How I painted a pet portrait: Rambo
- adrienne koehazi
- May 1
- 2 min read
A story about painting a pet portrait
In this blog post I would like to show you the process of portrait painting. It will answer your questions about how I do a commission and what happens behind the scenes. If you want to know how I paint pet portraits, read this blog article!
Rambo is a beagle-staffie mix and needless to say, he's a cutie. It was a pleasure to paint his portrait! I took several photos and even a video of the process!
Let's get started!
From sketch to final result: what are the steps in painting a pet portrait?
I received several pictures of Rambo from the owners and it was quite difficult to decide which one to choose. He looked very handsome in all of them. In the end, I combined two pictures to make a painting. I had a close-up of the dog's face from the front, and I also got a full-length one of him wearing his red collar. This was important for the design, as the collar was also on the dog in my painting.
This is how the sketch I did was painted:
After the sketch was finished, I could get on with the painting. I work in watercolour, so choosing the right paper is essential. I usually paint on 300 gram watercolour paper to achieve the right quality.
To give you a comparison, a plain photocopy paper is usually 90 grams. As watercolour is a water-based paint, it is important that the paper is of the right thickness, otherwise it cannot handle the amount of water I use when painting.
I apply the paint to the paper with a soft-bristled round brush. You can see my palettes and brushes next to Rambo's picture:
A fun portrait painting experience: dog portrait step by step
As promised in the introduction, I have a short video of the painting. Here you can see a time lapse video of the process:
Custom pet portrait to order? Let's get to it!
Thank you for following me through how I created a pet portrait. Rambo was a pleasure to work with, but what makes me most happy is when I get this kind of feedback from owners:
Rambo was just as happy to see his portrait as his owners 😊
Are you interested in a unique pet portrait?
It doesn't matter whether you want to give the portrait as a gift or as a surprise for yourself. Got an empty space on your wall that's crying out for a painting of your favorite pet? Tired of six thousand photos and want something unique?
Rest assured, you're in the right place!
It's also the place for you if you want to memorialise your lost pet. It's a more difficult and painful subject, but I know what you're going through. I painted my very first pet portrait in memory of my dog Marci, who we had to say goodbye to within six months due to a serious illness.
It hasn't got any easier to look at his portrait since then, but it's comforting to know that it's there on the wall and I can see it every day. So I will certainly not forget his features.
