Lily

Lily, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

www.djfitzgerald.com
www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

Lily Done! I don't know if you can see the difference from #12... but she is darker. And I toned down her highlights a tad. Cleaned up the back ground... it can get a bit smudged while working on the subject... Even if I am careful! I am supper happy with the way she turned out! Hope the client is also.

 I shipped her out yesterday. I have started using a two day shipping instead of overnite. It has just gotten so expensive to do overnite. The only problem is that it restricts my shipping days.... I don't like to ship over the weekends if possible. I like my work handled as little as possible in shipping and I don't want it to sit in a ware house somewhere over the weekend. The only time I have ever had a problem with FedEx was when I shipped over a weekend... the painting got lost for 2 days! Someone had left it in Orlando! Luckily it was a painting and there is not as much worry as with a pastel. Pastels will flake and are not meant to be bumped around... This paper has been doing very well with out spraying it with a fixative. The one time I did spray a portrait on this paper ( Clairefontaine PastelMat), I had to go back an rework a lot of the lighter areas. It got all these little specks and it looked dirty. Then when I researched the paper some more, I learned that you don't have to spray the work. Sometimes I think papers should come with a few instructions!

Lily #12

Lily #12, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

www.djfitzgerald.com
www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

Pretty much done.... I want to pull it all together, darken Lily a bit and touch up the back ground.

Lilly #11

Lilly #11, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

www.djfitzgerald.com
www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

Lilly #10

Lilly #10, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

http://www.djfitzgerald.com
http://www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

Moving right along... sometimes this part seems to take forever... especially a dark brown horse without highlights and shadows from the sun. I generally like photos of dark animals without bright sun... the color is richer. With sun you get very light highlights with very dark shadowed areas. Slightly over cast is good.... but I think is harder to recreate in a portrait. Shadows and highlights just by their shape can give a subject its volume and definition. Without them, you must rely on color and much more subtle highlights and shadows. Much harder and more time consuming to do. But in the end, I think it makes for a beautiful portrait!

Lilly #9

Lilly #9, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

http://www.djfitzgerald.com
http://www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

Moving along... sorry it is taking me a while to post here. It just takes me a while to get back into a routine when I get back from a trip. Not to mention my computer has been at the computer hospital for some work! And I hate working off my laptop. Plus the husband has been on vacation.... hard to work when your partner is playing! But, I have a lot of work to get back to especially with the holidays creeping upon us!

Lily #8

Lily #8, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on Clairefontaine PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

www.djfitzgerald.com
www.facebook.com.D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

I decided to add a photo taken when I am just starting an area. I tend to work small areas at a time then go back and pull them all together. I start by working in the dark areas. Here I am using a dark neutral gray from Schmincke. It is a great color, but very soft. I only use it in the first layer... it tends to want to gunk up the paper so I can't add more layers. But I put it down and the use the sponge handled tools to blend it in. Then I can go over it with the harder pastel.

Lily #7

Lily #7, originally uploaded by debifitz.

pastel on PastelMat
private collection
19"X26"

www.djfitzgerald.com
www.facebook.com/D.J.Fitzgerald.Art

This is as far as I got before my trip... I always seem to underestimate my time and all that I have to do before I go on one of my excursions! I was up at a horse show in Raleigh, N.C., and visiting relatives. The weather was good for one day. Gray, gloomy, and cold the next 2! Oh well.... I did manage to pick up 5 commissions. Although I may have to reshoot some of the photos this spring... I usually make an appearance at a horse show the end of april in Aiken, S.C..   There is a silent auction for Danny and Ron's Rescue, and I donate a small commission to their cause. I have several people that want to do commissions... just have to get the time and weather right! I will be going back to Raleigh for a couple and also Wilmington, N.C., and Camden, S.C.,for a few. Should be a good trip. But, now I have to get back to work on Lily!!