Congratulations!!!
IMHO, it would work well to take a photo of someone kayaking, blow it way up and use the cut out pieces as patterns to create it with machine or hand applique. I have done this with dogs, an eagle (see avatar) , and a couple of rock stars (those were commissions) and found it to be much easier than it sounds. If you select your photo carefully, you won't have to worry about the face at all. (That being the hard part.) Then you can use multiple borders and/or images around that. If your don't have the option of doing this on your home printer, take the photo to a copy shop. Explain that it does not matter if the blow up is beyond the "fuzz point". Most copy shops can do poster sized blow ups. Shop around for prices, as they vary a lot. Preferably, make 2 copies. Use a marker to define color areas. Cut one up. Use the other as a guideline for your work.