[Tom Edgerton]

Garth--

Thanks a lot. I painted this one entirely from photography, as she lives a good distance from me. I always insist on finishing from life, but in this instance the client didn't want me to touch the painting, and I didn't see anything back on site that demanded reworking (just lucky this time). The contrasts are slightly stronger even in this JPEG than in the painting, though the color is pretty true.

Though commissioned work often requires working from photography, I'm trying to overcome its limitations and have strong solidity and realism without too photographic a look. Contrast range is a big factor, true, but another element that I think isn't discussed enough in this quest is edge control. Too many sharp edges kills the naturalism, to me, so I've worked hard at developing a hierarchy of edges within my work.

Anyway, thanks so much.
--TE