Plein Air Painting & Finding the Small Scenes. Watercolor Sketching.
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- Опубликовано: 12 сен 2024
- Plein Air is such a rewarding exercise, not only for enjoying the outdoors but for seeing real color and atmosphere. But you don't always need to find the grand scene or vista. Look down or close and find the little scenes. This opens up a whole world of possibilities, perhaps even in close by, less picturesque locations.
How my easel was originally made - • How to Make a Simple W...
Modifications to my travel easel - • Modifying My Easel & F...
Daniel Smith colors in this palette:
*Colors used in this sketch
- Imperial Purple *
- Permanent Brown*
- Quinacridone Violet
- Scarlet Pyrrol*
- Nickel Azo Yellow*
- Apatite Green*
- Jane's Gray*
- French Ultramarine Blue
- Cobalt Blue Chromium*
- Turquoise
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Hahnemühle 100% Cotton Sketchbook - No Amazon Link Available.
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I would have loved to see some yellow in the light part of the water. It just seemed to be something I saw in your photo that I preferred. Love your instructions and encouragement for plein air painting. Thanks
Bravo! I like when you take us on field trips.
Thank you for the tips on picking what to draw while out and about. Plein Air is something I am starting to try so this was great!
Lovely, Thank you Steve!
This was a home run, Steve. No apologies necessary. Would love to see a video from you that only emphasizes your take on finding those little vignette scenes. Seems simple enough but in my experience it's a skill like any other. I'm lacking in that skill (grin). Would agree with the person that said their favorite episode was your discussion of loose vs tight. I go back and listen to it every once in a while, when I'm frustrated with all the "work fast and loose" stuff being spewed about how to be an artist.
I'm trying to learn watercolor and ink, nature painting /sketching etc. I love the idea of taking my equipment somewhere interesting and doing just what you did in this fantastic video. So naturally, this was very helpful. Thanks Steve 😊 I've subscribed 😀
You are the true master of trees. Sure lots of artists paint lovely trees but oh my gosh your trees are alive. They could be the whole focus of a painting not just an element.
Thanks so much for this demonstration, Steve. I love Plein Air but have struggled with the subject content. You gave me the great idea and permission to not be so particular with the full picture and just hone in on a simpler study. I truly appreciate that. It helps the decision-making process so much easier and less stressful.
An excellent lesson; thank you. I had been thinking that I should concentrate on small subjects, but kept falling into large ones, which didn't generally work well for me.
Have you considered a "my favorite MOW moment" video, letting your fans pick their favorite episodes? Ha ha, imagine the comments you'd get. My favorite was Apr. 15, 2017, "Is loose painting better than tight and realistic?" because you ran out into the woods and screamed several times. Ran this over and over during the lockdown part of Covid, when we all wanted to run out and scream! Always made me laugh.
Thanks for commenting Deb! I went back and watched that lesson again and it was still very timely for me. Truth abides.
That's my favorite, too - LOL!
Do you know the name of the video?
@@leanngoodall7602 It's in my comment, along with the date.
@@debcannon1439 thanks.
Lovely, Steve! I thoroughly enjoyed this! Such an important message - so many charming little vantage-points that are often too easily overlooked!!! Glad to see you out enjoying a beautiful day in nature 💕
Gosh just gorgeous Steve :) xxx
I so enjoy when you bring us along plein air sketching. I love the scenery and the music as well. Very relaxing. I like your sketch. It certainly conveys the atmosphere of the scene. Great tip on choosing a subject. Thank you.
Lovely colors and painting subject. I noticed that when you added the slightest bit of blue to the water it seemed like the tree branch automatically lighten up just a hint towards a grey color. I am always amazed by how much you capture the characteristics of the trees when you paint. Thanks for sharing this wonderful inspirational video with us.
I found on youtube a great idea for Plein air watercolor painting. It's called Rovtop Magnetic Wristband/Glove. Because the glove top is magnetized, it comfortably, and securely holds my small tin of paints on top.. Has a slot at the top for holding my brushes, and I can clip on my small water tins on the side. Everything close at hand and secure. I have followed you from the first day I decided to watercolor. I'm still just 'hobby' painting but LOVE painting outdoors. Your channel is one of my favorites and I'm so glad you continue to share your insights and encouragement to just keep painting!!.
17:44 i am inspired by this video. Thankyou.
Thanks for another enjoyable subject.
