"Three Cats on Stairs" portrait in progress 5 - Never too many reference photos

Working on Bonnie, the second cat on the stairs.

This photo was taken in the studio while I was working on Bonnie's eyes. The photo second from the left on the monitor is my main reference for her face. But I’m using the others to see eye color, and double-check the shape of her eyes. They have better color and better detail than the main photo.

The more reference photos a portrait artist has of their subject, the better. One photo can be deceptive because of the lighting or angle. More photos show the truth of the features.

Here are Bonnie's eyes finished:

🎨 Prismacolor pencil and watercolor on “Flannel Grey” Canson Mi-Teintes paper.

“Three Cats on Stairs”

(Grace, Bonnie, and Morgan)

Commissioned by Tammy Cunningham.