Stinkerpants

Will it Look Like Me? Getting Your Custom Drawing Just Right

August 1, 2010 in Blog • Weddings-Blog • Custom Weddings • Running A Business • Running Stinkerpants

Every once in awhile, I’m reminded that I need to write a post on this subject - and now I’m finally doing it!

I’ve been asked these two questions more than a few times:

“why don’t you have any photos of your clients on your website, so we can see what they look like compared to your drawing?”

and

“do your characters really look like the people you’re drawing?”  

The answer to the first question definitely comes down to personal preference.  I just don’t like the way websites look when they have those “before and after” photos.  I think it cheapens the look of the website, so I made a conscious decision not to do it.  But in a way, it kind of sucks for my potential clients, who are left wondering, well..."do your characters really look like the people you’re drawing?”  And the answer is definitely yes, but with one caveat: I have to have good photos of the person first.  If I have good photos (more on that in a minute), I think I do a pretty good job  - and so do my clients!  Take this quote from a recent client, Jess:

“"WOW!  I always thought your stuff was cute, but I didn't really realize how much it would actually LOOK like me until I saw myself drawn.  So cool!"

When Jess asked me why I don’t post photos of my clients alongside their drawings, I asked her if she’d be willing to let me use a few of her photos for the blog, so I could do just that!  Lucky for me, she's a good sport.  :) 

So without further ado, here’s an example of a couple, and their Save the Date:

Jess and Mike provided me with great photos, so it was easy to make them look just right.  

And what makes for a great photo, you might ask?

In order to draw a character that looks like you, I need to be able to see the shape of your face.  That means I need photos that are taken straight-on, and are unobscured by things like sunglasses or hats.  

Here’s an example of a couple of photos:

In the first one, see how her face is tilted away from the camera?  If you like taking self-portraits, a lot of your photos probably look like this (I know mine do!).  

Sometimes clients have a hard time finding good photos of themselves, and they’ll send me a bunch that are just okay.  Sometimes I’m able to make a character look right using those images, but it takes me a lot more time, and I’ll often feel less than 100% confident about them.  In those cases, I email the client the initial proof and ask them, “do you think this looks like you?  If not, send me a few more photos!”  After the second round of things, the character ends up looking just right.  That’s why it’s good to have great photos from the outset.

One thing to keep in mind that your pictures don’t have to be super high-quality.  If you want to send me a photo from your camera phone, I’m not picky!  It’s mostly the angle that matters. ;)  So feel free to take a quick picture just for me - I’ll definitely appreciate it!