That is beautiful. I don't think Elon Musk and Bill Gates could pool their money and raise enough to make me use a ballpoint pen for anything, but I really like the rest of your kit. I never really have a goal in mind when I go out. I like to be surprised. I don't even know which medium I will use. I have a remarkably small kit that holds my watercolor paints and brushes, plus three erasers, three graphite sticks, four different sizes of blending stumps, two pencil sharpeners, and slots for eighty-eight pencils, all in a zippered nylon pouch that is nine by eleven inches, and two and a half inches thick. I fill the slots with twelve graphite pencils, and split the rest with colored pencils and watercolor pencils.
My drawing/painting trips can be two hours or two weeks. The long trips are also writing trips. Journals, essays, humor, fiction, it's all good. The thing is, I don't look for things to draw or paint. If something is there, I trust my instincts, and that little voice inside that whispers, "Hey, look over there! Man, you gotta get that on paper."
I once spent several hours drawing a rock about the size of my fist. I was having trouble because it was resting on a field of pebbles, and no matter how I drew that rock and those pebbles, the rock still looked like a boulder. I finally stopped and looked for something else to draw. In my journal I wrote that whether you are a boulder or a small rock depends on the company you keep. Not really true for boulders and rocks, I guess, but I do think it applies to people.
Wow! I learned so much from your discussion of how you dealt with the 6:16 tangle of twigs into sketched branches and negative space!
Thanks for your wonderful explanations!
Exceptional instruction. Thank you. Finally, I feel justified in focusing on the “small scene,” as you say. For me, that’s the part of the whole scene that strikes that personal cord which makes the painting or drawing meaningful to the artist. Thank you, also, for the valuable tour of your plein air products. Really like the new-to-me travel brush.
This was so very well done. Thanks for a different plein air thought process resulting in an exquisite sketch.I feel as if I had an enjoyable afternoon sketching outdoors, living vicariously. Thank you.
Thanks Steve…I enjoy your videos so much! I have started to fall in love with a “Special Edition” set of 12 Schmincke half pans that I had serious doubts about when I first got it. Now I’ve really begun to use it and I love it…It’s so versatile and small enough that I plan to use it when I do outdoor work. I also have 2 sample sets (for economy’s sake….that’s the way to go for try-outs…I got mine on Etsy) of their “super granulating” too and they’re fabulous!😊
This was lovely. Thanks, Steve.
very amazing 😻…
Thank you Steve, love your trees and how you sketch them. You’ve got me psyched! Our Plein air group meets for the first time this year on Tuesday, looking forward to seeing my PALS after a long winter, and having some fun with paint and paper!
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Too cool that you sketched the branch hanging in the water - that was one of the first things I noticed, and I love trees that look like that with the branches all at weird angles! I'm a beginner and don't even try doing whole scenes -too overwhelming. Single subjects are great for practice and you can make things as simple or detailed as you want, or do it a bunch of different ways. Love watching the ducks, too, and want to try doing just that little slice of the ducks in the water with the ripples fanning out behind them.
Always enjoy watching you work, and I get so much out of the info and seeing what you're doing while you're doing it -if that makes any sense.
At 7:27 "This sort of thing has cropped up before - and it's always due to human error." 🤣
Blessings and thanks.
This was very peaceful, relaxing, and informative. Thank you.
another very enjoyable time, food for thought toward a sketch, thank you, Steve
Really enjoyed your thoughts on why one goes out to paint en plein air. I've just begun painting outdoors and love it, and I give you a lot of credit for getting me out of my studio. Thanks, as always, for the excellent video. Go, Steve, go!
Enjoyed this video....
Thanks for your insights and advice. This was a beautiful presentation that I found to be quite inspiring. I'll be traveling soon and plan on packing sketching and painting supplies. I will keep in mind the close ups vs the big picture. Love your style. ❤️
Wonderful,reminds me of our mangroves here in Florida,so fun and endless lil scenes,:)
This was wonderful to experience with you. Thank you for sharing. Beautiful work. Inspirational as always. Gotta love those deep green color blobs! ❤🎨
Thank you. Enjoyed this while learning, as usual from you.
This video is so helpful! I’m just starting to plein air paint.
Both David Shepherd and Bob Kuhn did vignettes of habit like you did, for their wildlife art. Very useful if you want an interesting background.
SO happy to see you outdoors and painting again! It was my zen moment today💙Thank you for that. Love your scene as well. Your words take the heat off of painting perfection. One question…does that ball point pen hold waterproof ink? Blessings to you and your family!
Waterproof for the most part. While the ink is fresh it may move a tiny bit.
Kathy, just in case you are unaware, "ballpoint" refers to a pen with a ball at the end BUT that also has an oil-based ink. Many rollerball and gel pens do not use such an ink and are not waterproof. But the simple, Bic Crystal or hotel pen does use an oil-based ink. In addition to being waterproof, oil-based ballpoints allow you to get graded tones to your ink lines, unlike the typical modern gel pen.
