Certainly one of my favorite finalized portraits, ready to hang.  Parker Pup is so handsome! :)

My last equine portrait lent itself to illustrating the steps that go into one of my portraits.  So I took the liberty of snapping some of the check points during the portrait process.  I hope you enjoy the making of one of my custom horse portraits!

Above:  blocking in dark tones with a variety of browns, reds, purples, and some black
Below: some close views of the scribbles of pastel

Above: Almost all the base color is laid onto the paper. This is before I did any blending.

Above: I began blending large areas of the face.  Still wasn't too concerned with detail. Just aimed to get the right colors and values where they needed to be.

Above: Once all the colors are applied to the paper and blended correctly, I start to apply hair texture over the base layer. 
Below: Close-ups of the hair strokes of color.
LOVE THOSE WARM TONES!

Below: I added a background that complimented the warmth of the horse's coat. 

The finished product:
"Sanuk" 16 x 20 pastel horse portrait on archival sanded 400 paper.
Original artwork by Jenna Wilke

To be eligible to win, you must own the photo.  YOU must have photographed your pet yourself, OR you must have the rights/ownership of the photo from the photographer.

All winning photos become property of Imagine Art and may be used and replicated for use in the Imagine Art portfolio, website, and advertisements. 

DISCLAIMER: Facebook is in no way associated with this contest.

Sometimes a pet portrait can serve as more than a way to show that you cherish your pet. Perhaps a portrait can serve as a memorial for a pet who has passed away.  Or sometimes, a portrait can help to preserve a very sweet memory of your pet.   Or sometimes, it can serve as all of the above - as my most recent pet portrait commission. 

A few weeks ago I got a call from a woman interested in a pet portrait.  I answered a gamut of questions for her before she came around to explain to me her unique situation. Donna expressed concern for my ability to complete the portrait. But, she also said it was very important for her to have an image of her Sheltie to remember her by. 
The problem was that she had only one photo of her beloved Sheltie, who had passed away a few years prior (hence why she wanted a portrait done). And it was a photo - not a digital file (remember those? LOL). I reassured her - explaining that while its nice to have several pictures to choose from, only one photo is really necessary to complete a portrait. 
But that wasn't all of it.  "Its tiny," she explained. 4 x 4 inches to be exact. Of all my experience in pet portraiture, I've never been asked to work from such a tiny reference photo. But still, I was confident that the size would not be a concern, and that I would try my best to get the appropriate amount of detail.
But wait, there's more! Donna went on even further with her concerns.  "Well," she said, "Its...stuck."  I waited for her to stumble over the rest of the explanation. (I was a tad confused). The photo was literally STUCK in its frame. After being in a frame for so many years, possibly being moved from room to room, home to home, had adhered to the glass in the frame. Furthermore, moisture had entered the frame, which caused stains on the photo, in addition to some color fading due to sunlight exposure.

But still, I was fairly confident I could complete the commission.  We met a few weeks later for me to pick up the photo allegedly damaged. And this is what I got:

In the picture above, you can see how desaturated the colors are, as well as the lack of detail in the fur (because the photo was taken dusk).  Around the edges you can see the yellowing on the photo (due to age) and the border of moisture that adhered the photo to the glass.

I'm not going to lie - this portrait was challenging, to say the least. As an artist, I've been faced with many difficult tasks that require a lot of experimentation and problem solving - and sometimes you have to really think outside of the box to get a job done. Artists have to constantly be on top of their game - with not only the creativity to be original, but the ingenuity to create new ways to jump hurdles (or at least go around them.)

While working on this portrait, I hd to constantly remind myself of the color difference - that the photo's hues were distorted and faded. In addition, I had to compensate for the overall darkness, especially in the Sheltie's face and hair. Lastly, I had to look through the stains to try and see the detail in the background and foreground. Oh, and glass = glare, and glare makes a portrait VERY difficult! =P

And so, after a challenging battle with the infamous "impossible portrait"...

Alas, Donna's fondest memory of her Sheltie at the beach is not preserved in colored pencil! =]

A few weeks ago, while hanging my own flyers advertising my custom pet portraits around Connecticut, I spotted an event advertisement that caught my eye. This "Woofstock" event was to be the first of its kind in our local pet community, to be held on the Brandford green.
Being the person that I am, I fell in love with the name alone - it was so perfectly funny and fitting! I knew I wanted to be a part of the event, so I contacted the Ken Engelman (the chairman of the event) right away. 
Let's fast forward about 2 weeks to August 24th.  You couldn't ask for a more beautifully perfect day.  80 degrees without a cloud in the sky. I arrived at the Branford green at 10 am, to prepare for the 11 am start time. A few passersby took great interest in the activity and asked me what it was for as I was setting up my booth.   "Its a music festival...for dogs." I replied. It was a short, sweet, and fitting explanation.

Woofstock's goal was to raise awareness, funds, and supplies for the Dan Cosgrove Animal Shelter in Branford. All attendees were asked to bring a small donation from a list of necessary pet supplies like dogs toys, cat litter, etc. As a thank you for their help, visitors got to spend the gorgeous day socializing all their furry four-leggged friends while enjoying some awesome live music from (I lost count of how many) local bands. The result was a day that I will never forget.

