How to Simplify Trees and Foliage in Watercolor.
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- čas přidán 9. 07. 2024
- How do I simplify my watercolor paintings, particularly the complexity found in trees and foliage? A frequently asked question and a frequently asked for video. Here's how I practice foliage simplification and some ideas on how you might study foliage on your own.
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I'm going through your videos and finally having some successes with watercolour. I took to heart your advice about mixing colours instead of using a colour like sap green throughout. Of course! Hadn't figured that out myself yet, but it makes sense, and makes a very big difference to my practice things. I've also finally figured out water / pigment control as well from your videos. One thing I was doing wrong was using too small a brush and another was being too cautious and actually not wetting the paper enough so it dried too quickly. So, today I didn't accidentally produce a single cauliflower, which made me very happy. Thank you. Your videos are really helping me to enjoy my watercolours. Only problem is that I'm not getting enough sleep as I'm anxious to get up and try some more stuff!
5:23 “finding a poetic combination of shapes...”. Love it!
I can learn from you and actually do what I've learned, because you do not complicate things. Thanks so much. Valerie
I just had to say that every single video you have teaches me something. There are a lot of decent videos out there, but yours are *always* helpful!
I admire your dedication to practicing and experimenting. I’m experimenting with hills of trees in the background that is foggy. 👍🏼
You're like the lost cousin of Bob Ross! I LOVE IT !
“Keep detail to the contrast edges.” Thank you, Steve! I’ll do my practice now!
I've really been struggling with trees and foliage. I am so glad I found your video, it is incredibly helpful. I particularly like that you show more than one technique -- I can't wait to try them all! Thanks so much!!
Hebrews 11:1! My dad passed away a month ago. Methodist minister for sixty years. I’ve not been in the mood for painting but saw you and Reece today and now I think I’ll paint a tree. I’m staying with my mom in Griffin Georgia. She has a couple of oak trees in her front yard that were probably here when Sherman came through. Picked up a sketch book a brush and a small Windsor and Newton watercolor pallet. So, maybe trees and Hebrews will be therapeutic. Another great video Steve. You touch people in ways you can’t even imagine... 🙏
Very kind and encouraging. Thanks Richard!
...and so very sorry for your loss,. His gain thankfully, but I know you'll miss him greatly.
The Mind of Watercolor I do miss him but I practice what I preach! So, all is well but it’s been hard to get back into a routine. Mom broke her leg shortly after he died so I’ve been in Griffin and away from home. That’s been hard. Anyway, your watercolor channel is not only a teaching venue, it is indeed dare I say it, a subtle ministry. Covered by the mask of a warm and gentle teacher and humorous 💀 always with a dose of scripture it is not forced but always just there for those who will read it. Anyway, many 🙏!
Richard Lumpkin
And with this post so have you...thank you for easing my own pain.
Blessings of comfort to you and your mother.
Boo Peep Thank you so much fo your kind reply. It has been indeed an amazing honor to take care of my mother. Challenging but so rewarding. She is back on her own two feet now and I have just returned home. However, I will always cherish the time spent with her as she recovered and prepared for life without my dad. Laughter, tears and all between. We experienced it. Wouldn’t trade it for the world!
I am just amazed at your lessons. I just had a total knee replacement and I am trying to recover. Just found your site and it lifts my spirits during this difficult recovery. I’ve been painting for about a year and will use your ideas. Bravo! Thank you so much and I love the Bible verses at the end. God bless you! Gini
You have great restraint. I always think, “I’ll just add a little more...” then it’s a big brown blob. I will work from this video and practice. Great lesson. Thanks.
LOL! My restraint is improving. Everybody goes through your the "one more thing" temptation, which is constant.
Steve I find your teaching style elegant and masterful!
Thank you, Steve. You are a beautiful, wonderful man and I thank you for your generousity.
“Go out and get to know a tree!” I love it! As a person who trains people to be Life Coaches, I strongly encourage people to PRACTICE!!! For me, painting, I don’t want to practice-I say that in a whining tone. However, I so appreciate your perspective regarding to getting to know a tree, or a rock, or the landscape. I can’t know if it I’m unwilling to be with it. Fascinating how it isn’t any different than life coaching! 🤦♀️
Steve, as always, you give me a new insight, even in techniques I know by heart. The idea of restraint, simplification and therefore creating an impression is vital to watercolour. Thank you.
