Last minute doubts
 

This is a portrait I have worked on (and even signed) I was going to present for the client today but had some terrible doubts and lack of confidence, and had to call to say I need more time. So I am asking , what could be improved ?, how does it read ? I would appreciate any comment.
I measures 50 X70 , and is a little less than life size.

Grethe, are you concerned about the likeness? If so, no-one here can comment without a photo to compare.

suggestion
 

Grethe I would suggest that you crop this to a smaller size . It really is a beautiful portrait it just seems you have to much canvas around the edges.

Grethe, maybe the shoulders are a little too wide, especially his right one.
Maybe you have already done this, but try and look at the painting in a mirror: it willl help you see it with fresh eyes. I would also be careful about the shape of the head on the right which seems to get smaller than the neck.
My last comment regards the bottom of the painting. This is a personal fixation of mine, that I have against vignetting. I believe that it is quite difficult to choose this sort of finishing only in one area, while the canvas is covered everywhere else.
The torso is the plinth for your head, it needs a solid base to sustain the weight of the head, otherwise the whole of the figure could loose credibility.
I think Dan has given you an excellent suggestion that would rid you of the most problematic areas, maybe you could leave a little more above the hair
Ilaria

Julie, my concern is everything but the likeness. I am happy with the expression on his face too.
Dan , thanks.Good point about having too much canvas, but how would I crop an already stretched canvas? I think I will have to live with this size, or start a new.
Ilaria, I will correct the shoulders and probably the neck a bit too. Thanks for your help.Maybe it is the attempt at vignetting that looks so disturbing to me. Sometimes its so hard to tell whats wrong. This is my first oil commision ever, so I want it to look right.

Grethe, cropping a canvas is easy. The first thing to do would decide how you want it cropped. I do this by taping adding machine tape to my painting, trying different croppings until I come up with what I like. Then I measure and move the measurement up or down to the whole inch so it will fit on new stretcher bars. Removing the canvas from the old stretchers is just a matter of taking out the staples or tacks. Aligning the new stretchers correctly on the painting can be a bit tricky so what I've learned to do is put straight pins into the exact corners, and with a pencil mark the back side of the canvas where the pin comes through, then you have your placement for the new bars.

The next step is stretching the canvas which I won't go into here because Garth posted a good demo on how to do it. It's called "Successfully stretching preprimed linen." I'm sorry but I don't know how to refer you to it the right way, (I'm rather computer challenged) maybe someone will help me out and do this for me? Or you can find it through doing a search.

Thanks Debra, so then cropping might be the best thing to do. What is the best size for head shoulders ?, I am thinking of future portraits. or is it a good idea to paint on unstretched canvas? I thought I had composed it quite well but it turned out not so.

Last minute
 

Grethe, I tend to agree with Dan in cropping. Debra and Garth explain the process quite well. So, if you decide to stretch you will have no problem.

Here is another way. I have made some adjustments, I hope you do not mind. Adjustments were made to the chin, mouth, cheeks, forehead and the obvious. Maybe this will help.

Wishing you all the best

Mischa, you do wonders. Thanks. All of a sudden the canvas does not look too big. I kind of like the hint of his book shelf as part of the background. I do not mind the suggestions about the chin you made, but he tend to loose his character a bit. This is of course impossible to tell, so i will post a picture of my sitter.since I do appreciate this first hand advice

Grethe, one thing I was taught in school that I think you should keep in mind is this: The placement of the top of the head. The father down the head is, the less authority the person appears to have. I would think of a doctor as a person of authority and want to place his head higher in the cropping if I were you.

I think another thing I would do is lower the value of his jacket so that the brightness of it doesn't draw the eye too much. That will help the viewer to look at his face. I like the way Mischa moved the bookshelf closer.

As for sizing for head and shoulders I've done anything from 15x19 to 18x25, of course that's in inches. I think 16x20 is a pretty common size. I prefer to map out the composition and then decide on the size according to the compostion. I look for interesting negative spaces, trying not to repeat shapes.

If I do a full size cartoon before painting my cropping is decided in the cartoon stage. If I start out right on canvas taped to a board I always make sure I have a bigger canvas than I think I need so I can crop it later and still have room to hang onto it with the canvas pliers.

I think posting the picture will be a help here also.