How to use a Comparator Mirror Lesson 1 (Part 1)

[@drivers99]

Interesting point about getting obsessed with the details of the eyes etc. I have no painting training but I set up a comparator and was painting a face (with acrylics) starting with details of the eyes. It was interesting. I had to use a minuscule amount of red (magenta) to color match the slightly pink edge of the whites of the eye for instance. I had watched some videos about color matching paint including one of the guys you mentioned in another video.

[@edwardscissorshands9301]

Many thanks for the videos on this technique. I had watched the documentary Tim's Vermeer and was fascinated with the idea. I picked up some simple devices on Amazon, including a 1st surface mirror, and watched your videos before I attempted painting a black and white photo of my grandson, Kiedis. And it turned out amazing. I painted oils for a while as a kid but was limited to still lifes and landscapes, I could never quite get portraits right. Now, 50 years later, with Tim's method and your videos, I was able to complete a very nice 8"X10" oil portrait, which I'm giving to my son. I have more to attempt, but I'm having trouble figuring out how to scale up to a larger size canvas. I don't think the 4" mirror will work well with a larger source. Any ideas? I'll send a photo of my painting to your email. Thanks again, really wonderful stuff.

[@paintinglabofficial]

Many thanks for this wonderful comment edward. I can answer all, or most questions in my email. Very much looking forward to seeing the painting. Tomas

[@hansmemling7605]

I saw a documentary by hockney and he says a mirror of 30 cm diameter is what the old masters used for their canvases. Hope that helps.

[@paintinglabofficial]

@@hansmemling7605 Hello Hans. Many thanks for your advice based on David Hockneys secret knowledge. as a 15th century painter yourself perhaps you have more insight into these issues than you are letting on?

[@hansmemling7605]

@@paintinglabofficial perhaps I do. Us painters working in Bruges and Gent in the 15th century are very secretive about the tools and devices we may or may not use to paint !

[@paintinglabofficial]

@@hansmemling7605 It's lovely to be able to talk with you Hans. Yòu are the only painter in history to make black look vivid.

[@jesseterpstra5472]

The only thing I can criticize is how you are standing hunched over like that. I can't imagine finishing a painting that way, I'd probably give up after a half hour. But otherwise I think the Tim's Vermeer documentary and that people are picking up his technique is wonderful. Thank you for sharing this.

[@ServeTheBeaver]

There’s actually a way to invert the setup so that the painting is vertical. To each his own! I’ve been at it horizontally for four years without issue, but if that changes, I’ll just flip my setup

[@VerMirror]

@@ServeTheBeaver Have you tried it yet? I had a vertical setup for a year or so set up in my living room lol. (Needless to say it ceased to be a living room and turned into a studio.) Had a scaffolding type setup made from unistrut about 8' tall and hung a tv from it, (so the orientation was that you'd have to look up at the ceiling to view it) Then had the mirror arm fixed at a right angle to one of the vertical posts - Finally, I screwed a bar to the wall horizontally I could set my canvas on. The bar could be adjusted to go higher or lower depending on how big the canvas was. It was a great setup, I wish I could find some of the old pictures i had of me using it. Would love to hear what your experience has been using your comparator mirror and how you set it up. Thanks!!

[@guinabells]

Amazing...just wanting to learn...

[@wijpke]

Totally brilliant 😁

[@aliciakelly5320]

Where can I purchase one of your comparator mirror systems?

[@aliciakelly5320]

Even willing to purchase one privately and have you send it if able to. :)

[@paintinglabofficial]

@@aliciakelly5320 Hello alicia, Tim and I are currently working on a final commercially available comparator mirror. in the meantime if you would like to get in touch via email I will let you know how you can get involved. Many thanks for your interest. Tomas

[@ServeTheBeaver]

@@aliciakelly5320 I make regular pilgrimages to this video in hopes that one day I can have one! I have a makeshift one, but that 45 degree angle is so crucial and mine never seems to be exact 😞

[@KEP1983]

So how do the two images align when you are moving your head back and forth? It seems that everything should be skewed?

