (I don't offer a framing service). Oil paintings tend to be slightly more expensive than acrylics due to the drying times and processes involved. I'm always open to considering alternative media should you have something different in mind, but this can incur additional cost.
Re-composing elements - I often do some kind of re-positioning of elements within photo references to achieve nicer compositions - moving subjects a little closer together, choosing a tighter crop for a painting etc. It's also possible to bring elements from different photos together should it be required, but there are limitations where lighting and shadows are significantly different. Simple adjustments add no cost, but re-creating elements can be expensive.
Delivery - I have to charge for all deliveries. I prefer to do this via a preferred dedicated courier service to avoid the possibility of damage to the final work. Should you wish to use your own preferred courier you are free to do so but I can't accept any liability for damage that occurs in this circumstance.
Where appropriate I'll itemise delivery costs in the quote I send you.
Things to consider before making contact:
Photo Reference: See here for a set of photo reference guide-lines, considerations and suggestions.
I work almost exclusively from photos for accuracy and practicality.
I require a certain level of quality in the references you supply to produce the best possible likeness and finish. It's a good idea to consider your choice of photos carefully to find the most clear & representative image in terms of character and personality that you can.
Size:
Where is the painting intended to be hung? This is very important in terms of the size you decide on. It's generally a good idea to allow a reasonable amount of space around a painting, but ultimately it's down to you to decide what will work. If it's in a small, domestic room there's no point in having a large painting. Similarly a small canvas on a large un-populated wall will look lost. With portraits I usually suggest that the subject is not painted any larger than life-size, which can have an influence on the final size of the canvas in relation to the reference you supply.
These are the most popular standard canvas sizes I work with:
40cmX40cm
46cmX35cm
51cmX40cm
50cmX50cm
60cmX45cm (by far most popular)
80cmX60cm
90cmX60cm
Consider these sizes just as a guide initially. To an extent size and proportion will be suggested by the hanging space and subject matter, and there are many more standard size options that I will attempt to source before considering the more expensive custom option.
If you have an existing frame you are intending to use this may limit us to having a stretcher custom made, but I'll still attempt to source a standard option.
Most standard sizes come in depths of 1.8cm as well as the deeper 3.8cm. I often suggest the deeper variation for larger paintings and those that will remain unframed, but it's not a rule and may simply come down to personal preference.
Medium (the type of paint I'll use):
Oil paint - the interplay of light through layers of oil can give a painting that extra special quality in terms of depth and richness of colour. It takes longer to work up an oil painting due to drying times which can add extra cost.
Acrylic paint - Surprisingly rich and versatile in their modern form. Many artists have accepted a full switch to working with acrylics due to improved mediums, making them far more comparable to working with oils but with far shorter drying times.
Anything you'd specifically like me to consider or include:
Change or remove an element, simplify detail for a better price, specify a colour for the background, tidy up the hair a little. It doesn't hurt to ask and if I can I will.
A note on Framing:
Unfortunately I can't offer a framing service.
- Complete & submit the contact form, attaching any relevant image files and including as much additional information as you can about your commission (To upload multiple image files use a .zip folder or submit multiple forms).
- I will get back to you as soon as I can (usually within one working day) with a quote or request for additional information.
- Send me a confirmation email When you're happy with the quote.
- I will send you details of how to pay the 50% deposit.
- Once the deposit has been received I'll get straight on with the work.
- I'll send you a photo of the finished painting approx 2-3 weeks later.
- If there's anything you don't like I'll make further adjustments, and email you again.
- When you're happy with what you see, you pay the outstanding balance for the commission.
- On receipt of the full payment I'll dispatch the final work to your address, or arrange a time for collection.
Pricing:
The way I price portraits & paintings is primarily based on the time it takes to me to resolve the final piece. Every painting is different so I supply quotes on a project-to-project basis.
