How to Draw Faces

I LOVE portrait painting. It is one of my favorite things to do, is draw faces. Nothing excites me more, than to bring to life: eyes, lips, a nose, an entire face on paper or canvas! 🙂 What is especially rewarding, is painting a loved one who has passed on in this life. I know first-hand what it means to lose someone and have your heart ache. I know for me, I need to see them again, in an ideal place like heaven, in the comforting hands of Christ, or in a favorite place. I need to see them happy. So you may be feeling the same way, wanting to paint someone you have lost or draw someone you really love! Here are a few recent portraits I have drawn, using a Wacom Tablet Intuos 5, drawn in Adobe Photoshop CC. Here is how to draw faces, in this step by step visual example:

How to Draw Faces

Joni

Begin with a quick outline:

Than do a quick wash of the skin base color and shadows:

Than fill in the detail and add highlights:

Grace

A quick outline:

Add a wash of the base skin tones and begin adding shadows and highlights:

Finish with details, and always add a background splash:

Author Box 04
About the Artist

I’m an artist, author, and poet. My work is often shaped by lived experiences and by paying close attention to the world around me… nature, and the people who have helped shape my life.

I usually paint first, and the words come later. Painting has been the safest way I’ve found to be honest about things that are hard to say out loud, and over time I’ve noticed other people finding their own stories in the work too.

My paintings are meant to comfort, to feel like a presence rather than a statement, and to give space for each person to find their own meaning. The connection that happens there matters most to me.