PORTRAITS PROCESS

So, why $80 for a painting? The zombie portrait process requires real artistic skill and a hell of a lot of time. Below, Rob Sacchetto briefly documents his Zombie Portrait design process. As you can see, it is incredibly involved.

"After I receive the photo headshot, the entire process begins with getting the likeness down with pencil. Believe it or not, this is the most important part of the process. These are custom portraits so likeness is paramount. I have to make sure that placement, proportion and the likeness is absolutely spot on and this is why a good quality photo is important. It's during this process that I look at light, facial structure and I go about creating a zombie that is still recognizable. I don't use any references, by the way, all this chaos comes from my twisted psyche. Pencils are done and I begin the background work. People look at my scanned work and don't realize I use a lot of paint in my work. Here I am applying a wash. I prefer and I am most comfortable using water colors."

"Pencils are done and I begin the background work. People look at my scanned work and don't realize I use a lot of paint in my work. Here I am applying a wash. I prefer and I am most comfortable using water colors."

"I start in on the face, again with a foundation of washes. First a flesh tone wash, then what I call a 'trauma' wash and finally other areas of major color. I work my way down, using finer and finer brushes painting in more and more detail. I'm trying to capture the look of peeled back flesh, highlights, shadow and detail. Basically, adding some depth and dimension. Now comes the inking for all the minor details and minute features. Lashes, eyebrows, and general tightening make this the most meticulous part of the entire process. You can really see the detail I work into portraits in the images above. I also like to hide images, little ghosts, skulls and other things in the portraits to break up all the serious detail sessions and to have some fun. I LOVE doing these portraits by the way. This is an awesome job."


Now comes the inking for all the minor details and minute features. Lashes, eyebrows, and general tightening make this the most meticulous part of the entire process. You can really see the detail I work into portraits in the images above. I also like to hide images, little ghosts, skulls and other things in the portraits to break up all the serious detail sessions and to have some fun. I LOVE doing these portraits by the way. This is an awesome job.



"The most boring part of the process is the background - mostly because there ain't no gore n' guts to play with. Fleshing out branches is not much fun but it is needed to add a sense of depth to the portrait. But, speaking of depth, the final steps make the portrait pop. I use pencil crayons or markers to indicate highlights and detail. Hair is always a real pain in the ass and is really time consuming, though not as much as recreating a plaid shirt."

"To me, a portrait is never really finished. But one of the final things I do is make the eyes come alive. I know that sounds, strange - these being portraits of the undead and all - but the wet look of the eyes are really what complete the entire process.

The entire process averages between 3 to 6 hours. However, I have spent as much at 15 hours on a single portrait when time permitted."