This is my latest commission which is pastel on Fisher 400 (sanded) paper.
When I received the ref photos I thought Oliver was a black lab - the main pose reference is quite a distant full body shot and he looks incredibly shiny and very black. The others show him swimming in water so his coat looks even darker. I was subsequently told he is in fact a chocolate lab x rotty and has a brown tinge to his coat.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIx1ULjzLBw_Dh53NiJVrtZPH9KZoz3ZNU6C3X6djZkQ9k8aK-KadGMSK7F0fQty-yByeUJ7lBg-ssK-rXTnTWYJBeGL1HsINjzShGxuP_3CVsmDYoejNO4LGlkBuVDkCBrfTb3i1zUh8/s320/1.jpg)
As always, I've put some eye detail in first so Oliver becomes a 'personality' to me. I'm struggling a little with this one as it is very difficult to see detail around Oliver's jaw/neckline. I am working in a much looser style than usual as the photo is less detailed than I would like so am just putting down a base layer of pastel here.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIHqT0rp00JK82JVmc64ouJU-3JsQmU67yecZvmhU89E9fgvl1ozIiH-juQneic1pmlwjnGPfKeO6mE3eRQr4LaClnVQ985RZkOnDFqN9EAVziRaeeGP8jqoXszyev9QywySYWw8yEWgU/s320/2a.jpg)
I've started to define his nose and begun to map out some of the distinguishable shadows and highlights to help me build up the contours of his face. This is still a fairly light covering of pastel, just to form the base of my portrait.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSh5eI-_rwLsuGqmOn3lZPuj9n3OpPXo8u0-PNNlY-4as3T93dcQtMCe7wzUwngTDl8a_9bESrJobjHb1rfuovg_DST0DfiemtZBdBkw4SfUprLptHt6YyolmaPdnMZY_7fCHs3MHtGzI/s320/3.jpg)
I've decided to stop at this point as I'm not sure what is happening around Oliver's neckline. We have a busy weekend lined up so I probably won't get the chance to work on this again until Monday. Probably not a bad thing as I'm sure I'll pick up on more detail when I look at it with fresh eyes.