Sunday, June 9, 2013

Map out your watercolor plan of attack


                               As you can see here, I started first with a quick value thumbnail study to figure out where my darkest darks and lightest lights were going to go along with maybe one or two mid values. Next I painted in the light value of the boats wet-on-dry.

After painting a few dark values into the boats, I painted a light wet-on-wet wash for the water. After it dried, I painted in some darker values at the base of the fishing boats and added just enough wavelets to give the sea water a rippling effect.


Finally, I added the "jewelry" or final details to the fishing boats. I did not even come close to copying the myriad of details that I saw in my reference photo  -  just some simple shapes and values to give the impression of "boat stuff". Plan ahead with a value thumbnail study, figure out your painting progression, capture impressions, and don't flounder (pun intended) rendering fussy details. 




6 comments:

Meera Rao said...

Neat step by steps- thanks for sharing. Love final result! The colors are really beautiful.

Dianne said...

Thank you! It's good to see it happening as well as your notes.

Studio at the Farm said...

I really appreciate this post, David, as I am "floundering" - pun intended - with landscapes.

laura said...

Beautiful painting and demo. I often try to paint fishing boats, but get caught up in the details too soon!
I especially love the water--I just cannot get my water ripples to look so good.

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing, Inspiring....

David Lobenberg said...

Satpal - You are welcomed.