Westie Portrait
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![westie-before-after.jpg](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/525b1e82e4b0ac69ea663022/t/564c8d5ce4b0b8eaceabb8ed/1447857501678/westie-before-after.jpg?format=1000w)
This cutie lives in Germany and I painted it actually in October as a surprise birthday gift from my client to her husband. We needed to keep it well, sort of hidden so he would not see it on social media. As it is the case with so many reference photo that I receive this photo too was taken from above and had furniture in the photo. When you paint pet portraits professionally like I do, you always need to be aware of what the competition is doing and find ways to set yourself apart. One of the things I have noticed is that there are tons of pet portraits with solid or semi solid backgrounds, but very few that showed nice landscapes in the background.
A solid background gets painted much faster than something detailed and can be beautiful if the detail is strictly on the face. However, I prefer to put full body furry friends in interesting landscapes.
If you like to have a similar portrait painted click here to learn more.
![westie-portrait-by-nc.jpg](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/525b1e82e4b0ac69ea663022/t/564c9032e4b00d58cdcbbcdc/1447858227812/westie-portrait-by-nc.jpg?format=1000w)
By adding a backdrop the painting becomes two things, a portrait of a furry friend and a decorative focal point for a room in colors that compliment a rooms decor.
For me as an artist it also breaks the monotony of always painting the same boring semi solid background. Sure it is much more work adding petals and grass, but it's well worth all the effort and allows me to experiment with new ideas.