Great question! This is above all, a matter of personal taste. To help you decide, we suggest that you browse our oil, charcoal, pastel, watercolor, pencil and acrylic galleries, and get a feel for what you like best. Our most popular medium is oil, so if you are unsure what to choose, it's a safe bet :)
- Oil
Characteristics: Oil is the most popular medium and is the most vivid reflection of photos. All styles and techniques are available to the artist who paints in oil, where most other mediums are limited in their stylistic ranges. An oil painting is a natural heirloom you will be proud to have in the family for generations.
Material & Framing: Oil is painted on canvas and doesn't require a protective glass.
Works best for: Whatever photo you choose, Oil will be a good fit. If you are unsure what medium to choose, Oil will be a safe choice.
- Charcoal
Characteristics: Artistic simpleness with black and white. While charcoals grant the lively drama of any black-and-white medium, they are usually far more high-contrast than pencil drawings. In fact, contrast is the very nature of charcoals. The darker blacks obtainable from charcoals give a certain drama that would be more subtle in other mediums. If you love black and white pictures and seek to make a powerful statement, consider charcoals as your medium.
Material & Framing: Painted on paper and requires a protective glass when framed.
Works best for: If your photo is an outdoor / landscape picture, or if you'd like the background to be painted in detail, consider other mediums. As you can see here those beautiful portraits are focused on the subject of the painting, with hardly any background painted. Also, if you are short in time, Charcoal / Pencil are good choices since they don't require several layers and don't need to dry and therefore allow a faster turnaround
- Black Pencil
Characteristics: Pencils can go from very light to very deep in hue and depth. The fine lines of a sharpened pencil are nearly impossible to duplicate with a brush, and completely unavailable for pastels or charcoal. Shading with pencils is one of the nicest characteristics this medium provides.
Material & Framing: Painted on paper and requires a protective glass when framed.
Works best for: Pencil portraits are usually ordered in small sizes, and are a prefect fit for a fairly small room / wall.
- Color Pencil
Characteristics: Pencils can go from very light to very deep in hue and depth. The fine lines of a sharpened pencil are nearly impossible to duplicate with a brush, and completely unavailable for pastels or charcoal. Shading with pencils is one of the nicest characteristics this medium provides.
Material & Framing: Painted on paper and requires a protective glass when framed.
Works best for: Pencil portraits are usually ordered in small sizes, and are a prefect fit for a fairly small room / wall.
- Watercolor
Characteristics: Watercolor is a very distinctive kind of painting medium. The transparent watercolor distinguishes your painting from all other mediums. The magic of color mixed with water gives the painting a soft, rustic, antique feeling.
Material & Framing: Painted on paper and requires a protective glass when framed.
Works best for: Watercolor works very well for houses and outdoor / landscape.
- Pastel
Characteristics: Pastel is a very dry medium, and therefore may appear somewhat flatter than other mediums. Nevertheless, it possesses its own undeniable charm.
Material & Framing: Painted on paper and requires a protective glass when framed.
Works best for: Choose pastel for making portraits of both people and pets, because the results are high in texture and visual interest.
- Acrylic
Characteristics: Before you decide between oil and acrylic mediums, you should know that they often appear identical. The main advantages of choosing acrylics over oils are that they can sometimes appear somewhat more saturated in color. Acrylic is more vibrant than oil, therefore, some will prefer Acrylic as the medium for a landscape painting.
Material & Framing: Acrylic is painted on canvas and doesn't require a protective glass.
Works best for: Like oils, acrylics work well for just about any photo.