Movie stars gain their fame because the camera 
“likes” them. Other glamorous people may have a different experience with the camera and not want to be photographed for fear of a bad representation of who they are in their own eyes and to others. They shy away and cringe at a camera pointed at them. Say “Cheese” and they might freeze in annoyance.
There are times that the camera may not portray the actual person at all. I have seen movie stars up close that I might not have recognized at all had I not been tipped off. Likewise, someone that you know who is such a beautiful person because they are so warm, sincere, thoughtful, might take terrible photos. The camera views everything and will not differentiate the beautiful aspects of the individual versus those that are not so charming. I don’t want to imply that great photographers can’t work wonders, but the camera itself will not highlight the positives over the negative aspects—only the artist, if chosen wisely, will.
Here is where the oil portrait artist, their experience, talent, education and training become so valuable. Their ability to choose the best features, the positioning of the subject, the capturing of that certain attitude of the sitter, their insight and understanding of the subject’s character, and then their incredible decision ability for every single one of thousands of brush strokes in a painted portrait, to cover placement, size, texture, color harmony and on and on. All the very big and very little things that add up to the actual character of the person or people being portrayed make the oil portrait by the artist come to the OMG moment!
The most comprehensive and convincing image of the person can very well be the one portrayed through the eyes, talent and heart of the oil artist who makes the portrait come to life and thrive as a treasure for all time.
— Contributed by husband of the artist and manager, Gerry Chromoy.
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