Intermediate Techniques

Step Seven: Altering reality My original photo had a background of a sunlit brick wall. I decided the bricks would make the painting too busy and opted to use a dark mixture of Pthalocyanine Blue and Burnt Umber to indicate a deep shadow area behind the entire group of flowers and foliage. I varied the mixture as I painted the background. These two colors can give you deep dark blues, rich greens and warm dark browns as you mix them in different quantities. Step Eight: Chasing the light I started to work intensely on the patterns of light and dark...

Materials used: Brushes 1 1/2" (381mm) Flat Winsor & Newton Series 965 " Grumbacher Aquarelle Flat Red Sable #12 Winsor & Newton Series 7 Red Sable #10 Winsor & Newton Series 820 Red Sable #6 Grumbacher Watercolor Classic Paints Sap Green Hooker's Green Dark Pthalocyanine Blue Cobalt Blue Dioxazine Purple Alizarin Crimson Permanent Rose Raw Sienna Burnt Umber Paper Spiral Pad (11" x 14") Canson #140 cold pressed< Miscellaneous #2 Pencil Kneaded Eraser Palette - Your choice. Mine is an old Robert E. Wood model. Water container (2) and water Hair dryer (optional) Step One: Preparing reference art After developing...