Creating this tutorial has been one of my favourites this year. I'm often asked how do I select colours and then layer them to capture the reference photograph accurately. So this Giraffe video shows one half where I am working in greyscale (all done with pastel pencils) and this focuses on the importance of contrast and values because it's this that replicates the three dimensional feel of a portrait. I then did the other side in colour showing the method I use for picking colours and then how

One of my most photo realistic paintings I've created was this Giraffe. To capture such detail, the use of the right brushes is key. I'm using more smaller sized brushes here and that combined with the control and brush technique are all working towards creating really fine, intricate brush strokes. My aim for this painting was to capture the lighting and as much detail as I could. I really wanted to see how far I could push myself in this painting. - - - 12" x 16" acrylic painting Reference pho