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Original demonstrations

The same photograph, four ways

Every picture on this page was made by Pacyra from the photograph beside it, in the browser, at the settings written underneath. Drag any slider to move through the stages.

Contour Painting

Shapes are taken from the photograph itself and follow what is in it. The lines you draw and the areas you fill are the same thing.

An illustrated interior: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
An illustrated interior, redrawn by Pacyra as closed painting shapes with a number and its mixed colour in each one.
The same guide with the colour turned off: an outline drawing of An illustrated interior, a number in every shape, ready to print or trace.
Shapes and colour
An illustrated interior. Made with Optimised settings, focus 90, detail 100. 334 regions, 120 swatches.

  1. Shapes that belong to the picture

    A fold in a sleeve or a branch across leaves gets a shape of its own rather than disappearing inside a larger one. That is what makes the page look drawn rather than pixelated, and it is why the outlines are worth tracing.

  2. Colour you can actually mix

    Each shape carries one colour and one number. Two colours you could not tell apart on the palette never arrive as two numbers, so a larger palette buys you more range rather than more mixing.

  3. A drawing when you want one

    Turn the colour down and what remains is the drawing. Closed shapes, a number in every one of them, and a legend that matches. Nothing arrives too small to number or too small to paint.

An oil study of a bird: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
An oil study of a bird, redrawn by Pacyra as closed painting shapes with a number and its mixed colour in each one.
The same guide with the colour turned off: an outline drawing of An oil study of a bird, a number in every shape, ready to print or trace.
Shapes and colour
An oil study of a bird. Made with Optimised settings, focus 90, detail 100. 1,225 regions, 120 swatches.

  1. Shapes that belong to the picture

    A fold in a sleeve or a branch across leaves gets a shape of its own rather than disappearing inside a larger one. That is what makes the page look drawn rather than pixelated, and it is why the outlines are worth tracing.

  2. Colour you can actually mix

    Each shape carries one colour and one number. Two colours you could not tell apart on the palette never arrive as two numbers, so a larger palette buys you more range rather than more mixing.

  3. A drawing when you want one

    Turn the colour down and what remains is the drawing. Closed shapes, a number in every one of them, and a legend that matches. Nothing arrives too small to number or too small to paint.

The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907, redrawn by Pacyra as closed painting shapes with a number and its mixed colour in each one.
The same guide with the colour turned off: an outline drawing of The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907, a number in every shape, ready to print or trace.
Shapes and colour
The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907. Made with Optimised settings, focus 90, detail 100. 2,174 regions, 128 swatches. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain.

  1. Shapes that belong to the picture

    A fold in a sleeve or a branch across leaves gets a shape of its own rather than disappearing inside a larger one. That is what makes the page look drawn rather than pixelated, and it is why the outlines are worth tracing.

  2. Colour you can actually mix

    Each shape carries one colour and one number. Two colours you could not tell apart on the palette never arrive as two numbers, so a larger palette buys you more range rather than more mixing.

  3. A drawing when you want one

    Turn the colour down and what remains is the drawing. Closed shapes, a number in every one of them, and a legend that matches. Nothing arrives too small to number or too small to paint.

Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85, redrawn by Pacyra as closed painting shapes with a number and its mixed colour in each one.
The same guide with the colour turned off: an outline drawing of Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85, a number in every shape, ready to print or trace.
Shapes and colour
Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85. Made with Optimised settings, canvas fitted to the painting, focus 90, detail 100. 2,367 regions, 128 swatches. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain.

  1. Shapes that belong to the picture

    A fold in a sleeve or a branch across leaves gets a shape of its own rather than disappearing inside a larger one. That is what makes the page look drawn rather than pixelated, and it is why the outlines are worth tracing.

  2. Colour you can actually mix

    Each shape carries one colour and one number. Two colours you could not tell apart on the palette never arrive as two numbers, so a larger palette buys you more range rather than more mixing.

  3. A drawing when you want one

    Turn the colour down and what remains is the drawing. Closed shapes, a number in every one of them, and a legend that matches. Nothing arrives too small to number or too small to paint.

The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899, redrawn by Pacyra as closed painting shapes with a number and its mixed colour in each one.
The same guide with the colour turned off: an outline drawing of The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899, a number in every shape, ready to print or trace.
Shapes and colour
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899. Made with Optimised settings, canvas fitted to the painting, focus 90, detail 100. 1,176 regions, 128 swatches. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain.

