Lisbeth Salander

A couple of days ago I finished the novel 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' and I had to draw something for it! Although it took me a while to get into it at first, I ended up getting hooked and now can't wait to read the next two!

This pencil portrait is A4 (since that was the only paper and medium I had available at the time!) and is based of this reference photo. I was looking for an image that really showed the darkness and seriousness of Lisbeth's background, and this one seemed to do it for me.

The photograph is actually of the actress from the latest film, which I have not seen, but I have now seen the Swedish original version and I must say it is very good, staying very close to the book with perfect casting.

I realise now that her head is perhaps a little too large in proportion with her body, so I need to work on accurately working out proportions, however overall I am happy with the contrast between light and dark here - it's a good reference photo for use of black and white.