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Found footage: Creating photorealistic portraits with a finger and an iPad

by Steven Sande Jul 5th 2010 at 3:00PM


Artists are taking to the iPad like ducks to water. The device seems to be a natural tool for many artists to use, and the public is now starting to see the fruits of the relationship in the form of some startling and beautiful digital art.

Kyle Lambert is a perfect example of an artist who has quickly adapted to the iPad as an art creation tool. The Cheshire, England based portrait artist recently spent six hours painting an astoundingly good portrait of performer Beyonce using an iPad, his finger, and the Brushes iPad app (US$7.99).

Lambert makes time-lapse movies of his creation process, and it's fascinating to see the details of Beyonce's face emerge from the digital canvas in the movie above. We'd also like to see what other professional artists are accomplishing with the iPad, so if you have a work that was created on the iPad or iPhone, let us know by clicking or tapping that Send a Tip link at the top of the page.

Thanks to Paul Kent for the tip!


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Artists are taking to the iPad like ducks to water. The device seems to be a natural tool for many artists to use, and the public is now...
 

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Holger Ehlis

iPads are pretty amazing tools in the hand of artists. http://bit.ly/c8YhtI

July 06 2010 at 11:00 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
walter

I'm more impressed by this video of an artist drawing from life:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OLP4nbAVA4

July 06 2010 at 2:02 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rego

After viewing the video, reading the article and comments I conclude that:

1. The artist drew a photorealistic image of Beyonce. (I know a photo realistic image when I see one!)

2. That artists are flocking to the iPad!

3. That pomposity is alive and well!

July 06 2010 at 12:50 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
glassmusic

Comic Artist legend Jim Lee has posted several of his iPad masterpieces on his Twitter feed. Here are a couple of links to the results. (Catwoman, Joker, Wonder Woman)

http://www.comicvine.com/news/jim-lee-sketches-on-the-ipad/140803/

http://io9.com/5511864/ipad-wizardry-jim-lee-sketches-wonder-woman

July 05 2010 at 10:18 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
A_Hawkins

iPad just added another choice for artists. My friend who is computer artist uses tablet (Wacom something) to create her masterpieces more often than physical brush, yet still very impressed no less than the brush.

Artist who use technology doesn't mean he/she is weaker, or better than a traditional artist.

iPad, too, can be a major tool for an artist, just like tablet can be used in place of mouse. My friend uses tablet faster than I use mouse and of course everyone would argue it is not a device for point-and-click in everyday use.

July 05 2010 at 9:25 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to A_Hawkins's comment
Leiwei

with that new 'pressure-sensitive' app library going on for the ipad, it'll be interesting to see if artists will start using the ipad over a much more expensive wacom cintiq. Of course the ipad isn't as flexible nor is the pressure-sensitivity genuine, but it would appear to be a much more affordable route.

I have tried sketching the robot intro pic in the SketchBook Pro app and have found that the ipad is a possible alternative to sketch something like the robot or the above beyonce video.

July 06 2010 at 11:47 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JAQ

"Artists are taking to the iPad like ducks to water."

More "like ducks to ice", from what I've seen. I see a few artists using the iPad on an experimental basis, trying to see how they can manage with the handicaps it imposes. That's a worthwhile creative exercise, but it's not an endorsement of the method in general. Some of these experimenters are producing some nice results, but usually doing so with quite a bit more effort (and to be honest, weaker results) than they would use with other tools. Tools that are designed for that purpose.

Can you use an iPad and Brushes to produce photorealistic portraits? Sure, and you can use your feet to paint landscapes in oil, and you can remake the Harry Potter films using Bratz dolls, and you can surf the web using IE6 on a Pentium-based PC. The question is whether, if you have the option of using your hands, Daniel Radcliffe, or Safari on a MacBook, you would *prefer* to do it the other way way. While it's interesting to watch a duck successfully navigate a sheet of ice, at the end of the day they'll do much better back in the water.

The iPad is great for watching Netflix on the porch, nice for surfing the web on the bus, handy for reading while waiting in line at the DMV, and not bad for taking notes in a meeting with a client. But when I want to draw an image, I'd much rather use Photoshop on an iMac with a Wacom tablet, Manga Studio on a TabletPC, or a 2H and a 2B on a sheet of bristol.

July 05 2010 at 6:40 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to JAQ's comment
imfromthepast

As an artist myself with an iPad, I respectfully disagree. The medium is the medium. If you want to make a pencil sketch, use a pencil and paper. If you want to make an oil painting, get an easel, a canvas, some brushes and paint. If you want to produce some digital art use a computer. If you are sitting on the couch and you don't feel like using a mouse, I would submit the iPad is ideal.
The thing about making digital art is there is a disconnect, using a mouse takes you out of the process to an extent. Sure if your doing some precise vector art in Illustrator then a mouse is preferable, but if you want to paint in photoshop then you'll find the mouse to be a hinderance. A pen tablet is a sep in the right direction, but it works best on a touch screen.
I hate painting myself. I don't like mixing paint and I don't like having to clean brushes and all the other housekeeping involved. My preferred method is drawing or digital. No mess and no cleanup. However, Saturday I produced my first iPad painting using SketchBook Pro and it was a joy to use. I found it to be a happy medium between digital art and the real thing. I was able to easily segregate my efforts using layers and manipulate what I had done so far as one would expect using digital creative tools, but the disconnect was gone. No mouse. I was touching my work, interacting with it in a way both familiar and intuitive.
Sure an iPad isn't ideal for every situation, no medium is, but I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand.
After all, it allowed me to paint this, something better than I have ever been able to do on canvas using actual paint:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/gadd8RzwjLB5m3neUICUJw?feat=directlink

July 06 2010 at 9:07 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Michael

BTW, watching this video on an iPad removes the bars on either side, if held in portrait. I really was expecting bars, but there it was, fullscreen, in portrait. Nice touch.

July 05 2010 at 5:17 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
aceontech

Pretty amazing stuff. I'm always amazed by time-lapsed art movies, it having been made with an iPad is just a side-note.

July 05 2010 at 4:14 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Ross

Nice portrait, hate to be nit picky but it's not a photorealistic portrait.

July 05 2010 at 3:48 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
5 replies to Ross's comment
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