Sprouls Method --- the Hedcut

 all illustrations, Kevin SproulsAll right, everyone, gather 'round! I'm going to show you all how I create those iconic portraits, in the style I introduced to the Wall Street Journal, still seen around the world today.The required tools include:a soft pencil (I actually use a lead-holder, like the old draftsmen used back in the day, HB grade lead.)Ink for the technical fountain pens (you can use a dip pen like this, but I wouldn't recommend it--- hard to control, and messy!)and you'll need one of these (pictured is an eraser known as a "pink pearl"--- I prefer the kneaded rubber type, which is superior.) A fine, high-quality paintbrush and some white designer's gouache will take care of any "adjustments" which might be necessary.Many of my clients send photos to work with that, I must say, can be challenging. The following illustrates one case of a recently produced portrait. Step one, The Client sends me the photograph. It looks like this:Not great, but it has just enough detail to work with. Step two, get the image into photoshop, and convert to grey, size image to my liking, and crop.Step three, I print out the greyscale image, and transfer the photo's information onto illustration board by tracing on the photo. The resulting contour drawing is like a map for me to follow, as I "ink" the finished product.Everything's done by hand, one mark of the pen at a time. Once the portrait is inked, the pencil lines get erased, and I'm ready to "touch up" any visual issues with the paint brush. And the final result...This is a large image, to show detail. Below, the portrait as it might be used on the web or in print.    I hope you enjoyed my tutorial. I understand that the folks over at the WSJ use a slightly different process to get their hedcuts into the paper, but the hallmark style remains the same, Picturing Business.