About the Artist

watercolor techniques

I have also included several excellent videos that demonstration watercolor painting techniques below. Enjoy!

Basic Watercolor Techniques

Flat Wash Technique

The flat wash painting method is a common one. This technique is usually used when large areas of your support need to be covered. It is important to lay out the watercolor wash evenly and uniformly. First, you dampen the area of your paper where you will be applying the wash. Be sure to have an adequate amount of water and pigment available before your begin. If you should have to stop for any reason, it will be rather difficult to match your layers. It is better to have more than less available. The angle at which you apply the watercolor wash is important. If the angle is too steep your wash will run down the paper. If the angle is too level, then there won’t have enough movement. Use a large brush for this technique and start your first stroke at the top of the paper. Continue applying the watercolor wash going down the paper, but alternate sides as you move down.

Glazing

Glazing in watercolor is when you apply a thin transparent color over a completed dry layer of color. This technique creates unique and interesting blends of new color. You will need to use a non-staining, transparent color for this watercolor technique. You will need to use a soft brush and try not too apply that much pressure.

Wet In Wet

Wet in wet is simply applying a wet wash over a wet surface. You start by evenly wetting the paper with a brush or spray bottle. Have a sponge handy to absorb any excess water. You want your paper to be evenly saturated. Then apply your watercolor.

Dry Brush

With the dry brush technique, you begin with a dry piece of paper. Then pick up some dry pigment with just a touch of water and apply to your paper.

The dry brush method is only recommended when you want to draw focus or create texture in your painting. It’s always a good idea to use different brush techniques in a single painting. This results in a more interesting painting.

Lifting Off

Artists use this technique when they want to remove watercolor from a certain area of the panting. It is usually done by first wetting the area that needs to be removed with a clean sponge and then absorb the color with a tissue. If you find that the color does not come off right away, then let the water soak in a bit longer and try again. If you still are unable to remove the color, dampen a bristle brush and gently scrub the area. Use extreme care when utilizing this method as it is possible to damage your paper.

Watercolor Painting Videos

Painting a Flat Wash in Watercolor

How to paint a flat wash in watercolor. Artist Debbie Johnson demonstrates her technique of a flat wash – to lay down a flat, even area of color with watercolor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycJ08rbnKAk

How to Stretch Your Paper

Here is an old method for stretching paper that also prevents hard edges.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x25QNwmrwjM

Watercolor Dry Brush Painting

A dry brush technique in watercolor painting uses very little water. Learn how to paint with a dry brush in this free art lesson video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH-9YJZBLBk

Watercolor Salt Technique

Demonstration of salt application on watercolor paper.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycJ08rbnKAk

Soft Focus Watercolor Techniques

Learn techniques to create beautiful, soft-focus watercolor paintings on damp paper. Techniques include positive painting, negative painting, lifting, and using gouache. Presented by Elizabeth Flue

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTNbAfcC7ew

Recommended Watercolor Painting DVD’s

If you aren’t a big fan of learning from books, then I highly recommend you check out the following watercolor painting dvd’s from Creative Catalyst Productions. Creative Catalyst produces some of the highest quality DVD’s in the world and well worth every penny. I recommend Creative Catalyst throughout my website and in my newsletters and stand by them 100 %. Click the links below to see the pricing & ordering details for each video, including free previews.

The Traditional Watercolor Approach by Cheng-Khee Chee, Vol.2

Saturated Wet Technique by Cheng-Khee Chee, Vol.3

Improvisational Splash Color Technique by Cheng-Khee Chee, Vol.4

Crinkling Paper Technique by Cheng-Khee Chee, Vol.5

Marbleizing and Monoprinting Techniques by Cheng-Khee Chee, Vol.6

Recommended Books on Watercolor Painting Techniques

Light and Dark Values

They Create Dimension, Drama, Texture and Shape

No matter what medium or technique you use to depict your subject, always try to use a full range of values. Value is the lightness or darkness of a color. You can simplify value by thinking light, medium and dark. A good drawing should have all three. A tool I use frequently in drawing and painting is a value scale. You could easily make up your own any number of ways. The first one I made out of a page from a Pantone color formula guide mounted on a piece of foam core. The second one, The Don Rankin Value and View Finder, is available through Cheap Joes’ Art Stuff. I like this one because there are holes in the card where the values are and you can hold it right over the area you’re evaluating to get a really good match.

“Value drawings are one of the artist’s best friends.” ~ Harley Brown

Homemade Value Chart

Don Rankin’s Value and View Finder

Sensational Sketches In Six Simple Steps

* STEP 1 ~ Block In Shapes

I recommend using a good quality spiral sketchbook, at least 6″ x 8″ or bigger with a medium weight drawing paper. I like the Strathmore 300 series, 9″ x 12″. You’ll also need a soft drawing pencil (2B – 4B) and a kneaded eraser.

This drawing shows you how to hold the pencil when you first start your drawing. It’s so much easier to first block in shapes this way and keeps you loose without getting caught up in details too early.

* STEP 2 ~ Refine and Add Detail

Ok, now you can tighten up a little and hold the pencil like you would to write. Add some of the main details. Correct and refine your sketch, but don’t get too nit picky!

Keep in mind that this is an exercise. It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece!

When out of the studio sketching, I stop with this step and add the wash later. So all you need to take out with you is a pencil, eraser and sketchbook!

“A pencil is quiet, clean, odorless, inexpensive, and lightweight. I can slip it in my pocket and take it with me everywhere – my secret friend.” ~ Sherry Camby

My motto is: “KISS ~ Keep it sensationally simple!”

