Black Labrador Pencil Drawing Pet Portrait Commission

This dog portrait is now ready to be sprayed with fixative to prevent smudging of the graphite until it gets framed under glass. It is to be given as a father's day gift so I knew I had to complete the drawing very soon so that the client has enough time to get it framed.

Please contact me if you wish to have your pet immortalized as a custom painting or drawing!  I also offer GIFT CERTIFICATES that are perfect for any special occasion for that hard to buy loved one in your life.

"Trigger" Black Labrador
graphite pencil
5" x 7"
COMMISSION

Scanning problems with update of dog drawing

I enjoy my technological tools but sometimes they make me go crazy. Intermittent scanner issues have been causing me lots of trouble lately. I had to resort to use the smaller scanner on my printer which does not give me the results I desire but it will have to do for now. So here is the portrait of the black Labrador just about done!

Portrait of Dog Drawing Work in Progress

On this step I continue to work the dog's fur, making my way down the face while ensuring each strand of hair is of the perfect length,  direction and shading. Now that the nose has been added, the dog no longer has that "ghostly" look stage.

I will now be able to take a step back and tweak any areas I see need adjusting...

The start of a new commissioned pencil drawing

Switching from pastels, I am now working with graphite/charcoal pencils to render this detailed portrait of a black Labrador dog for a client. I will be posting more work in progress images of this dog drawing so do come back and visit!

Oh, and I have not forgotten to post the six cat pastel portrait...I have to wait until the recipient opens their gift so as to not spoil the surprise!

To view more detail on the drawing, click on each image for a larger view.

Dog Portrait of Golden Retriever and Labrador mix

I love the look and feel of pastel on suede as it gives the portrait a soft and delicate appearance...so much so that the viewer is tempted to pet or stroke the dogs. 

 

I decided to add a few coats of spray fixative to this larger painting to ensure the pastel stays where it is supposed to. This prevents unwanted loose dust to dirty the glass and mat once the portrait is framed.

To read more about this dog portrait visit my website at http://www.colettetheriault.com/descriptions/petdescriptions/dogs_portrait.php

Lexxie and Dakota
Dog Portrait Commission
Pastel
18x16

Dog Portrait update

I would like to thank all who commented and followed the progress of this dog painting. Your kind words, guidance and encouragement helped me see the light at the end of the tunnel so-to-speak.

 

While painting each dog presented it's own challenges, I at times felt that I would never be satisfied with the piece. But now, I  have finally reached a point where I can breathe normally again as I feel a sense of exhilaration knowing that the painting will shortly by completed and handed over to the client. Nothing truly beats seeing the expression on their face as they view their portrait in real life for the first time...

 

Black Labrador Portait in progress

I was able to begin working on the second dog in this portrait. Although she looks like a black Labrador or flat coated retriever type dog, she may also have some border collie lineage in the mix.

Once I have completed and am satisfied with the head and face of the dog, I anticipate the rest of the body will be quite a breeze...or at least, I hope so.

 

Here are a few more updates of tonight's work.

 

 

More black fur!

Thank goodness I have several of the 8B pencils on hand! I keep one that is blunt, one that is sharpened to a fine point and yet another that has the lead sharpened somewhere in between. I find this really helpful when working on different areas of really dark fur such as the one this black Labrador/border collie cross is sporting! Perhaps I'll need to switch mode soon and start working on the grass in the background...

Rosie coming to life!

After spending much of the day working on this drawing, I managed to finish the facial features of this pretty border collie/Labrador mix. Drawing the fur on the muzzle is definitely the most time consuming part since each strand of fur measures only 0.5 to 1.0 mm long! Add to the fact that several layers of different grades of pencil are slowly added, one at a time. Considering this, drawing the rest of the dog should be smooth sailing from now on right? I sure hope so!

Next pet portrait commission...

What happened to my scanner?? Gosh, I do apologize for the poor quality. I'm assuming it is because I've used a light "H" pencil and it is not being picked up very well on the white paper.
Although perhaps hard to tell at this stage, this dog portrait is of a border collie/Labrador mix.

Beginings of a dog portrait

I've decided to use pastel pencils on sandpaper for my portrait of Shayli. I've been wanting to try out a new paper I purchased last winter called UArt pastel sandpaper, 800 grit. So far so good but I'm finding myself forever sharpening my pencils to keep a fine point!

Next pet portait-my dog Shayli!

Being a pet portraitist, you can't believe how many times I've been asked if I had a painting or drawing of my own dog. I'd shamely answer a mumbled "no", blaming the fact that I'm busy doing portraits of other people's pets and don't have much time for my own compositions. I actually felt like the shoemaker who walks bare feet!

Another reason for my procrastination was trying to choose which reference photograph of my dog to use since there are so many I like. So I thought to myself, why not have more than one? The photograph above will be used as my first attempt at Shayli's portrait. I haven't decided what medium to use yet, perhaps pastel on sandpaper or colored pencil on drafting film...

police dog artwork progress

Turk, the dog I am currently working on is a black Labrador retriever. He is now retired from detection duties at the Pentagon. Having him featured on the artwork is a nice way to honor and remember him for his years of service as a detection dog for the US government.

Labradoodle dog portrait commission

I loved creating this graphite/charcoal pet portrait of Coco, the black Labrador-standard poodle cross. I almost entirely used 8B graphite (almost charcoal in consistency and darkness) for this artwork.
The messy semi-curly fur and the highlights of the black fur were the most interesting and fun parts to do...until I decided it was best to color her tongue pink and add some subtle brown highlights to her muzzle and color her eyes brown. I just could not get myself to draw the tongue and eyes in shades of grey and so I convinced the client she would look more lively with the added coloring.
So now, I guess this drawing would be best described as a "colored pencil enhanced graphite dog portrait". Size 10"x10".