You have inspired me to try Plein Air this summer. I am trying to retrieve my imagination. It has been lost. So maybe this will revive it. Thanks so much for all your teaching. I have learned a lot. Also I will be looking for small things to capture. I always go to big then fail. LOL
Beautiful detail. I learned so much watching this video thank you 😊
This was cool! I love kits, both compiling my own, and seeing others’, and it was great to see what kinds of things you’re packing with you for an outdoor excursion. Also enjoyed the follow up in your studio. I haven’t gone plein air painting in a while, but I think it’d be fun to do again in the near future.
Looks great and like an enjoyable time!
Thank you for sharing this content.
Wonderful and informative, appreciate your experience!
Great post!
Model the leaves- mottle the leaves - what about Motel the tailor? Thanks for the excellent lesson. You are a PRO!!
Thank you!
Lovely scene
Great advice Steve. Would you encourage an artist to spend more of the time in the field on the drawing, or try to get quickly to the painting stage to capture the light and colors before they change?
Get the drawing first unless you're confident with direct painting. It's a very personal choice though. Some artists feel that they can capture the essence better with tone and broad strokes.
@@mindofwatercolor Thanks Steve. I usually find that if I'm happiest with the results if I spend more time on the drawing phase. But sometimes we all get impatient to slap paint on and I get, well, not so happy accidents. Thanks for taking the time and happy drawing and painting..
I loved this video, Steve! I've tried 4 different ballpoint pens so far searching for a good one for sketching before painting. Each one I have tried clogs up and makes little globs of ink every now and then on the page. Now I wonder if this one you used is better than the ones I have tried. I have also been interested in trying the IndiGraph fountain pen with India Ink because I believe that works pretty well under watercolor and gouache. Anyway, thanks for the lovely outdoors episode, I'd love to see more of these in the future.
The tiny globs are common even with good pens but this one seems to do it less. I just wipe them on a paper towel while twirling the pen.
I've never had much interest in actually painting outdoors.. but I take every opportunity to photograph. Often it's the most random thing... a single flower in a parking lot or a shadow cast by a sign. Getting up close and personal is always a better composition and with photography in general you usually need to be closer than you think you do.
I', the opposite. I don't even take a camera with me. If I take a photo of something I lose all interest in drawing it. Why bother, the camera already did a better job of capturing than I could by copying the photo.
I think copying is a great way to learn, but as soon as I learned enough, I lost all interest in copying. I felt like a human Xerox machine every time I did it. I haven't copied a photo in at least thirty years. I don't even copy what I see when on a field trip, either. I always try to add my memories, my life experience, and my imagination to whatever I draw or paint. Good or bad, it is original, and no one else on the planet could have drawn or painted it because no one else on the planet has my memories, my life experience, or my imagination.
@@jamesaritchie1 Using photographic reference is not copying. It's a resource that has been used by artists of every skill level since cameras have existed, from the popular art of Disney studio and Norman Rockwell to the masters such as Degas, Zorn, Picasso, and Van Gogh. It's simply another form of visual information. It can even allow you to see subjects in ways that are impossible for the human eye. It's a tool, nothing more. By all means, avoid if you wish, it's your art. Condemning the methods of others is poor form though.
looks like a study painting , did you just sketched outdoors and painted in studio ?
Your points on small branch clusters in the midst of white space is right on. That is how I see it for the most part when I sketch outdoors. Obviously, there are many trees and shrubs that have little white space but I find sketching things that way leads to a overly busy, muddy mess. The way you handle leaves is great but I did not notice you placing leaves in the foreground of the work. Choice or reality? Also, with my screen I have trouble at times noting some colors. Do you use a black ink ball point pen or blue? Just curious.
Reality mainly. Not that I might not have put some there if I felt it helped but it didn't seem necessary.
I agree with your observation on abstract design in nature. To my eye, nature is abstract, even if you think there is symmetry in a field of hay in the wind it’s really beautiful abstract vignettes that our mind wants to organize.
Nature is always ordered. Just because some have trouble seeing that order doesn't mean it isn't there. Computers see it easily. So do some people. They're the ones with paintings on museum walls.
I sometimes just use a Bic pen
Love seeing you get out, and then seeing the final stages in the studio! I have a question about watercolour paper and sizing - how can you tell which side is the sized side? And does it matter? Maybe this has been covered already in another video if someone can point me to it! Thanks for your great videos! ❤️
Most cotton papers are sized on both sides and internally. Not totally sure about this book but it is surfaced on both sides.