Portraits tend to range from around £300 for domestic-sized, single subject paintings set against a neutral or coloured background, to £2500+ for large, full length, scene-rich paintings. Additional subjects usually add between a third to a half of the cost for one subject.
Paintings depicting other scenes & subjects also tend to start from around £300, but it all depends on the nature of the piece.
The quote I give you will be affected by factors such as:
Detail - by far the most influential factor in terms of cost is the amount of detail to be reproduced in a painting. For example, intricate braiding of hair, patterning on clothing and detailed jewellery can all take a significant amount of time to paint and will add to the cost. I often remove some of the detail that appears in the original photo reference where possible and agreed with the client to reduce cost, for example by painting a patterned shirt as a plain coloured one. Removing background detail is another example - I tend to set simple portraits against a plain or coloured background.
Size - surprisingly not necessarily the most influential factor in terms of cost, but does play a part. I supply canvases on pre-made stretchers but can have custom sizes made up if required which will affect cost.
Medium - I paint by far the majority of portraits in either oil or acrylic on stretched & primed canvas (I don't offer a framing service). Oil paintings tend to be slightly more expensive than acrylics due to the drying times and processes involved. I'm always open to considering alternative media should you have something different in mind, but this can incur additional cost.
Re-composing elements - I often do some kind of re-positioning of elements within photo references to achieve nicer compositions - moving subjects a little closer together, choosing a tighter crop for a painting etc. It's also possible to bring elements from different photos together should it be required, but there are limitations where lighting and shadows are significantly different. Simple adjustments add no cost, but re-creating elements can be expensive.
Delivery - I have to charge for all deliveries. I prefer to do this via a preferred dedicated courier service to avoid the possibility of damage to the final work. Should you wish to use your own preferred courier you are free to do so but I can't accept any liability for damage that occurs in this circumstance.
Where appropriate I'll itemise delivery costs in the quote I send you.
Things to consider before making contact:
Photo Reference: See here for a set of photo reference guide-lines, considerations and suggestions.
I work almost exclusively from photos for accuracy and practicality.
I require a certain level of quality in the references you supply to produce the best possible likeness and finish. It's a good idea to consider your choice of photos carefully to find the most clear & representative image in terms of character and personality that you can.
Size:
Where is the painting intended to be hung? This is very important in terms of the size you decide on. It's generally a good idea to allow a reasonable amount of space around a painting, but ultimately it's down to you to decide what will work. If it's in a small, domestic room there's no point in having a large painting. Similarly a small canvas on a large un-populated wall will look lost. With portraits I usually suggest that the subject is not painted any larger than life-size, which can have an influence on the final size of the canvas in relation to the reference you supply.
These are the most popular standard canvas sizes I work with:
40cmX40cm
46cmX35cm
51cmX40cm
50cmX50cm
60cmX45cm (by far most popular)
80cmX60cm
90cmX60cm
Consider these sizes just as a guide initially. To an extent size and proportion will be suggested by the hanging space and subject matter, and there are many more standard size options that I will attempt to source before considering the more expensive custom option.
If you have an existing frame you are intending to use this may limit us to having a stretcher custom made, but I'll still attempt to source a standard option.
Most standard sizes come in depths of 1.8cm as well as the deeper 3.8cm. I often suggest the deeper variation for larger paintings and those that will remain unframed, but it's not a rule and may simply come down to personal preference.
Medium (the type of paint I'll use):
Oil paint - the interplay of light through layers of oil can give a painting that extra special quality in terms of depth and richness of colour. It takes longer to work up an oil painting due to drying times which can add extra cost.
Acrylic paint - Surprisingly rich and versatile in their modern form. Many artists have accepted a full switch to working with acrylics due to improved mediums, making them far more comparable to working with oils but with far shorter drying times.
Anything you'd specifically like me to consider or include:
Change or remove an element, simplify detail for a better price, specify a colour for the background, tidy up the hair a little. It doesn't hurt to ask and if I can I will.
A note on Framing:
Unfortunately I can't offer a framing service.