Having a pet portrait painted without a good photo – is it possible?

Posted on March 15, 2019April 2, 2019 by isadora

I am often asked if it’s possible to have a portrait painted of a pet when there’s not an ideal reference photo available. Maybe the painting is a memorial portrait and, life being what it is, a wonderful reference photo had never been taken of the pet. Maybe the portrait is a surprise gift and the gift-giver doesn’t want to spoil the surprise by asking for photos of the pet, and instead uses something from social media. It happens.

In a perfect world, these wouldn’t be obstacles we’d have to deal with, but the world is far from perfect, and the short answer is that yes, you can still have a gorgeous pet portrait from your photo with less than ideal reference pictures!

The above transformation shows just such a situation. Petey passed away, and a good friend of his owners wanted to surprise her friend with his portrait. She sent me what she could stealthily get her hands on (see pic above) and I painted a beautiful portrait of Petey from it.

Would you like to have your pet’s portrait painted? Click here to see pricing options.

Custom Colorful Pet Portraits from Your Photos

Posted on March 3, 2019April 2, 2019 by isadora

If you like bold, colorful art which really makes a statement in your room, a colorful pet portrait could be just the right accent to bring in some vibrance and show your love for your very own fur-baby! These portraits also make a fantastic gift for the pet-lover in your life. They’re on-of-a-kind and absolutely beautiful.

Getting a custom portrait painted of your pet is fun, too. I have a wide variety of sizes available, which ensures that you’ll be able to pick just the right one for both your space and your price range. You pick your size, then send me photos of your pet and some information about his or her personality. Knowing this really helps that personality shine through in the painting.

After finding out if you have colors you use often in your home decor, or if there are any particular colors you’d like used in the painting, I’ll provide you with a sketch of your pet’s pose and positioning on the canvas, as well as a few color palette options from which you can choose.

After that, I’m off and running on your portrait! You’ll receive a photo of the completed portrait for your review prior to shipping, and then the next thing you know it’ll be at your doorstep.

If you’d like to have a custom colorful portrait painted of your pet, click here to go to my ordering page. I’m looking forward to working with you!

Pet Portraits – Custom Painted Pet Portraits in Pocket Size

Posted on April 14, 2017April 28, 2017 by isadora

These small, custom pet portraits are absolutely adorable and are perfect as gifts or as “pocket portraits” to fit easily in your cubicle at work, on your bedside table, or even into your suitcase when you travel! Slide one into somebody special’s stocking during the holidays or tuck one into a little gift bag for a BIG surprise! These little beauties have the same high quality work put into them as my very popular larger portraits on canvas… they’re just smaller!

Order your “pocket portrait” here!

These portraits are painted on DaVinci Pro Panels – strong wood panels crafted from fine-grained Birch wood for long-term warp resistance and a fantastic archival painting surface. They are gesso-primed, painted with professional acrylic paints, then finished with a beautiful gloss varnish for protection, beauty and longevity.

You have your choice of a 4″ x 6″ or 5″ x 5″ panel.

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Pet Portraits Painted from Photos – Tips for the Perfect Reference Photo

Posted on April 12, 2017April 28, 2017 by isadora

When you hire me to paint a custom portrait of your pet, quality reference material is the key to an amazing finished painting!

There are, of course, exceptions to this rule. When I'm painting a memorial portrait, I know the customer can't follow my guide to capture an ideal photo, and that's OK. In those cases, I simply ask for as many photos as you can provide, from a variety of angles, and I create a great portrait anyway. I've even painted a portrait of two best buddy dogs together when one passed and their owner realized he'd never captured that "perfect" photo of the two dogs together.

Barring that unavoidable scenario, there's no reason you (yes, YOU!) can't capture a fabulous photo of your pet by following a few easy guidelines. This may even change the way you photograph your pets from now on!

Read on for my fail-safe guide to photographing your pet, and when you're done, be sure to visit my Pet Portraits page for information on ordering a painting created from your beautiful photo!

Both overly dark photos, taken in deep shadows or dark homes, or overly bright photos with glaring sun, can destroy the subtle shadows and highlights that give the best result in your final photo. However, soft, natural light is wonderful! One great way to achieve this indoors is to take the photo by a glass door or large window, which will allow the light to softly wash over your pet for a beautiful effect.

Tip: Pro photographers call the time shortly after sunrise and right before sunset 'The Magic Hour" because the light has a gorgeous, soft, gold-to-red glow. If you can take a photo of your pet outside at this time, nature will provide you with absolutely stunning light!

Pet Portrait Sale – Custom Pet Portraits 10% Off

Posted on April 1, 2017April 1, 2017 by isadora

I don't do sales very often, but I'm doing one now… that means that my pet portraits, prints, hand-painted tote bags, hand-painted jewelry boxes, and original art are ALL on sale! Check out my Etsy store at www.artbyisadora.etsy.com to browse all of the awesomeness that you an save on.

For the month of April, everything in my Etsy shop is 10% off when you use the coupon code SPRING at checkout!

Check out some of the great items I have on sale. If you see something you like, click it and it will take you right to that item in my shop!