* STEP 3 ~ Dampen The Paper

I start this next step by generously wetting the surface of my bird with clean water. I go right up to the edge of the figure so the paint will flow to that point and the strokes will blend together.

* STEP 4 ~ Flood The Wash

Here I use a thirsty, *dry brush that’s loaded with watercolor paint. I usually use a combination of Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna to make a gray, but any dark color will do. I’m more concerned with value than hue. (See the section on value below.) I start squinting a lot from this point on. This makes it easier to see big shapes and values. I float the pigment into the wet area, giving the figure shape by rendering values and a few details.

*dry brush ~ The brush is damp, yet dryer than the paper. This is done by loading the brush with thick paint and then using a tissue at the ferrule of the brush to squeeze out excess water. The brush then becomes “dry”, but there’s still lots of pigment on the bristles. See “PARTS OF AN ARTIST’S BRUSH” here.

Hue ~ another word for color

Value ~ the lightness or darkness of any color, the three main values being:

Light, medium, dark

* STEP 5 ~ Add Calligraphy

When the area is damp or dry, I add a few more calligraphic strokes. You can soften some hard lines by quickly moistening some strokes with a little clean water and a *dry brush.

* STEP 6 ~ Add Background Value

Sensational Sketches ~ Drawing Lesson

All I’ve done here is add a background wash after the bird is dry. I do the same thing as in step three. I quickly wet the entire surface where I want my wash to be with clean water, again being careful to stay in the lines. Then squinting, I float in my pigment with a *dry brush.

Some wrinkling of the drawing paper will occur.

Remember, it’s only a sketch!

About Sandy Sandy

The Singular Artist with a Double Name

Sandy holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Moore College of Art and also attended The Art Institute in Philadelphia. At Moore, Sandy studied watercolor independently with nationally known watercolorist, Ranulph Bye, whose legacy is the Brandywine and New Hope Schools. More recently, Sandy has been drawn to the teachings of Edgar A. Whitney, and has studied with many modern day masters who once were Whitney’s students. For over seventeen years, Sandy was the owner and art director of Alpha1 Studio, an advertising, illustration and sign company. Since 1996, she has been painting full time and operates her studio from her NJ Pine Barrens home. Collectors of her original paintings can be found throughout North America.

Sandy’s Website Address: http://www.sandysandy.com

I came across a very beautiful and interesting watercolor painting and demonstration today that I had to share.

It was created by the very talented artist, Lori Rase Hall.

There are many quality photographs along with detailed instructions.

Click here to check it out.

Below is a wonderful step by step watercolor painting demo by the very talented artist Alistair Butt. Please take a moment to visit Alistair’s site when you are finished reading through this demonstration. There a handful of other demonstrations on his website, tips on painting supplies, limited edition prints for sale and more.

	Alistair Butt’s paintings are principally of coastal and landscape scenes, with a distinctive feature of his work being the skilful way that he includes interesting detail yet without compromising the sense of mood and the special qualities of light. His style is true to the great traditions of British landscape painting, and indeed all his inspiration comes from subjects within the UK. “From Cornwall and Kent to Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales, each area provides an endless source of material for my paintings, and each has its own identity and feeling,” he says.
Stage One
A drawing of the subject was produced on pre-stretched Bockingford 250lb watercolour/watercolor paper. Before any painting is started all the white areas of the painting are masked, in this case all the swans (I used colourless masking fluid from Winsor & Newton). Next the whole paper area is given a wash with plain water and while this is soaking into the paper I’ll pre-mix the first wash colours/colors on the palette. The first wash is to establish the sky and remove the remaining white areas of paper. A light grey/blue for the sky which was extended down to the river as this colour/color would become the highlight areas on the river and the beginnings of the shadows placed in the foreground.
Stage Two
Two methods can be used for the this stage. The first is to mask all the foreground leaves and paint the background first or second (as I have done here) is to paint the leaves first and then mask before painting the background. The leaves are created from three washes, each of changing colours/colors working from light to dark.
Stage Three
All the leaves painted in stage two had masking fluid painted over them plus highlight areas on the water were also masked. Having pre-mixed the colours/colors needed, the background was painted using two wet into wet washes, the first wash was allowed to dry before applying the second, softening any edges that were too sharp using clear water. I also painted the reflections while the correct colours/colors were on the brush. Some loosely applied detail was added to the middle distant trees.
Stage Four
With the masking fluid still on the leaves I painted the foreground tree trunk with four washes. Starting with the highlight colours/colors then starting the modeling with a mid to dark colour/color wash followed by adding the details, like the branches, splits in the bark etc before the final shadow wash. The masking fluid from the leaves was then removed and some softening of the edges is done. More detail for the reflections on the river is added before a darker version of the sky colour/color is washed over the whole river.
Stage Five
Moving to the foreground. The whole area is given a wash to establish the sunlight parts of the grass and tree on the right
Stage Six
Two darker washes followed in the tree and on the grass to start creating the shadows cast from trees to the right hand side. The washes were a mixture of wet into wet and wet on dry.
Stage Seven
Further detail was added to the tree on the right. The final grass shadow wash was added and as sharper edges were required the details like the twigs on the grass, gate and the plants by the river edge were painted last.
Stage Eight
The final part (having removed the masking fluid that covered the swans from the beginning) was to paint the swans. The swans were painted with four washes, the first being a warm wash to capture the sunlight on the swans with the following three for the modeling and shadow areas working from light to dark and allowing each wash to dry before progressing, whilst being careful not to paint a shadow wash over a swan standing in sunlight. The details for the heads and legs being the last parts to be painted.

All Images and Text are © Copyright, Alistair Butt