A Couple New Oil Paintings

I recently painted the two oil portraits shown here using a toned canvas, a technique new to me. Basically, before sketching the figure, I applied a thinned layer of neutral colored mid-tone paint over the entire canvas. I chose a lightened mixture of black and raw sienna for one, and raw umber for the other. I really like how starting with a neutral toned canvas makes it easier to judge lights and darks, as well as warm and cool tones.

Also, these two portraits were done on very large grain canvas, which I have decided is not ideal for achieving details in portraits. I will probably stick to a finer linen in the future.