When I was painting Davurnus as first time, [ - picture:

http://community.imaginefx.com/fxpose/deafjannes_portfolio/picture246140.aspx ]

I got one thing to think. Reading. Analyzise. Research. Think. Making the new idea. It is not easy? What strange thing, but I bought one handbook of storytelling (wroten by Finn, Finnish book). English books would be:

http://www.allbookstores.com/Social_Science/Folklore_and_Mythology/Storytelling-Collections.html

Reader and writer. Different way. Choosing. Idea from books, films or minds. Then changing the stories as very better story? When gets luckly day? And successing image. It was another theme I was thinking just - when I noticed that I can not paint without new ideas about moving, enviroment, clothes. Then writing texts, making own story, but how can it pass with own painting? It is my day´s strange question when I did put another Davurnus-image just, but how can reader understand their picture if I would not put the texts/stories (I painted new after reading the Finnish storytelling handbook):

 http://community.imaginefx.com/fxpose/deafjannes_portfolio/picture253709.aspx

Enjoy readers that stories and paintings? Who knows.. But I am interested in the handbook about fantasy / good storytelling if they helps to make better painting. Wikipedia said that storytelling is the conveying of events in words, images, and sounds often by improvisation or embellishment - I did not know about them before! And would all storytelling handbooks same points? Maybe.

Is eye´s iris very important for face´s painting? Yes and maybe, eye´s iris gets tip about what is person watching or looking, but eye can get tips, too. Light or shade with eye´s iris can presents e.g. time or sun´s course. As Deaf, I am used to have good eye contacts when I sign with my Deaf friends. If he is looking to another person, it means that he can not see both (me and him) when we signs as time. Eye choose one object for looking, too.

When I was reading Katarina Sokolova´s article about painting fantasy eyes by Painter in ImagineFX 018 (june 2007), p. 84-85, I interested in painting the eyes. After many studies, I noticed that making "real-looked" eye´s iris was more difficulty. After many training with Painter and Photoshop plus other softwares, I learned to make eye´s iris as faster way. I think that all Artists will have the different ways to paint eye´s iris. Here is my exampel how I paint eye´s iris by Photoshop:

1) I painted the dark and light blue colours as free then I used Radial Blur:

2) I chose Mesh-brush and black as its colour:

3) Then I used Radial blur again:

3) I chose Circle-brush (Assorted Brushes) the cutted as wheel:

4) I used Soft oil pastel-brush (Dry Media Brushes), black, 17% opacity:

5) I resized and used Free Transform the I used Smudge tool:

6) After Blur more, blue eye´s iris is finish:

Then paint with light or shades if needs. My studies continues...

Enjoy! Cheers, deaf Janne