Oil Painting of an English Bulldog Step 2

The next step is to throw in a nice underlayer. She had lots of tan and brown on her, and the background was to be grass, so I used raw umber and burnt siena. This gets the canvas all colored up so you can continue and not be afraid of a big blank white canvas staring at you. I really enjoy most of the steps. I kept the client updated as I went, so this is usually the hardest one for them to look at. They must cringe and say "I thought she could paint?" But thankfully it is laid down with lots of turpentine so it dries pretty quickly and off you can go.

Boston Terrier 3

I've started to define the dark areas more with some indigo blue and magenta. I'll slowly work those areas darker, as I add more lights to show contrast. Not happy with the nose yet. Dog noses are really difficult things to draw in case you didn't know. This one already has four or five layers of color!