It is notoriously hard to scan and photograph colored pencil drawings.
They look better in real life. Mainly less ‘spotty’.
And their backgrounds are white (!) with a ‘halo’ of light blue pencil.
But this was the only way I could make the colors look more like the originals.
I decided to make them whimsical and very colorful.
My head is not really that red and my hair not really that colorful.
I normally wear glasses and don’t have such a pronounced double chin, lol.
At the end I blended the colored pencil lines with cotton swabs.
These turned out so well - it looks like you’re having fun with your new pencils! I like how, in a world full of filters and AI edits, you leaned into making these “real” (even if you did exaggerate a bit!).
I am happy (as far as that is possible with debilitating health issues like chronic pain, fatigue, diabetes, a poorly functioning immune system, and then some).
I decided to replace my ‘semi-funny’ description with ‘whimsical’, thanks @gozer !
I started by putting down the shadow areas, thus shaping the features of the face.
The drawings look better in real life. The blending, the shading, not so spotty like in these pictures.
I love working with the Polychromos.
Building up multiple thin layers of color, I like how they keep their points for a long time (I used to work with softer colored pencils and constantly had to sharpen them).
My hand didn’t even hurt more than normal (my shoulder did, so I couldn’t work on it too long at a time).
I definitely want to make more drawings with colored pencils.
Congratulations!! Your whimsically fun self-portraits are a Featured Project!! 