@@mindofwatercolor thanks, I couldn’t tell the difference so I guess that’s why! 😂 it was a large sheet of Arches paper that I cut into smaller pieces for practice
Very cool Steve. What drew you to sketching with ballpoints?
A good cross between pen and pencil. Light pressure gives a nice shaded line but you can get much darker than pencil. And it's waterproof when dry.
Nice. I watch trees a lot - a favorite subject, although I'm still a newbie. I've noticed that in trying to mix a color - and have enough mix made up - I end up with too much water. How does one get a "puddle" of color without having a "puddle" of water which then thins out the color too much?
A common mistake is not blotting your brush when mixing paint. You need some water but if you go back in for more or different color with a soaking brush each time you are just diluting it more and more.
@@waymire01 so, I understand what you are saying, but then how do you make a large enough amount to work with and not needing to keep making more, which can change the color...
Use the water thats already a mix to get more paint. Don't use more clean water.
@@mindofwatercolor I did a small WC sketch of my great-nephew's Tball game and did a bit better. Thanks!
@@maryhazlett You start with your water, this is the volume of paint you are going to end up with. Then you add concentrated pigment to it with a damp, not wet, brush until you get the correct color and dilution. This is only necessary for a large flat wash, there is no need for huge amounts of a single specific hue. Variation gives interest and realism. Another method is to mix the color in a concentrated form, then use that to pull from for whatever dilution you desire. Try a "flower" palette, they have individual wells for mixing that is handy because not only do they allow you to sort your mixes without them running into each other, it has an edge to run your brush against, leaving the paint in the well... if you have a flat palette you may need to twist the brush to "wring" paint out. You can also blot the side of the brush to remove some water, leaving the pigment on the brush. Don't be afraid to rinse your brush out, blot, and start again.. or wipe out a mixture that is wrong. Many beginners are so afraid of wasting paint but sometimes you need to especially in the beginning. Don't forget to wet your paint ahead of time if needed, if it is dried in pans. Practice mixing colors just as an activity of it's own and you will get better at it. Use a limited palette, it helps. Water control takes practice and is in my opinion the hardest thing to learn when starting out. It's even harder if you are using very absorbent brushes, like squirrel, since they soak up so much water along the way.
Watch out for ticks!
and chiggers!
omg!!! That's exactly what I was thinking. Steve was sitting in the middle of those type of bushes that ticks love to live in. I have Lyme disease and I was cringing.
Do you have a link to your tripod easel, or how it’s made?
Yes. I put two links in the description.
What type of board do you use to attach to your tripod? Where can I get a chair like that folds up? Very interested in getting out to try plein air painting.
I made the easel board. Then modified it later in these videos.
ruclips.net/video/IIbMOOOYwtc/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/nZ9_91eBUQA/видео.html
The chair was from Cabelas. Just a simple folding camp stool. Lots of similar like it. This one is on Amazon. amzn.to/37NfQuN
I made the board. A similar folding stool is listed in the description.
Do you take photo of the scene?
Yes, definitely.
Steve, think your work is great, am a continuous watcher. I had a good look at you on this video and wonder if you have had a visit lately with a doc. Looks to me like you have a thyroid and I would not want any thing to go wrong for you. If I over read sorry. Love your work!
I
See a doctor for check ups regularly. No thyroid issues. Thanks for the concern.
Ive rewatched this video could you possible reply and tell me your bord you use on your tripad to lay your sketchbook on thank you i need something like that and light weight...
I made it. This is the basic construction video though I've modified some since. ruclips.net/video/IIbMOOOYwtc/видео.html
No ,thank you 😃🙏🌊🔱🌪🌪🌪
Somebody needs to put some nice waterbrushes on the market. They come in really handy but are all just garbage when it comes to bristle quality, and just quality manufacture in general.
where did you get the little seat?
Cabelas. This one on Amazon is very similar. amzn.to/39uM6n8
Do You have a small watercolor/sketch EDC (Everyday Carry) for those 'Bolt Out of the Blue' inspirational moments ? And if so, Please tell us what are the items and colors. Thank You 😊
This would be it. The little kit can go by itself and a sketchbook without the backpack and easel.
Could you put a link to the magnet clip? I didn’t find it on your supply list on your site or on this video.
I got mine at the grocery store where the clips for chip bags are. Often hang on the isle.
I found them in an office depot office supply store (or maybe it was a Staples?)
Yes, done. amzn.to/3PpfRGr
(watching the CC) Who the heck is Karen Dodge? 1:46
Caran d’ache. It’s a Swiss brand of pens and pencils.
@@mindofwatercolor I know, Sheesh. I just think the way the CC technology renders everything phonetically is amusing.