It may look like a photograph of actor Morgan Freeman, but the picture is a painting of the actor done using an iPad.

In what is being heralded as the most realistic finger painting ever, British artist Kyle Lambert completed the picture in over 200 hours, using 285,000 brush strokes with his fingertips.

With the help of app Procreate, Lambert painted the detailed portrait of the original photograph taken by Scott Griers.

Lambert, who trained in oil paint and illustration at Manchester Metropolitan University, used the app to reduce the brush sizes to only a few pixels allowing him to apply minuscule strokes.

The artist has created a time lampse video of the work - showing each freckle and grey hair as they develop- which has gained over 4.9 million views on YouTube in just two days.

The video has failed to convince some commenters, with a number saying they do not believe the painting was done with with a finger.

One user said: "I don't know if I believe this. If you look at his other videos, none of them are as elaborate and detailed as this one, he even drew veins in the eyes, like how can you do that with your finger."

Lambert has previously worked for Apple, Adobe, BBC Television, GQ Magazine and Paramount Studios.

His portfolio includes realistic portraits of Beyonce, Rihanna, Madonna and Russell Brand.

- Independent