Improve ALL your watercolor techniques by painting this.

Let's look at the subject

I have printed off the photo and I have added it as a resource for you to print off as well if you wish.

I am always saying to my students that you need to look time and again. And I prove that point later on in the painting process. And it was that I hadn't looked close enough and later found that the bright highlight was in fact water on a muddy path reflecting the light. So there you are, always study your subject well before you start.

Here I talk about how to approach the subject, composition, order of work, colours and overall effect.

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The photograph.

Making Changes to the Composition.

I decided to change the angle of the bridge slightly which I think makes it a more interesting composition by leading the viewer in. Those who are not familiar with this sort of landscape will also be able to understand that it's a bridge crossing a stream.

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The tracing and altered sketch.

The colour palette

I may add to this later if I don't get the effect I want, but here I tell you which colours I am going to use.

Using a limited palette can really help to give your painting a unified appearance. As always if you don't have these exact colour, use the nearest you have.

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A photo of the colour palette.

Getting that first layer down is always the hardest.

Just looking at a blank piece of paper can be rather intimidating.

But remember, get everything ready. Mix your colours and start off with very pale and weak washes, you can always add more.

Get a bit of paint on everything and it will not be so overwhelming. Start gently and gradually add more as you go, checking for colour adjustments and values as you go.

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture.

Adding more of the same colours.

Remember in watercolour painting, quite often you don't have to add anything else to what you have mixed, just add another layer and it will be same the colour only more intense or darker.

Again I put more colour on everything, that way you get to check the balance as you work through the painting.

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Photo of the painting at this stage.

Trees, bridge and more background.

This really is a painting of layers and will be a really valuable learning for many of you.

Making the bridge more solid, adding branches and adjusting the beams of light, or in this case shards of shadows.

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The latest photo at this stage

Making adjustments to the bridge.

In this lecture I do a bit of straightening up and making a few adjustments.

If you want to see how to rule a straight line using a painting brush. Watch this video I made about how to do it.

https://youtu.be/9G-07IFn4G8

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The latest photo at this stage

Painting more into the bridge and tweaking a few other things.

Here I make the bridge look more substantial and make a few other adjustments.

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The latest photo at this stage

Let's look at the painting overall.

When you finish a painting whatever it is, it can be helpful to look over it and be your own reviewer.

• What do you think worked well and what not so much?

• What would you do differently?

• Make a note of the good points to congratulate yourself

• Jot down in your journal or sketch book what you have learnt.

Then, sign it and either frame it or keep it somewhere to remind you of how you are improving.

Congratulations, love Nicola.

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The finished painting.

A student submitted her work for me to make any suggestions for improvement and said I could use it as an example.

So it prompted me to get my painting out, make comparisons and also changes.

Don't be afraid to do this , even if you have to take it out of the frame, you sometimes spot the little change it will need to make all the difference.