Thanks so much for the compliment! I do strive for a very accurate likeness but not photo-realism. When you view the full size image you can easily see the charcoal strokes-I use charcoal pencils (black and white) on gray illustration board. Actual drawing size is 9 x12, approx.
As far as talent goes, it's 5% talent and 95% practice! Of course, I've been drawing all my life...there's always room for improvement! I usually post most of my drawings on DeviantArt, but as I am working on Zep these days, I will post all those drawings here also.