Urban graffiti has moved on from simple tagging to witty stencil work, thanks largely to the efforts of artists such as Banksy in turning it from an eyesore into a legitimate art form. Choosing the right starting image is important. It needs to be a clear, stark shot with a very recognizable shape. You're looking for good contrast and texture, which is needed to bring variety into the stencil. For a true stencil effect, it's important that the result shouldn't be too highly detailed. After all, you're trying to reproduce an image that has been cut out of a sheet of card or paper.