"Go out and get to now a tree"
That's priceless :)
Love your 'reduction approach" tutorial on trees. Such valuable information. Thanks!
Thank you so much Steve for this brilliant tutorial.Your lessons are a gift and I truly appreciate them:)
I love this video! The first time that it's been explained where I can understand where to begin and go. Thanks so much!
The simplified tree seems to be tricky to make look effortless. I appreciate you making generalized tips on how to simplify things. I’m definitely going to try this the next time I paint!
Thank you so much for this! I am learning so much from your videos and loved the comment you made on the first one about washes saying we must be willing to be beginners every day! So true! So practice practice practice. I did several of these trees today from my own reference photo. Happy with a couple small parts of one or two of them. That is a start! Too many brushstrokes and blobs....but know I will conquer that in time. Thank you again for sharing so much with all of us!
This is great, even watching you paint I’m sitting here and saying just a little more. Restraint is such a gift, now I need to go and clam it. Thanks Steve. i have started a journal of how to improve painting (I know for me it will be the first of several) anyway this is going in there.
Thank you Steve, for a wonderful tutorial. You always do such a great job!
Thank you Steve!! This was immensely helpful. I'm now off to photograph and study some trees and then to do a value study.... makes ALL the difference. You're the best!
Great reminders Steve. I love trees so as I'm teaching myself to draw I head outside to draw from life. When I sit down to watercolor, since I love trees, I paint them, but no reference. They never quite turned out so I stopped painting them. The problem was right there all along.
Paint from a reference! Thank you for that!
I absolutely loved this video. I just kind of started using water colours - I have zero experience with painting. I loved how simplified this was, but it was still guided and didn't feel like copying your work. It was great. Please keep up with your videos!
I must have painted like 3o pages, both sides, before I got something good. Glad to hear I'm not alone.
Definitely not alone.
Thank you. That helps allot. it is always a joy to see you painting.
I have been trying to get back into sketching and painting since my son started University studying illustration ... your videos are so inspirational ...thank you
Thank you for this video you have reminded me of how much I need to practice tree shapes and sizes. Also your right I need to have a reference. I like painting spontaneously but I do need to practice with my paints. Thanks for reminding me 😊. I do like your concept of painting the tree. Touch, touch and touch. Cool.
This held my attention as I do want to paint looser. You are always encouraging and I love the end with your scriptures. Aloha and mahalo!
Thanks Steve for the great video. Just what I needed right now. The idea of simplifying my strokes and making them more sure is exactly what my goal is. The look of the Urban Sketcher in watercolor. Very fresh. Back to practice!
Steve, as always, a very informative lesson. One of the hardest things to learn in watercolor is to have restraint. Simplicity in applications, utilizing forms and values, values, values. You are one of the few instructor/ artists that I follow who can convey the basics so succinctly. I am a Patreon supporter for you, because you have so much to offer as an instructor that is so very valuable. Thanks for this one, it is bookmarked for reference. ⭐️
Thanks so much for your support Elayne!
Guess I know what I’ll be painting tomorrow! Great video Steve. Thanks so much.
I like the study of simplifying the subject matter. Many paintings just have tons of detail, but not necessarily adding to a great composition and overall painting. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Steve. Great tips. Makes me want to practice.
Well done! This video has helped me to work at it and get rid of the frustration I have with trees.
Wonderful instructions and demonstration, Steve. Thank you so much. I'm sharing this with my sister who also paints.
Thank you , great example of minimizing your stroke.👍👍👍🇨🇦
GREAT VIDEO! It's like you gave us an assignment and now we need to do our homework. Thanks.
😃
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Gosh, I can’t wait to try this technique. This is first time I’ve seen the water soluble pencils, so I ordered these. I also like your comments, such as, don’t be afraid to try and fail!
Cheers!
Thank you for those lovely little trees! 🙌🏼🇧🇷
Loved absolutely a couple of vedios on foliage that you posted!
Also, one very important thing to do for simplifying the vision and not concentrate on too much details, is to squint eyes !!!! Most of painters know that and do naturally when looking at their subjects, but most of amateur or students never does or forget to, just because their are practiceless and don't understand why they should squint their eyes !!... i must reapeat and repeat and repeat non stop to my students all over the year !!!!
