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Custom hand drawn photo of three dogs

How to Commission
a Pet Portrait

Our pets are important members of our family. I do many portraits commissioned as special gifts, memorial portraits of loved pets we have lost, and pet portraits for people who want to have a portrait of their family pet- be it furry, feathered or scaled. 

 

The steps to commission your pet’s portrait are these:

 

  1. Contact me and we will go over the kind and size of portrait you want, the background plus the timeline that I have available 

  2. Send me a few clear, sharply focussed photos of your pet. Photos taken in natural daylight are best.

  3. Give me some information about your pet, their personality, favorite things to do and any other interesting facts.

  4. Together we will then finalize the paper size plus the background (paper colour or painted)

  5. The timeline, down payment, final payment and delivery method will be confirmed.

  6. When your portrait is completed, I will email you a photo of it to check if you are happy with the results. I want you to be completely satisfied with the portrait.

 

My waiting times vary throughout the year, but I am especially busy around the holidays. 

I recommend getting in touch earlier than later if you need a special gift for any occasion.

Custom pet portrait of two dogs

Reference Photo
Suggestions

To create a portrait of your pet I require a good reference photo to work from.  In the past I have drawn memorial portraits from very old photos when no other photos are available, but this is the exception.  I would like the completed portrait to truly represent your pet and having a sharp focused photograph to work from ensures the finished portrait is the best it can be.

 

  1.  Choose a photo that has a particular look or expression that captures the true likeness of your pet. This could be their adorable tilt of the head, the soft eye look, a focus on the floppy ears, or a tongue that is always out.  You know your own pet and having a photo that shows their particular expression that warms your heart is the one to choose.

  2. If possible, choose a photo that has been taken in natural light. Indoor light can sometime alter the colours of the fur.

  3. The more detail I can see in your photo, the more realism I will be able to put into the portrait. Taking a photo with high resolution, clear focus and in good lighting is the best!

  4. If you have more than one pet and you want me to draw them on the same paper, I can certainly accommodate this. I will confirm with you before I begin the drawing with the possible composition of the pets on the page.

  5. Presenting me with a number of photographs of your pet is recommended.  The choice of which one to use will be mutually agreed on and for my process, it is always good to have a number of photos in case certain details in the chosen photograph are not as clear as possible.

Custom hand drawn portrait of two cats

Materials Used

 I use a variety of professional pastel pencils, pan pastels and soft pastels to do the drawings. The pastel pencils that I use are Stabilo Carbothello, Faber Castell Pitt Pastels, Derwent, Caran D’Ache,  Conte a Paris, Unison, and Rembrandt. Pastels are a beautiful medium that allow me to create soft and fluffy fur textures as well as being able to draw the clear and sharpness in the pet’s eyes.  

 

Chalk Pastels come in varying degrees of hardness - the harder pastels allow for the creation of sharp details and the softer pastels and pan pastels allow for blending to create the soft fur textures.  The pastels that I use are of high quality and have excellent lightfast ratings.  This ensures that your portrait is highly resistant to fading under UV light and will be very resistant to aging.

 

The paper I use is a brand called Pastelmat. This paper allows me to blend many layers of pastel pigment. This creates wonderful depth, vivid colours and enhances the realism in the portrait. This brand of paper can produce vibrant and detailed yet soft textures.  It is an acid-free paper that prevents the drawing from yellowing over time.

 

There is a question I get asked about whether my portraits are drawings or paintings.  Some people call my portraits “drawings” and others call them "paintings."  There is a reason why people are unsure of the terminology. The drawing I do using pastels, is so much like completing a painting and is not a simple line drawing. The portrait I “paint” consists of many layers of pigment like a painting would have and this creates the depth and thickness of the fur or other skin texture you see.  I treat each portrait as a painting - I am painting with soft pastels, pan pastels and pastel pencils and I finish off the finer details with the pastel pencils.

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