editing final images

i scanned each pen drawing into my laptop and adjusted the levels to increase the contrast in the image and get rid of any marks of smudges on the page. 

i have also painted over marks that did not disappear after adjusting the levels. 

the problem i encountered with this image is that there is not much to add colour too, and the clothing she is wearing is white in the reference image. above i have used a off white to colour in the shirt, however i feel this does not make the image interesting of aesthetically pleasing. 

i have changed the colour of the top to make the colour 'pop' i have also coloured in the lips as the reference image shows she has dark pink lipstick on, and as western culture wear lipstick to make their lips look fuller and more attractive i thought this would be appropriate.  

below i have played around with just adding the basic colours of the dress and i have also experimented with adding the floral pattern to see which works best.

i really like the amount of colour i have added to this illustration, i feel it is just enough to give a impression of the garments but not to much to over complicate the image. the use of negative space make the detailed image appear easier on the eye as there is a lot to focus on. 

however i am not 100% on the colour added to the lip plait, i feel the tones i have added looks random against the block colours i have used to colour in the rest of the image. 

i have erased the colour added to the plait, i feel this works better as i think the detail on the plait is enough to draw attention to it and the colour is not necessarily needed. 

it was difficult to decide which areas of this illustration to colour in as the reference photo has multiply colours to choose from. i also had to figure out how to effectively fade out the colour of the sari - i did this by lowering the opacity of the paint brush, however the problem i had here was that when over lapping areas i had already painted, the colour become darker which meant i have areas of uneven paint. this is something i hope i will be able to solve through more photoshop play as i am still learning how to use the software. 

over all i am pleased with the results of my final resolutions, i am happy that i was able to experiment with a different technique and manage to still create a result i feel works just as well as the pencil and collage technique i have had trouble to move away from and try something new. 

now i will need to figure out how i want my work to be displayed on the A1 board ready for our exhibition.