Drawing Realistic Portraits from Photographs Review

I have a totally fun item to share with you today from Timberdoodle, Drawing Realistic Portraits from Photographs!  This DVD art class is geared for children ages 8 and up (3rd grade and beyond) and can be counted as a 1/4 credit for high school students.  This program contains 15 step-by-step lessons with a runtime of 117 minutes.

In this program students will learn - how to draw accurate guidelines, realistically place shading, and blend and add detail to create beautiful portraits.

What materials do you need?  It is recommended to have a 2-ply smooth Bristol Board,  0.5mm mechanical pencil, 2B soft 05mm lead, blenders, kneadable eraser, ellipse template, and a soft paint brush to complete this course.  A found the blenders to be a crucial component.

And of course, students need a photograph as their reference.  A choose an old photograph of my maternal grandfather, her great grandfather.  

In the first few lessons, A learned about the materials, having accurate guidelines and shading.  Then, she learned about drawing the different parts of the face.  And finally, she had to put all the skills together to create her final portrait.

A with her shading

A closer view...

 

Drawing a mouth from a photograph

Drawing a nose

Drawing an ear

 

Some more practice drawings...

 

Drawing eyes, you can see how much she is improving between the 1st and 2nd attempt.

A's first portrait attempt (putting it all together).

 

She is a little off on the mouth and chin but I don't think this is bad for a first portrait attempt at all!  She is already practicing and working on her next attempt.  She knows she needs to slow down and take her time with the details.  I can't wait to see it.

This program is specifically designed to help children who want to draw portraits but never felt like they had the talent.  Honestly, I feel like adults who want to draw would really enjoy this program too!  I love that specific drawing skills are taught (all the intricacies of drawing faces - mouth, nose, ears, eyes, hair, etc.) and that you can work at your own pace!  You get to practice, practice, practice.  Check out the fun trailer for this program below for more information and to get a feel for inside the lessons!

Drawing Realistic Portraits from Photographs is currently included in Timberdoodle's 12th grade curriculum kit and it is such a fun program that we definitely recommend.  And remember, it counts as 1/4 high school credit.

Disclosure:  Huge shout out to Timberdoodle for selecting me as a Timberdoodle Blogger.  I received Drawing Realistic Portraits from Photographs in exchange for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Hillsong Kids DVD Review & Giveaway

I have a fun DVD to share with you today, Hillsong Kids DVD, "Can You Believe It? - Songs of Truth".

"Can You Believe It - Songs of Truth" is both a question and a challenge...a statement of gratitude to a loving God and an invitation to explore the very foundations of faith.  It is the 7th release from Hillsong Kids.  It contains both old and new worship songs.  Classic songs like "My Best Friend", "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)", and "What A Beautiful Name" join brand new declarations of faith such as "As the World Shakes" and "Heaven Is Our Home".  I love the heart behind Hillsong Kids and this collection contains fun and vibrant songs that help children around the world engage in biblical truths about God's love and grace for them and others.  My kids are really enjoying it.

More About Hillsong:  Hillsong believes that teaching children to love God and others takes place in both the home and in the church.  For this reason, they seek to partner with parents (the greatest teachers of all) and with church pastors and leaders, equipping them with great resources.  Through fun experiences, meaningful music and ministry that encourages kids to participate, Hillsong Kids presents Jesus Christ and His Church in a relevant way, creating moments which children will never forget.

Check out the lyric video for My Best Friend below to get a better feel for this DVD and don't forget to enter to win your own copy as well.



You can purchase this DVD here!

Ready for a giveaway?  One of you will win your own Hillsong Kids DVD!  Just enter below and good luck.

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Disclosure:  Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway.  Choice of winner and opinions are 100% mine and not influenced by monetary compensations.  I did receive a copy of this DVD in exchange for this review and post.  Giveaway open to continental U.S. residents only (no Canadian winners this time).  Also, only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotion in the last 30 days on this same blog, you are not eligible to win.  Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win again.  Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

Sony Pictures The STAR Movie Out on DVD

Remember my post on The Star?  It released in theaters in November 2017 and it is now available on DVD and BLU-RAY format.

In Sony Pictures Animation's The Star, a small and brave donkey named Bo longs for a life beyond his village mill.  After finding the courage to break free Bo teams up with Ruth, a loveable lost sheep, and Dave, a dove with big aspirations, in a journey of a lifetime.  The friends follow the Star and become heroes in one of the greatest stories ever told.

The Star is filled with more than an hour of engaging bonus materials including the "Star-aoke: Sing Along with Bo & Friends," a dance along to "Life is Good" by A Great Big World, plus a collection of fun lyric videos that will have you singing along to the inspiring music from The Star.  Families can enjoy crafting and baking with "how-to" videos "Star Mason Jar Votives" and "Sweet and Sparkly Stars." and they can go behind-the-scenes to explore the amazing talent who bring these characters to life.  In "Faith All Year Round," renowned pastor and motivational speaker, DeVon Franklin delivers a fun and engaging children's sermon discussing the themes of the film and keeping the spirit of this inspiring story alive in us every day.

The Star has a run time of approximately 86 minutes and is rated PG for some thematic elements.

Would you like to buy your own copy of The Star?  You can purchase it here.

Check out more about Sony Pictures Animation on their social channels:

• Website: http://www.sonypicturesanimation.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SonyPicturesAnimation
• Twitter: http://twitter.com/sonyanimation
• Tumblr: http://sonyanimation.tumblr.com/
• YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/SonyAnimation

Disclosure:  Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for choosing me to be a part of this campaign.  As part of this campaign I will receive either the soundtrack or DVD of The Star.  Opinions are 100% my own.

Christmas Memories & DVD Giveaway

Well, it's the most wonderful time of the year!  I love the Christmas season.  I know it can be difficult with long lines at stores and more traffic on the road but this time of year truly seems magical.  Our family has been partaking in two different advents this year.  We have been following the Jesus Storybook Bible advent printables for our reading time and then the kids take turns opening their Tsum Tsum advent calendar which contains fun Tsum Tsum surprises every day.  I love taking time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas and the birth of our Savior.

 Jesus Storybook Bible reading for today

 Our Tsum Tsum Advent Calendar

I am excited to tell you about two inspirational films that were released on DVD today, December 20th!  The first one is Hillsong - Let Hope Rise which was a huge hit when it came out in theaters this past September.  This DVD would make a great gift to continue the worship experience with everyone this holiday season.  And the second is GREATER which is an inspirational movie based on the life of Brandon Burlsworth.  It follows his dream of playing football for the Arkansas Razorbacks.  Nothing about football came easy to Brandon, except his desire to play the game.  He was uncoordinated, ridiculed and written off by many coaches and teammates; yet, he continued to work harder than anyone.  Eventually his determination paid off and he was given the opportunity to walk-on and play football for the Razorbacks - becoming a great.  You can read more about GREATER here.  Both of these films highlight how God can enable ordinary people to do extraordinary things.

Watch more about Hillsong - Let Hope Rise and Greater below.





Ready for a giveaway?  One of you will win both DVDs!!  How awesome is that?  Just enter the form below and good luck.

One of you will win these!

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Disclosure:  I received my own copies of GREATER and Hillsong - Let Hope Rise in exchange for this post.  All opinions expressed are my own.