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Creating Hand-Painted Photographs

The most frequently asked question about hand painting photographs is, "How long does it take to hand paint an image?" Some people work quickly or do not do a lot of detailed work. They might be able to finish a print in a few hours. I try to finish a picture within two days. I will spend an entire day painting, then go back to the image the next day to take a closer look and touch up any areas that I feel need to be redone. You don't want to spread your work out over too long a time, however. After a week or so the colors start to become permanently embedded in the emulsion and become difficult to manipulate.

Just as painters find different materials to paint on and to paint with, so can photographers. Think of your photograph as a sketch. Try different ways to put the color down on your image-a brush, cotton, your hands, anything that may free you up to start incorporating color into your image.

My favorite tool is a skewer and cotton on the end, similar to a cotton swab. I like to make my own so that I can control the size of my "brush". I use wax paper as my palette and mat board one size bigger than my print as my easel. Mixing different types of paint, oil and water do work; it is just matter of learning how you prefer to put them down on paper.

There is no right or wrong way. Throughout my book I talk about experimenting and being playful. Embellishing black-and-white or color photographs is a great place to start.