Horse Portrait in Progress

I'm working on this pencil drawing of a Mustang mare, Kallie. This is just a photo, not a good scan, so the tones aren't quite right and the corners are dark, but it's enough to show how it's coming along. A grey scale version of the reference photo is below it. It's the best photo I have to work from, since dear Kallie has passed, but I was able to pull out some of the detail in Photoshop and I have other reference photos of horses' heads at that angle to fill in the blanks. Kallie's lower lip was hanging down, so with the owner's approval, I've closed her mouth in the portrait. I've also taken out the halter and tidied up her mane.





I usually have a couple of portraits/projects going on at once. For portraits that don't require paint (pencil, color pencil, scratchboard) I usually work on them while sitting on the couch (my secondary studio) while watching TV in the evening. The projects that require paint have to be done in my office/studio at the work table. Earlier today, I was working on a watercolor portrait of a black standard poodle. It's not much to look at yet, so I don't have a photo to post.