I am considering doing some commercial portrait painting from peoples' own photographs. This portrait was done in Painter and Photoshop. I am shooting for a painterly look which becomes more apparent in the full size detail I've included from the finished image. Do you think my work is of a quality that will be commercially viable or do I need more practice. I'm looking forward to your honest opinions.

Photomaster. I like the couple, but the cropped head shot has a problem for me in that the eyes are too sharp for the rest of the painted look. i know eyes are important, but if you masked them back in for detail, I think you might have gone a little overboard. :-)

the eyes are too sharp for the rest of the painted look. I think you might have gone a little overboard. :-)

Thanks Swampy, I see what you mean and you are sooo right. It's nice to have a fresh pair of eyes. I toned them down considerably. (Wink, wink) Is it enough or do I need to do more?

Better, Photo. Still a little sharp for me, but better.

Photomaster
Don't forget that you are a painter, and painters make changes to improve the painting. I would shorten the hair by the womans eyes, that is bother some. It is blurry between the hair and her neck too. And the mans jaw is akward, I would push it in.
I like the what you have done.

Two things pop out at me for possible changing/imporvement.

1) I would recontour his cheek to tone down his chipmunk bulge.
2) The necks of the teeth at the gumline on her right side are too prominent and semi-unsightly (actually the crowns on the teeth are rather short) and I would extend the necks of the teeth so they make a contiguous line.(and fix their color and possibly hide the last one.) (I was formerly a dentist who specialized in crown and bridge).

Your work definitely has potential. See my .02 here on a similar question.

http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/turning-portraits-into-digital-sketches-oils-watercolors/17356-another-try-painting.html

Thanks for the comments. Made alterations to the cheek, hair and teeth per suggestions from Traveler and Cathy. Any more suggestions?

Danny, I appreciate the unique styles of Jeremy Sutton and Marilyn Sholin. Their work definitely sells. I also realize that becoming reasonably successful comes from applying 80% of my effort toward marketing and 20% toward production.

I hope to eventually develop a unique and pleasing style of my own as I continue to improve my technique. For now my objective is to take an ordinary photograph and give it a "wow" factor. I want to produce results that people will like and want to give as gifts or display in their homes. Perhaps the biggest challenge is to produce paintings that have staying power i.e, they will be as appealing in 5, 10 or 20 years as they are today.

Thanks for the update.
What did you actually think of the suggestions?

Photomaster
That is much better.
And I agree with your thinking, you will improve with practice. I'm thinking of doing the same kind of think, but it takes lots of time to figure out what works and what doesn't, and what sell and what is a classic style, as you say.
cahty

Traveler wrote:
What did you actually think of the suggestions?

I agree that the alterations to the man's cheek and the woman's teeth make the portrait look better. However in a photo realistic portrait, like this one, I would consult with the client before changing physical characteristics. In a more abstract portrait, like Jeremy Sutton's style, it would not be as much of an issue.

Interesting info here. (testimonials from students of Karen Sperling)

"Selling Painted Portraits: Fact or Fiction. Is anyone really selling Painter portraits?"

Note: PDF format - http://www.artistrymag.com/docs/ArtistrySpecial.pdf