Oh gosh, this is something I DEFINITELY appreciate because I’m always kind of garbage at simplifying things, but especially foliage! I think the closest I got was one time I drew a couple of leaves and then just put some green blobs behind them to suggest more. =>.
This is so helpful. I love painting trees and I learned a lot from this video. 🌳
Love these videos. Really motivating to get out those paints.
Love this explanation/demo. I will start working on tree studies instead of trying to paint full pictures bc my trees are currently overworked and awful. This kind of practice should help! Thank you.
Brilliant tutorial full of tips for beginners. Thnx again.
I love how you explain things ....thank you. Btw, you’re a very talented artist
Thanks Steve, I enjoyed this video on trees, very inspiring. 💞💫
Excellent video! Thank you so much.
Yup...”hug” a tree! Fun exercise...thanks, as always...
Thanks, Steve! I was wondering what to devote my next watercolor journal to, and you gave me a brilliant idea. I need to work on trees and foliage, and that is what I will do with it. I will get some good reference material, and practice, practice, practice. I absolutely loved this video and will watch it again, as well as your older ones on trees. I just love your landscapes! Thanks, from one of your best fans. I can't tell you how many folks I have introduced to the Mind of Watercolor! I am now showing in three galleries in Savannah! Yea!
Awesome Maryan!
Great,Steve, alwayshelpful. Seeing you from Galway .Ireland
Thanks for your advise and lessons on watercolour painting, I have just started since the lock down, I stuck to monochrome previously with pencil and pen/ink....Was great to see you have discovered Alphonso Dunn, I got both his wonderful books for Christmas 2018....I also really appreciate your honesty about some of your efforts ending up in the trash, because that is where some of mine end up... Hope your wife is recovering well . Regards and God bless from Steve (Scotland)
Excellent video. Learning so much from you. Thank you so much for doing these.
Love your teaching qualities. Thanks
Great video! Details makes the trees come to life😚
Thank you for this tutorial.
Great Steve! Less is more always 🤩
I love it! Bloop, bloop, dee-doop 😃
Excellent advice and demonstration (plus, the duet at the beginning of the video was a total charmer!)! It's always good to see someone so versed in a particular subject present their perspective on it in a way that is clear, to the point, and easy to understand. A lot of videos out there try to explain, but make it very complicated! Thank you, as always! :)
Thats good to know Mark. I know what you mean about making it too complex. I fear doing that myself, so I appreciate the comment. Take care buddy!
This was outstanding! Thank you!
I loved this tutorial. Your tree using the flat brush was a very different style than what you generally paint for a tree. It would interest me to see you paint a picture using this style. Also, thank you for reminding us that you too make many mistakes and throw paintings away! There are times I think what in the world did I just paint! and into the trash it goes (after using the other side of the paper, too)!
Thanks Steve. I've been getting a bug to get into landscapes and this gets me started. Mostly I've been doing portraiture. Time to broaden my horizons! ;)
Hi, Funny, I like the plant marked OK! I love the way you play with each tree to use different brushes, different types of strokes, and you vary the tree in very simple ways. I'm wanting to get away from copying tutorials to doing more plein air and working more on reproducing some of my photos. This was inspiring. Thanks. Barbara
Add motivating to this!!!!
Great video! I love it!! Thanks
Just Great! Thank You
Thanks so much for this great video ! 😍
thanks. after this video I was inspired to look at trees which I grew up with. one of them oddly enough has a branching pattern loosely similar to a cellphone tower which I saw by the highway once. this is a challenging exercise but helpful. another looks like broccoli
Very helpful - thank you!!
This was really helpful! Cheers!
Great video Steve! 😁 I always love how you do your trees and these videos are always so helpful. I think the quill one is my fav. When you were painting that one and kept telling yourself you were going to stop to let it dry. Well, that's me except most of the time my hand doesn't listen when told to stop. 😆 Thanks for sharing! I hope you are doing well my friend. 🤗
LOL! I know what you mean. Happens to me too quite frequently. Thanks Val!
Your channel is amazing!!!! Thank you so much for putting the lesson tips and studies out here for the minders!! P.s. love the verses at the end of all you videos!!!!
