Let's go!

Glowing Back-Lit Portrait Woman Light Value Oil Painting by Michael Malm

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Glowing Back-Lit Portraits

🌟 Unlock the magic of back-light. In this 3+ hour demo, Michael Malm guides you through how to make a portrait truly glow by mastering light, form and mood.


You’ll learn how to:
🎨 Set up effective back-lighting on a model to create dramatic silhouette and rim-light. 
📐 Balance shapes, values, and edges so the figure holds strong even in complex lighting. 
🧠 Control color temperature and shadow relationships to maintain clarity and atmosphere. 
💡 Build your composition around a glowing figure — using light as story, not just effect.


Perfect for portrait artists ready to push beyond standard lighting and deepen their control: making every painting resonate with that “glow from within” effect. 🕒 Runtime: 3+ hours

  • Michael Malm

    Instructor

  • Professional

    Difficulty
Meet your instructor

Michael Malm

Michael lives in the beautiful Cache Valley of northern Utah with his wife, Juanita, and their four children. The surrounding rural communities and setting provide backdrops for his figure paintings and inspiration for his landscapes. His serious study began under Del Parson at Dixie College where he completed his associate’s degree. He then went on to Southern Utah University where he had the opportunity to study with Perry Stewart, and completed his formal education at Utah State University where he received a Master of Fine Arts Degree studying under Glen Edwards. Workshops have also played an important part of his development studying with such master painters as Richard Schmid, Burton Silverman, Daniel Gerhartz, Quang Ho, Ron Hicks, Michael Workman, and Jim Norton.

More courses by Michael

Try these next