Setting up my booth was a bit of a headache. There was just enough breeze to knock over one of my newly framed portraits and shatter the glass - so I ultimately had to zip tie everything to the tent -A small price to pay to enjoy what the day had to offer. 
I brought all my drawing supplies so that I could work on a portrait of "Samson" a white German Shepherd with quite a reputation in my town!  
The drawing process brought lots of interested spectators and was a fabulous ice breaker. 

I was pleasantly surprised to have some visits from familiar faces, like my friend Courtney, and my fabulous parents. To them I owe great thanks for the food delivery and bathroom breaks. ;)
I also got a visit from a dog named "Diamond" who is Samson's (my portrait on the easel) lover.  Since Samson's portrait is a surprise gift, the dog's owner was in awe over the portrait. It was a great twist on the day. 

Oh yea, and my car became an attraction in itself. (To be expected.)

Lately I've had the urge to do something different with my art...and last night I found it! I'm proud to announce the Grand Opening of the Imagine Art Zazzle store!

Zazzle has always been a favorite resource of mine.  I found them years ago, and started printing custom calendars as Christmas gifts for family members. Since then, the company has grown tremendously, adding new items constantly. 

The great thing about Zazzle is that you can customize anything to be exactly how you like it - with pictures, logos, text, anything! I've always been 100% satisfied with their quality also.

The Imagine Art store has a wide variety of items, ranging from kitchen towels and throw pillows to mugs and iPhone cases. Everything is customizable, so you can add your own text if you like. Images vary from my paintings and drawings to photography. If there's something you'd like to see, let me know.

Click here to check out my Zazzle Store!

This is also available for custom pet portraits - I can make you a custom design with your pet portrait!

Announcing the grand opening of my (JennaLovesArt) Etsy Shop! Had to stick with the old account name - sorry!
I'll be posting some new and old pieces in my shop.  Mostly equine art at the moment.  Prints are also available upon request.

Let’s face it. Your pets get treated as well, if not better, than your children. So its no surprise that we want to show off pictures of our furry friends to everyone. Be it on Facebook, Instagram, or just your wallet photos, you’re proud to flaunt those cute pictures of Fluffy. 
So how do you get the best pictures of your pet? While fancy SLR cameras offer beautiful pictures, they’re not required to capture the perfect moment with your pet. Here are a few tips to help you snap great pictures with a simple point and shoot, or even your handy camera phone!

All too often, people take pictures of their pets looking down at them.  It’s something most pet owners don’t think twice about - because, after all, you do spend most of your time seeing them from that angle. However, this angle creates foreshortening in your picture, causing the proportions to distort.  The picture you snap will not capture the accurate adorable face that you love so much! 

To avoid this, sit or kneel in front of your pet on the ground. If you have a smaller dog or cat, have them sit on a couch or chair, and then snap your shot. Taking pictures from their height is bound to yield a better - I mean cuter - picture of Fluffy. 


See?  Much better!

Another common mistake is flash and indoor photography. The are several factors that come into play here. 

When you photograph inside, you are relying on one or more light sources. Whether its a lamp or overhead light, chances are that they are altering the color of your picture. Fluorescent lighting makes your picture look cold, while incandescent lights make the picture very warm. 

To compensate for dim lighting, your camera will probably turn on an auto-flash setting. This comes in handy when you want capture a split second of Fluffy wearing that ridiculous cowboy costume you bought him. However, flash is generally going to yield an unflattering picture of your pet. Flash washes out color, and often eliminates important details, like the texture of their fur. Lastly, and most importantly, flash produces red eye on your subject. While a pet’s ‘red eye’ looks more like a green/grey, it still flattens the eye and blocks their true eye color.


In this picture, Ranger's color is completely washed out, and his eyes are flat. 

Whenever possible, use natural light. Sit outside with your pet.  Have them face the sun - or at least face away from shadows. If you have a pet that can’t go outside, like an indoor cat, have them sit beside a window with lots of light. 



See how in this picture, Ranger has beautiful blue eyes, and color in his face?

If Fluffy would rather snooze on the couch all day than go for a hike, than the couch might be a fitting place to photograph him. On the other hand, if Fluffy enjoys a good romp at the dog park, an outdoor scene would make a better photo of him. The important thing to remember is to let the photo depict your pet’s personality. 

Consider using props, like their favorite toys or blankets, to include in the picture. On the other hand, consider the picture as a whole, and avoid having excess or unnecessary objects in the picture. Having too many things in your picture makes it distracting for the viewer to focus on your pet. 


From this portrait, you can tell what a happy, energetic Corgi Paddington is!

I can say from honest experience that you cannot beat the quality of pictures taken be a professional.  Pet photographers know exactly how to make your pet look their best.  Your pets do have a 'good side', you know! Proper lighting, depth of field, and shutter speed are all things that a pet photographer can handle - and trust me - once you see the pictures you'll be astonished at the difference it makes!

If you're in the Connecticut area, I highly recommend Kathryn Schauer Photography. The picture on the left is a perfect example of capturing the ideal moment, with the help of a pet photographer of course.

I hope these tips help you to capture the best moments with your furry friend!

I know, I know, I haven't posted in a while. But my busy schedule means lots of art!

May 20th was IMAGINE Art's FIRST public appearance! I had a booth at the 4th annual Help Willy's Friends Pet Fair on May 20th. The fair was a blast and it gave IMAGINE Art a chance to show off all of our pet portraits.