
Thief - Work in Progress - Painting in Photoshop
There comes a certain point when you have to stop underpainting.
Each part in this underpainting is still separated by material. One layer for the jacket yellows. Another for the dark rims. One more each for the hair, skin, and metallic parts. All of them underneath the linework.
You can still add more paint, but by this stage, everything is already base-defined. You zoom out and the full picture is there. You know where it’s going. The fidelity just isn’t fully there yet.
This is when I merge all the layers into one and begin painting directly over it. Another pass over the face. Correcting proportions. Carving features more clearly. Exploring fine hair lines. Pushing materials and forms further without falling into hyperrealism.
It takes a calm mind to know when the underpainting is done and when the final detailing begins. Especially after staring at the same image for hours or days.
And eventually, another voice comes:
“It is finished.”
Right now, maybe it is finished.
I don’t know yet.
I’m still listening.