Portrait Preparation ~How to change a Photo into a Sketch in Paint.Net

Hi Guys!

So today I'd like to share something different with you all.

I've been itching to do a Colored Pencil Portrait (ambitious, I know) for some time and for those of you who might be similarly inclined I learned a few tricks online.

I say "tricks" but there's nothing sneaky about what we're going to do. Artists have been tracing, or 'projecting' the subject they want to paint onto a surface for decades.

 I could sketch my subject  but it would just take a lot longer so I'm skipping a step. And I'm going to show how to do it too.

First of all, I am using Paint.Net (a free photo manipulating software similar to photoshop)

So after you've downloaded Paint, open it up. It will look like this:

Click on FILE in the upper left hand corner, then OPEN to retrieve your photo from a folder.

A box will pop up which will allow you to fumble around for your picture. 

When you find it, select it and click OPEN at the bottom right.

See below:

Now your photo will appear on your Paint screen.

Next, click on EFFECTS located in the bar at the top of the window.

Then, in the pop up box, select ARTISTIC and

then PENCIL SKETCH.

You're going to have a box come up right smack dab in the middle of your picture.

This box allows you to manipulate the size of the "pencil" strokes so you can make your sketch as light or as heavy as you like.

Click OK

Here's the finished sketch below. Amazing, isn't it?

Now don't forget to save your sketch by going back to FILE in the upper left corner. Selecting SAVE AS.

This is so you can keep your sketch somewhere safe on your computer and retrieve it again.

So I have my finished sketch on file and so I printed  it out onto some proper drawing paper.

I also printed out an original photo, as well as a photo covered in a grid and a sketch covered in a grid. I don't know if I'll need the latter two but I figured I'd cover all bases just to be on the safe side. :-)

 So there's the easy bit done. Now I have the challenging job of making this sketch come alive. I'm a bit nervous if I'm being honest but there's a quote I read from one of you crafter's blogs that said "whether you think you can do it or whether you think you can't, in either case you're right."

So I'm going to try. :-)

It will take some time but I promise to show you all how it comes out.

*In passing, there's a technicality you might want to know.

When you make use a sketch printed out like this to do a colored pencil painting you are not allowed to enter it into an art show under "Colored Pencil Painting". It would have to be labeled as "Mixed Media" because of the print ink.

However, if you really wanted to be "artistically correct" you can remedy this by simply taking your printed out sketch and transferring it onto your sketch paper with a graphite sheet of transfer paper. You would have to trace it, but the marks would be graphite and so "pencil".

I'm not planning on winning any blue ribbons so I'm happy with this but its good to know.

Happy Crafting!