Thanks so much!!
I love your style !
I say thank you for you great talent that you have and the form that you explain and show each step from the painting process, I had a lot fun to watching each from your videos. Go forward and make to great videos like this. I enjoy each from them. Greetings 🖖
Excellent!!!
Great lesson thanks
Amazing work.. Amazing artist
Thank you, Steve! Always a pleasure to watch and listen to you....much to learn. I appreciated your comment about not letting a fear of doing it right stop us from putting the work in....perfectionism seems to block more work and practice than anything else. One question for you....greens...can you share details of your paints or mixes that you used? Just a guess but maybe Azo green and Prussian blue but not sure about your darkest greens. Greens are a constant struggle but I keep trying to find the shades I like. Thanks, again!
Very helpful video, thanks.
Thanks so very much! I think I'll try drawing our orange tree (shorter one so can see all highlights and shadows) as my first project. Valuable education!
very helpful! thanks .
Steve I think I would like to see you do a shadow study as one of your videos. I believe that would help me and other beginners immensely. To be able to know what color you would use for the dark areas. Like the dark shadowy areas of a tree. So please consider doing a shadow study or something of that nature? I had fun painting these trees with you. Your right I was having so much fun I didn't want to quit when I should've. Lol. Thank you. 😊
Yes, plan to do something like that eventually when I can decide the best way to cover it.
@@mindofwatercolor I hope you can figure out how to do the video because that would be awesome.😊!!! On the trees the very first one I painted or dobbed really good but the more trees I did the bigger they got and the shadowy parts were really off? I used the different brushes also and maybe that's why?
Ladies ans gents this is how is done ! Merci beaucoup!
thank you!
THANKS for this
This was great! I'm going to use it as a reference. Also, I think it would be great to see some of your "failures". One of the things I think is really hard as a new artist is watching skill and not knowing the stages people go through to get there.
I share them on occasion. Will do more in the future. 😊
Awesome 👏
Blooo bloop todoop and you're done 😁😁😁 you're making it look so easy
😄
Super...Thank you.
Bloop bloop teedoop. Hahhaaa. Cracked me up
Is it sad that I looked up your shirt to see what it is about? Can't say I know much more now. 😃 Great great video, by the way. I understand better how to quickly do the brush strokes and then not overwork the foliage.
Thank you very much.
This is helpful
Super! Thank you:-)
I am a total beginner... love watching you! I am wanting to do a black/white/snowy painting that is mostly of trees (without leaves) and need some advice!!!!!
This video is so helpful, Steve! I love how you simplify trees and bushes. I will definitely use your method. Thanks for sharing :)
I love the shirt!! So cool! Great, great video!! Foliage is definitely one of the areas I need improvement in and this is really helpful. It’s great to see your approach and it has altered my way of seeing trees and foliage. Thanks!! Btw, what is up with people thumbs-downing? What part of free, well-thought-out instruction delivered with intelligence and humor is something to dislike?! Seriously. I’ll stop now... bloop, bloop, de doop, I’m done. 😁
Thanks man! I appreciate the comment and glad you found the video helpful. LOL! Yeah, its funny about the thumbs down. Every CZcamsr it seems eventually has a what-the-???? moment! You'll eventually ignore them. They are annoying but a meaningless mode of expression for the viewer, though most probably don't know that. CZcams counts them as "engagement" and thats a positive metric even if you had a thousand of them. I think its CZcams's way of giving some fake anonymous power to the lurkers who are too shy to troll through comments. If most viewers realized CZcams counts a thumbs down the same as a thumbs up they would probably stop altogether. CZcams loves engagement positive or negative because it indicates viewership and means more ad dollars. People thumbs down stuff for all sorts of reasons. I've had a couple tell me why in the comments. Many think it has some real power to alter content and viewership. It doesn't. Sometimes its just because they didn't find what they were looking for in your video or because they don't like the color you used or the particular brand of paint or the music, or that you talked about your pet or your family instead of your art. Really dumb stuff like that. You're right though. Why do people waste their time watching something free and then giving a video a thumbs down instead of just moving on? LOL! I hope YT will eliminate it eventually. Its pointless.
That’s a good way of looking at it... helps either way. I usually just laugh when I see them on my vids. Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed. 😂