How to have a custom portrait painted of your pet

Posted on March 1, 2016April 28, 2017 by isadora

Having a portrait painted of your pet is a fun and easy process! Just follow these three easy steps:

Choose the style of portrait you'd like. Options range from colorful and contemporary, to stylized and dreamy.
Take some great reference photos of your pet. A few tips are to get out into natural light, or take the photo by a window, and get down to "pet level" for the photo (often this means sitting or kneeling down on the ground to take the photo). Send quite a few photos to give me lots of images in my "tool box" from which to work!
Let me know all about your pet. I want to know the quirks that make your pet unique, and stories that illustrate your pet's personality are fantastic! Again, this gives me a nice, full tool box while I'm working on your portrait! My goal is to make the painting or drawing "breathe" with the life of your pet, and every detail you provide adds to my ability to do so.

That's it! The rest of the process is up to me. I'll send you sketches, color swatches, and will keep you in the loop along the way.

Please let me know if you have any questions at all. I look forward to working with you to create a piece of art your family will cherish!

Colorful Pet Portraits | Modern Dog Art

Posted on February 18, 2016February 18, 2016 by isadora

Bold and colorful pet art… I love it!

It is just super-fun to paint portraits of people's pets using a lot of color, movement and fun styling in the painting. While I also will happily paint in a subtler palette if that's what appeals to a client (after all, their happiness is absolutely my top priority), I do have a lot of clients come to me asking for colorful, whimsical, surreal and dreamy portraits of their pets. It's a little something I offer that is different from other portrait artists, and that is special.

When it comes to my Day of the Dead styled paintings, color is just naturally a part of that art's style. But in my contemporary pieces, it can always come into play as well. Color-lovers, enjoy!

Beautiful Pet Memorials – Portraits to Remember

Posted on February 4, 2016April 28, 2017 by isadora

I'm often asked to paint portraits of pets who have passed over the rainbow bridge. It's a bittersweet process for both me and my clients. It's an honor when they choose me as the artist to capture their dog, cat or other beloved, lost pet, and I feel privileged to be a part of their healing as they share special memories and stories with me during the creative process. Often, it's a friend of the person who has lost a pet who comes to me to commission a portrait as a gift for their friend. I can't think of a more thoughtful gift.

Sometimes clients choose to have a contemporary portrait painted, but many also choose to have a Day of the Dead style of portrait created as a memorial of their pet. I live in southern Arizona where we have a huge Día de los Muertos celebration every year. Being a part of this culture has inspired me to offer the sugar skull pet memorials, and I have been surprised, actually, by how many people know and understand their significance and have been thrilled to have found somebody who will paint a sugar skull of their pet.

No matter what style of portrait people choose, I'm honored to have the opportunity to help them through the grieving process, and to present them with something beautiful to have in their home to always remember their dear, special lost pet. If you are interested in learning more about the portraits I offer, please click here to go to my website.

Being Unique – Pet Portraits

Posted on January 8, 2016January 9, 2016 by isadora

When you google the term pet portraits, you find pages upon pages of talented artists offering their services. It's amazing.

On one hand, I am thrilled to see so many artists out there doing it. Hooray for artists working! I wish every single one of them success.

On the other hand, it of course begs the question, "Well then, what can I bring to the table, with so many others out there already doing what I want to do?"

The answer, thankfully, came pretty easily to me, because it's a philosophy I've carried with me in everything I've done throughout my life. It is what I would suggest to any other artist contemplating trying to make a business out of their art:

BE DIFFERENT

My animal portraits are different than any of the other pet portraits I've seen. They are bold, contemporary and colorful, and have a style all their own. There are several benefits to this. One fantastic one is that when I say I wish competitors success, I can do so honestly, because they're not offering the same product that I am offering. Also, in my work I feel like I'm presenting something fresh and new into the world rather than recreating something that already exists. When you see my work, you know it's my work. It can't be mistaken for another artist's painting.

Of course, in being unique, my drawing and painting style may not be everybody's taste, and that is 100% OK with me. For those who are drawn to it, what a fantastic event that is! They found something different and beautiful to them, and it's something that only I an create. Luckily for me, I've had some great success during this first year as a professional pet portrait artist, and have some very happy clients out there enjoying my art.

So, to all of the other artists out there wondering if this is something you can or should do, I say this:

FIND WHAT MAKES YOU UNIQUE, AND CREATE THAT

There will always be somebody out there who loves what only you can create.

Follow my blog for more art musings, art supplies/product reviews, news about my work and events I may be attending. Also, please be sure to check out my Etsy shop at artbyisadora.etsy.com for some amazing pet portraits, tattoo art, hand-painted gifts and more!

A Beautiful World

Posted on January 2, 2016January 11, 2016 by isadora

Why do we do what we do?

There are more directions a person can take in life than I can reasonably wrap my head around. A child may dream to be an astronaut, a dancer, a doctor, a race car driver, an architect, a teacher… the list is endless. Hopefully most of you have followed your dreams, or have made some new ones along the way as your life evolved and embraced those.

I've chosen to make things. I want to paint, create, imagine and in so doing, make the world a little more beautiful in my own small way.

That's why this site exists, and hopefully you enjoy what you see.

Thanks for visiting!

~ Isadora

custom pet portraits • fine art • commissions

Tag: pet portrait commissions