Painting Great Pictures from Photographs

by Hazel Harrison

"As Harrison ably shows, photos can inspire, capture what won't stay still, or serve as a personal reference file...[This is] a good first choice."-- Library Journal

"A very helpful resource for both artist and art educator."-- School Arts

A camera can instantly capture a fleeting moment in time--that shifting quality of light, a flash of emotion across a face--and preserve it for artists to paint at their leisure. Make your photographs an invaluable inspiration for great paintings with this inspirational guide. A technical discussion covers cameras, lenses, viewpoints, and depth of field. Themed mini-galleries place source photographs and the paintings they motivated side-by-side--including a photo of Paris by night that, in the artist's hands, becomes a glittering, romantic pastel of the city. Eight in-depth profiles of painters feature a selection of their art, conversations about their working methods, and a tutorial that follows the progression from photograph to painting.

128 pages, Paperback

First published October 29, 1999

Reviews

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not confident yet to paint without a photograph for reference. This book shows you how to use the photograph as a starting point without falling into the temptation to copy exactly. There are some outdated sections related to film cameras, but all together great information.