Whats the best brush to paint a realistic face?

right now im using a flat brush about a size 4 and its leaving a lot of brush strokes but i want this to look almost photograph like, well not really but i want it to be really smooth and the brush is making it hard for me. I have other brushes but theyre all pretty big, so im going to the art store today and i would like to know what you suggest thanks!Whats the best brush to paint a realistic face?
If you're glazing or something or using oils, get something really soft, with synthetic bristles, not with course animal hair.Whats the best brush to paint a realistic face?
I suggest a couple of rounds, in different sizes. A 2, 4, and 8 should work well. I don't know what medium you are using, but buy the best brushes you can afford. Better brushes will give you better results, and they last longer.


I paint in watercolor, and most of my brushes are natural hair. I have several squirrel brushes and also some sable brushes. I also have some synthetic brushes, but I don't use them very often.
The best brush will always depend on the size of your portrait. I tend to work on large paintings, but say, for a 18'; x 24'; portrait, 3/4'; brush with a semi-round edge will do fine. You must always use a soft bristle brush to blend tones easily and avoid brush-strokes. I also suggest a blending brush (any dry soft brush ) to go over your strokes to help soften any edges left by your paint brush. This dry brush should be larger than the paint brush. In this case a 2.5'; dry brush will work fine.





I assume this question relates to oil/acrylic. With watercolor, you can soften the edges with a soft brush dipped in water. But the brush-to -painting ratio works about the same.





Save your thin brushes for the very end of your process. Keep blending your colors and you will be on your way to a more realistic look.---- Good luck