Tag Archives: digital painting

Winifred Whitfield Displays Portrait Paintings at Port Ludlow Bay Club

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Winifred Displays Portrait Paintings

This is a display of 30   large  beautifully framed portrait paintings. the display opened November 10th and will remain on exhibit until December 2nd.  It has been very well received with many visitors being curious about the process of creating digital art.  The fact is that they cannot discern any difference between my portrait paintings created electronically and those created with traditional media.

The following are some of the newest pieces to be included in my collection:

Friends

Beggar in Italy

Mother and Child

Here’s to You

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Sunflowers for Always

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I have finally gotten around to painting my sunflowers.  Sunflowers are very high on my “favorites” list. Like many if my favorite images I just hold onto them until they tell me how they want to be portrayed.

This is the first one that I painted using new impasto brushes I downloaded from Skip Allen which he calls “Bristle Dabs”.  These electronic brushes are free and available to use without restriction.  It was the first time I painted with impasto styled brushes which give the great texture and loft to the brush stroke.  I love the texture throughout the image.

I followed this painting with a painting of a different sunflower – a little more “Charlie Brown” looking but  I enjoy it also.

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A Treasure from Florence

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Treasures come in many forms. I took a photo when Florence in 2007.  For the past years I kept it. When ever I looked through my files I paused to re experience the moment. I also knew this image was special – it had a story to be told, it was to be special. It was only recently that I knew what this image was to become. I painted it. This lady will never know it but now she will live forever as a very special piece of art.

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Quality Images Require Color Management

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Submit Your  Best Efforts in Print Competition

A week ago I sat with a panel of judges at the annual Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI)  print competition.  In this competition, each photographer at a very minimum would like to receive an accolade  acknowledging “good professional quality work”.

There are many prints which for various reasons do not receive this accolade. It is saddest however, when an entry loses points solely because there is an off color cast to the image or the flesh tone, or the image is too light, or too dark, all of which is reflects a lack of professional color management in the photographers work flow. The image otherwise might have been quite acceptable.

There is a solution to this. X-Rite is the global leader in color science and technology and as such serves a range of industries, including printing, packaging, photography, graphic design, video, automotive, paints, plastics, textiles, dental and medical.

X-Rite includes in it’s mix devices designed specifically to solve  color management problems for photographers.  These devices include the Color Checker,  to create custom profiles for your camera  and ColorMunki and the  i1 extreme to calibrate your display,  and create custom profiles for your printer, so you can see EXACTLY what you  are going to print.  Even if your work is printed by a professional  lab, the cost of your production is decreased significantly if the lab does not have to color correct your images. Simply by calibrating your display you will able to view the colors, and densities you are actually working with.  The ColorMunki is very simple to use. Within minutes the wizard will walk you through the calibration process.  Your images are now ready for your final touch before going to your clients – or to competition.

If you are going to spend the money to have prints prepared for competition and  pay the entry fee on each one, I would  hope that you are submitting the best and most professional images you can create.  It will be very difficult to do this without having a professional color managed work flow which means at the very least a frequently calibrated monitor.

For more information on the color management devices available to you, go to:  X-Rite.com

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PHOTO RESTORATION – Preserving Family Treasures

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I recently discovered just how much I enjoy photo restoration, that is,  restoring treasured images of family members.   I am excited to offer this as a new service in my business.  In September 2008 a women approached me and pulled a small wallet sized photo from her wallet.  “Can you do anything with this”  she ask almost apologetically, “this is a photo of me with my girls, I have had it is my wallet for 13 years. ”  I looked at the dis-colored, faded, orange spotted photo of years gone by and ask if I couldn’t create a portrait of her with her daughters now.  “No she replied, we want this photo”.  I can do it, I told her, and I took her tiny treasured  photo with me.

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Faded, discolored, cracked photo to be restored

Weeks later I called Joanne to see a 16×20 full sized proof of the restored portrait.  She was delighted and she ordered

three 16×20 portrait canvases, one for her and for each of her girls.  Joanne flew to

New York to deliver her Christmas gifts to her daughters in person.

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There was great excitement and tears at the unveiling of the portrait.

It was the treasure of her family she knew it would be.

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George saw my work while displayed at the Athletic Club in town.  He decided to commission a portrait of his

daughter and her year old daughter – both of whom he adores.  After seeing the beauty of this portrait,

he wanted a portrait of his wife.  She had not yet consented to have her portrait created at the time

I had Christmas dinner in their home.  At the end of the evening, however, Barb said to me,

“I don’t have any good image from our wedding 22 years ago.  Can you do something with some of the

images I do have?” I left with their album andthe one 8×10 she had of this very special day.

After careful scrutiny, I selected the above image

because I loved her expression and beauty.

George looked handsome as well.

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The photo was challenging as most photo restorations are

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This is the final restored photo

It was mid January.  I called George to view the image on my computer.  I suggested that if a woman chose

to have a wedding portrait as her special portrait after 22 years – perhaps it would be a great Valentine’s Day gift for her.

George agreed and added that he had proposed to her on Valentine’s Day.  I love it when I get it right!  He then told

me of his plan to gather friends at a favorite restaurant on Valentine’s Day and at the appropriate time he would have

the restored and enhanced portrait presented   to her.  It was a  perfect plan.  I had the portrait printed,  framed and ready for its debut.

I was in New York for this Holiday but I checked in when I returned.  The tears had streamed he told me.

It was the perfect gift. They were happy and so was I.

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Not all restorations are from old photos

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Image taken with a cell phone which would be restored

This image was taken with a cell phone when Alice traveled to visit her mom.  Although the image quality was very poor,

Alice loved her mom’s expression and decided it was an image she would like to have corrected, enhanced and preserved.

I loved the idea of restoring a special portrait of Alice’s mom.

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No doubt each of the siblings would want such a restored photo also.

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