[@paintinglabofficial]

Hi Keith, good question. What Tim Jenison originally realized was that a mirror at an exact 45-degree angle to the source image achieved a perfect 'planar' projection. This means that anything but a perfect 45 degree mirror angle will see the image swim around in the mirror making it very difficult to construct a reliable DIY comparator mirror.

[@jimbiglan7516]

does the source image need to be the same size as the painting surface? or smaller? I'm having a hard time seeing the bottom of the source image in the mirror

[@VerMirror]

If the source image is smaller than your canvas - you won't be able to fill the canvas (Unless your canvas is significantly farther below your mirror than your source is image is away from the mirror). That sounds confusing, so let me put it like this - Hypothetically; You have an 6"x 6" piece of paper with you've printed your source image on. and you have an 8" x 10" canvas. If your source photo is hung 1 foot in front of your mirror - and your canvas is 1 foot below your mirror - (AKA equidistant) then the output of your painting cannot exceed the 6" x 6" size of your source photo. The only way to paint a physical area that is larger than your source image is to move your canvas lower (in altitude) from your mirror. It's difficult to articulate, but easy to understand if you mess around and experiment with this^ I hope this has been helpful, and not terminally confusing 😂 Cheers 🤝

[@anishulislam148]

Sir if I have a bigger canvas do I need to have the photograph of the same size ... I have made one of those apparatus myself and I was thinking of trying it. Can you help me out here ... It might come out horrible. And also if both the size and the canvas is same how far does the canvas with the mirror has to be placed ? I know it might be a completely stupid question

[@paintinglabofficial]

Hi Anishul. Thanks for your question. You will find that a conventional comparator setup will only allow you to paint up to a size of about 80x60cm before viewing your source image becomes impossible. There are however a couple of solutions which will allow you to paint a larger image. Why not email me with a picture of what you have built with something to show the scale and I wiĺ help you to fine tune things. Kind regards, Tomas. [e-mail]

[@anishulislam148]

@@paintinglabofficial i emailed you sir . Hoping for your reply.

[@portervillelouis]

Hi- regarding creating larger sizes . You can’t do it with a comparator mirror - that’s one defect - the other defect is that. The COPY you paint is a mirror reversed image - HERE IS YOUR ANSWER - forget about the comparator mirror - get a glass lens and use a dark room - put the lens in the wall - and your canvas inside the dark room - by moving the canvas forward or backward - the image gets smaller or larger / NOTE THIS: your image will be UPSIDE DOWN and also REVERSED / to correct this - place a FLAT PLANE mirror inside the dark room at a 45 degree angle to the lens - THE IMAGE WILL be projected DOWNWARDS onto your table - the image will no longer get be reversed NOR upside down - get a chair , sit comfortably / trace carefully and slowly - then get your canvas out of the dark room and paint the colors ARTISTICALLY, anyway you wish ! Good luck

[@anishulislam148]

@@portervillelouis Thank you so much sir . I couldn't thank you enough for this advice .

[@portervillelouis]

@@anishulislam148 kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYHGdap_jKpqqq8 Go here!!!

[@alanhoggard4554]

When looking, are you using one eye or both eyes?

[@paintinglabofficial]

Well, the golden rule is there is no golden rule... but both eyes in my case. Try it for yourself and see what works for you. T

[@portervillelouis]

Hi again. In part one..the man in the photo source , is looking to your left. Then in part two..you show the finished painting ..and the source photo is facing to your right. I know that the method you use reproduces a “ mirror reversed” image. It can confuse students. A clarification that your method produces a mirror reversed image would be helpful. In several other videos using the “ comparator “ mirror, they all produce a “ mirror reversed” image. Best wishes

[@ccartist516]

Where I can find the Comparator Mirror prototype???

