I look forward to seeing the photo. A good quality photo makes all the difference in the world for a portrait. It isnt' just that it's clear, but that there is some kind of "essense" about it. If there is not feeling in the photo, it's hard for me to put it into the painting. There are SO many great , feeling photos that are, sadly, so out of focus I can hardly deal with them.
Focus AND feeling is best.