·5 min read
How to Commission a Portrait: A Friendly Guide
Thinking about commissioning a portrait? Here's everything you need to know to get started — how to choose the right photograph, why character beats composition every time, and what happens between your first email and a framed painting arriving at your door.
So you're thinking about commissioning a portrait — how exciting! Whether it's a gift for someone special, a way to celebrate a beloved pet, or a keepsake of a much-loved family member, a hand-painted portrait is one of the most personal and lasting things you can own. But I know the process can feel a little mysterious if you've never done it before, so here's everything you need to know to get started, from choosing the right photograph to what happens once your portrait arrives.
It All Starts With a Photograph
Whilst it's great painting from life, for practical purposes portraits commissioned through the website begin life as a photograph — so getting the right one (or several!) makes a huge difference to the finished piece.
Angle matters. A three-quarter view — where the face is turned slightly away from the camera rather than facing it head-on — tends to work beautifully. It gives the portrait a natural sense of depth and dimension.
Light and shadow are your friends. Photos where the light falls from the side, creating gentle shadows and highlights across the face, give me so much more to work with than flat, evenly-lit shots. Those subtle shadows are what bring out the structure of a face — the curve of a cheekbone, the shape of a jaw — and that's what makes a painting feel truly alive.
High resolution, please! The higher the quality of the photo, the more detail I can capture. A blurry or pixelated image makes it much harder to do your subject justice.
Good colour reproduction helps enormously. Photos with natural, accurate colour (rather than ones with a strong filter or colour cast) help me match skin tones, eye colour and hair accurately.
Send more than one photo if you can. A single photograph only tells me so much. Several photos from different moments and angles help me build up a real sense of what someone looks like — and, just as importantly, what they're like.
Character Over Composition, Every Time
Here's something that might surprise you: a beautifully lit, professionally posed studio photograph is not necessarily the best reference for a portrait. Give me a slightly imperfect snapshot bursting with personality over a stiff, formal pose any day! A photo where someone is mid-laugh, caught in a candid moment, or simply looking like themselves will always translate into a more expressive and true-to-life portrait than one where they're posed and camera-ready. I'm painting a person, not a photograph — so the more genuine the source image, the more genuine the result.
Head and Shoulders Works Best
I paint portraits as head-and-shoulders compositions rather than full-body pieces. This isn't just a style choice — it's because when a whole figure is included, the face inevitably becomes quite small within the painting, and it's the face where all the personality, likeness and emotional connection really lives. Keeping the focus close in means I can spend my time and attention on getting those details just right: the eyes, the set of the mouth, the little quirks that make someone unmistakably them.
Tell Me About Them
Photographs give me the “what,” but I'd love to know a bit about the “who,” too. A few lines about the person's character, sense of humour, hobbies or passions can genuinely shape how I approach a painting. Are they mischievous? Gentle? Fiercely determined? Always laughing? These little insights help me make choices — in expression, in mood, in the overall feel of the piece — that a photograph alone can't always convey. This is what turns a good likeness into a portrait that really feels like them.
A Collaborative Process, From Start to Finish
Commissioning a portrait shouldn't feel like sending off a photo and waiting anxiously for weeks with no idea what you're getting. I like to keep you involved every step of the way. As the painting develops I'll share progress with you, and if there's anything you'd like tweaked — a shadow softened, an expression adjusted, a colour warmed up — we can talk it through together. This is your portrait as much as it is mine, and I want you to feel part of bringing it to life.
The Practical Bits
Price: A pastel portrait costs £160, and this includes framing, so your portrait arrives safely protected and ready to hang — no risk of damage in the post.
Deposit: I ask for a 50% deposit to secure your booking, with the remaining balance due on completion.
Timeframe: When you book, I'll give you an estimated completion date. Typically portraits take 6–8 weeks from start to finish, though this can vary depending on how busy my books are at the time.
Ready to Get Started?
If you're dreaming of a portrait of someone special — a parent, a partner, a child, a beloved pet, or even yourself — I'd love to help you create something truly personal. Gather a few of your favourite photos, jot down a little about their character, and get in touch. Let's create something together that you'll treasure for years to come.
Get in touch via info@leslierobinsonstudio.co.uk to start your commission today, or read more about how it all works on the Commissions page.
What People Have Said
Thank you so much for the portrait of C. She and her husband were thrilled by it and wanted to pass on their thanks.
The three portraits you did for me and both my parents were all superb.
Leslie, it’s great — I printed out the photo and the portrait and displayed them side by side, and S preferred the portrait!
I gave the portrait to her mum. She cried! It really is beautiful.
Just unwrapped your artwork, and it’s lovely — thank you once again.
I was beside myself with pleasure at seeing your interpretation of D — you’ve caught his likeness wonderfully well.
Written by Leslie Robinson