[@paintinglabofficial]

Hello Leonardo. The comparator mirror Is still a fair way off being commercially available as I think it's important to find out just how useful it can be. In the meantime have a look at my essay for simple instructions on how to build a kit of your own or have a look at my 'a comparator mirror for everyone' video to see how you can get involved in my project.

[@ccartist516]

Perfecto... Thank you @@paintinglabofficial

[@TheWaterTune]

build one

[@paintinglabofficial]

@James xxx thanks james, just seen this should be fixed in 48 hours.

[@Johnconno]

Looks like Auerbach on a good day. 😂

[@paintinglabofficial]

My absolute favorite painter... thankyou!.

[@AUSTIN12345631]

Do you use any medium,

[@paintinglabofficial]

Hi Al, sorry for the late reply. the quick answer is that I dont use any medium in demos. A great deal of the paints, brushes, mediums used and recommended by artists are non essential and so I always try to begin with the absolute basics, everything else can be added depending on individual preference.

[@larrymisiak915]

So, here, your very words tell that oil is the right medium for this project. "Oil holds meaning more than other mediums cannot."

[@paintinglabofficial]

Thanks Larry, in response im not sure i was reffering to the mirror. This is just a personal feeling about oil paint. You will also see that i go on to say that this video is not about that at all and will instead be about pure technique.

[@larrymisiak915]

Thanks for your reply. I am really enjoying this journey.

[@larrymisiak915]

@@paintinglabofficial Thanks for your reply. I am enjoying this journey. It is adding a new dimension to my 79 year old life. I can only be grateful for having reached this age with the energy to pursue new things, your work being one of them for sure.

[@MarcellaSmithVegan]

the stick with the disc seems in your way...I see, you are now showing what the heck the stick is for....seems a lot more trouble than just using graphite carbon paper, photo shop will increase the size of the image enough to fit your paper, good luck on your mirror

[@paintinglabofficial]

I'm not sure I'm quite with you but thanks for the encouragement.

[@marklimbrick]

Vermeer was running out of money. Either got cheaper ultramarine with silica or was diddled by pigment supplier. Also tried to use worn out brushes. Cut brushes are stiffer and scrumble. Unlike Tims which were all new and no edges were soft. Interesting subjects might be kill someone and then have an exhibition of Vermeer's with posed corpse. Get murdered by the critics ad karma.

[@ethicsexistentialism4191]

You lost me at stating that oils hold more meaning than other mediums, why would you think that? Watercolour requires more skill.

[@paintinglabofficial]

Hello Mary, strangely I have just begun to paint in watercolour again after many years and had forgotten how versatile they are. To my mind masterful watercolourists use the misbehaviour inherent in the medium to great advantage. It's a delicate, lyrical dance between intention and accident but this does rather limit the potential for watercolour to transcend themselves as the paint in a Rembrandt face does for instance. Watercolour is also flat and so it lacks a certain tactile quality. By the way, I will be featuring the watercolourist James Gurney in a new video. Many thanks for your comment. Tomas

[@ethicsexistentialism4191]

@@paintinglabofficial thanks for the reply Tom. I just read my own comment and realized it sou ded a little rude! Wasn't meant to come a cross that way, I just wondered what the explanation was about the oils. Actually Ive never used oils due to the odors in solvents, but I use almost every other medium, watercolour being my favourite. I guess if you are looking for photographic reproduction oils are best, but I think they all have their outstanding qualities and one can claim to be "better" over another. It's highly subjective. Anyhow, I still enjoyed learning about your little experiment and would be keen to get one of you mirrors when they are available 👍 kind regards, Mary 😁

[@VagoniusThicket]

Historically the biggest $$$ in auctions and museum purchases are oils on canvas or board .

[@GarmanyRachel]

Although I agree oil holds no more meaning than any other medium, except on the personal level, I wouldn’t say any medium requires more skill than another. There’s no final skill level one can reach in any medium so it’s all relative.

[@ethicsexistentialism4191]

@@GarmanyRachel good point 👍