drawing from reference - Book 'No Place like home'

the book featured a series of images that shows environments the less prevaligded or homeless people have lived in, and portraits of homeless people.

below i have experimented with ways to illustrate portraits of homeless people. 

because i would want the focal point to be on the face, i have subtly added the impression of the clothing. i like the looseness of the watercolour, i think this adds to the gentle sensitive approach i want my portraits to show. making them light i feel will add to the concept of how homeless people can be invisible. 

because the watercolour wash is so faint, i have played around with layering texts underneath to add a story to the person. i think this technique to illustration differentiates the abilities of illustration compared to a photograph - being able to give the piece a narrative. 

using negative space to give the impression of a t-shirt without adding detail  to maintain focus on the face.