  1. Shapes that belong to the picture

    A fold in a sleeve or a branch across leaves gets a shape of its own rather than disappearing inside a larger one. That is what makes the page look drawn rather than pixelated, and it is why the outlines are worth tracing.

  2. Colour you can actually mix

    Each shape carries one colour and one number. Two colours you could not tell apart on the palette never arrive as two numbers, so a larger palette buys you more range rather than more mixing.

  3. A drawing when you want one

    Turn the colour down and what remains is the drawing. Closed shapes, a number in every one of them, and a legend that matches. Nothing arrives too small to number or too small to paint.

Shape Colouring

The other mode lays a true tiling over the same photograph. It is steadier to work from, it reads as a worksheet, and it is the better answer when repeatable cells matter more than the outline of the subject.

An illustrated interior: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
An illustrated interior, tiled by Pacyra into numbered hexagons, each cell holding the average colour of the area it covers.
The same hexagon worksheet uncoloured: empty numbered cells over An illustrated interior, ready to print and paint.
Tiling and colour
An illustrated interior. Made with Shape Colouring, hexagons, 30 columns, 24 colours.

  1. One number for each final colour

    Squares, hexagons or triangles. Each cell takes account of the whole area it covers, so it never ends up the colour of one stray pixel.

  2. The grid decides the difficulty

    Fewer columns give larger cells and a calmer page. More give a finer mosaic and a longer sitting. Colour works the same way in both modes, so the two are directly comparable.

An oil study of a bird: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
An oil study of a bird, tiled by Pacyra into numbered hexagons, each cell holding the average colour of the area it covers.
The same hexagon worksheet uncoloured: empty numbered cells over An oil study of a bird, ready to print and paint.
Tiling and colour
An oil study of a bird. Made with Shape Colouring, hexagons, 40 columns, 24 colours.

  1. One number for each final colour

    Squares, hexagons or triangles. Each cell takes account of the whole area it covers, so it never ends up the colour of one stray pixel.

  2. The grid decides the difficulty

    Fewer columns give larger cells and a calmer page. More give a finer mosaic and a longer sitting. Colour works the same way in both modes, so the two are directly comparable.

The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907, tiled by Pacyra into numbered hexagons, each cell holding the average colour of the area it covers.
The same hexagon worksheet uncoloured: empty numbered cells over The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907, ready to print and paint.
Tiling and colour
The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, John Singer Sargent, 1907. Made with Shape Colouring, hexagons, 28 columns, 16 colours. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain.

  1. One number for each final colour

    Squares, hexagons or triangles. Each cell takes account of the whole area it covers, so it never ends up the colour of one stray pixel.

  2. The grid decides the difficulty

    Fewer columns give larger cells and a calmer page. More give a finer mosaic and a longer sitting. Colour works the same way in both modes, so the two are directly comparable.

Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85, tiled by Pacyra into numbered hexagons, each cell holding the average colour of the area it covers.
The same hexagon worksheet uncoloured: empty numbered cells over Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85, ready to print and paint.
Tiling and colour
Mont Sainte-Victoire, Paul Cézanne, 1882–85. Made with Shape Colouring, hexagons, 40 columns, 16 colours. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain.

  1. One number for each final colour

    Squares, hexagons or triangles. Each cell takes account of the whole area it covers, so it never ends up the colour of one stray pixel.

  2. The grid decides the difficulty

    Fewer columns give larger cells and a calmer page. More give a finer mosaic and a longer sitting. Colour works the same way in both modes, so the two are directly comparable.

The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899: the original photograph, before Pacyra reduces it.
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899, tiled by Pacyra into numbered hexagons, each cell holding the average colour of the area it covers.
The same hexagon worksheet uncoloured: empty numbered cells over The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899, ready to print and paint.
Tiling and colour
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899. Made with Shape Colouring, hexagons, 40 columns, 16 colours. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain.

  1. One number for each final colour

    Squares, hexagons or triangles. Each cell takes account of the whole area it covers, so it never ends up the colour of one stray pixel.

  2. The grid decides the difficulty

    Fewer columns give larger cells and a calmer page. More give a finer mosaic and a longer sitting. Colour works the same way in both modes, so the two are directly comparable.

Why the two are set so differently

The illustration holds together at fine detail, because its shapes are flat and its edges are deliberate. The oil study does not. Ask for the same detail there and the brushwork itself becomes the subject, and the bird disappears into its own impasto. Detail is not a quality dial to turn up. It is a decision about the scale a particular picture should be seen at, which is why it is a control and not a default. Try both on your own photograph and the right setting is usually obvious within a minute.

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