I first came across this book around two years ago. Upon flicking through this book it soon became clear to me that it was packed full of information about colour mixing, and colour theory.
Now I will start by saying that this book is not really a beginners guide as such, more a book to further expand knowledge of portrait painting for experienced artists.
This book has six sections including - elements of portrait painting, colours of light and shadow, local colour of skin, using photographic references, organizing painting in three easy stages, and painting demonstrations step by step.
I still refer to this book now and again even after two years, and I think that proves the quality of this book. Now even though this book has a painting step by step section, I personally do not think of it as a drawing or painting tutorial book, full of painting methods and tricks. Rather I think this book is more about colour theory, and colour mixing instead.
This book is a must for any serious artist, and you will definately learn a lot about colour, and be inspired to paint after reading this.
This book focuses on painting in oils and pastels, but even if you paint in acrylics as I often do, you will find this a very helpful source of information too. This book will teach you how to mix portrait colours for a variety of skin tones, and will teach you about composition, layout, colour harmony and much more.
This book costs $28 new, but can be found much cheaper on amazon.
I highly recommend this book and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
James Flynn