I have to say a word about the set. It’s really useful, and very cost-effective. Each of the paints are useful on their own. I would highly recommend getting it.
Conclusion
If you love Daniel Smith paints, I’d look into this one. It’s a good, neutral yellow to have.
Despite me not liking the set AS A SET, I would recommend getting it. That is because the individual paints are great in their own right.
I hope you enjoyed this one, and I’ll talk to you again real soon!
Hi there! Today I want to talk to you about making your photo reference easier to paint.
Painting as an art form poses innumerable challenges. as we improve, these challenges never really go away. We, however, get better at dealing with them and solving them.
Your Photo Reference Matters
As a beginner, you want to have everything work in your favor. A large part of that is painting from a good reference.
Anything can be painted, but the reality is that not everything is ideal as reference.
In today’s video I want to show you several ways of turning your photos into something that’s easier to paint.
Watch the complete video here, and scroll on for a written version (:
Make Every Photo EASIER TO PAINT
Finding Good Reference
I have several sources for great reference photos, that I also present in the video. Here they are:
These are all great. Generally speaking – Pixabay and WetCanvas photos can be used for anything (commercial or non-commercial).
Access to WetCanvas Reference Photo Library does require registration, which is free.
With Flickr you need to be a little careful, and filter according to the license. You can also always contact the owner of the photo and ask for their permission.
Choosing Good Photos
I’d like to say a few words about choosing good reference photos, and specifically for the purpose of painting and watercolor painting.
Clear and Focused
A good reference photo should be clear and well focused. You should be able to see all of the details.
Large Shapes
Also, it’s best if there are a few larger shapes that are very visible. What I mean by that is that the image isn’t a collection of tiny bits and pieces that don’t really connect to a cohesive subject.
This is why still-life arrangements, as well as portraits can be GREAT subjects. They are very clear and contain major shapes.
A cityscape, on the other hand (and this can very from one photo to another), has the potential of being a little “messier”.
Strong Contrasts
This is especially important if you are a beginner to watercolor painting. Photos that have sharper contrasts are simply easier to paint.
If you’ll try and paint a perfectly lit portrait, that barely has any shadows in it, and is full of gradual light changes – you may loose your mind =P
(check out the full video to see what I’m talking about).
Improving Brightness, Contrast and Levels
This first step is always important. Watch to full video to see how I play with the histogram, but here’s what the effect looks like.
(left – before, right – after)
Editing Your Photo Reference – Black and White
The first advice I’d give you is to turn your reference from color mode to black and white.
This can be done easily with the simplest of photo editing softwares. And it will give you a much better look at the values (how dark or light everything is).
Here’s a comparison.
(left – before, right – after)
Editing Your Photo Reference – Posterize
Posterize is a handy function that’s available in most advanced photo editing softwares such as Photoshop and (god forbid) Gimp.
It allows you to control the NUMBER of levels (=values). So you can choose 2 values – which will give you an image with two values only. Or you can increase it to 6, 12 or whichever number you’d like.
Here’s another comparison showing this effect.
(left – before, right – after)
I find this one to be particularly useful in simplifying a photo, and making it much easier for us to paint it.
You can just SEE very easily where it gets darker, lighter and so on.
Conclusion
You can paint based on anything. But some references are better than others.
When working from real-life observation, we don’t really have control over what we see. But, when working from a photo reference, we can change things around to our advantage.
I hope this helps you in better understanding how to do that.
I’ve used these methods for creating many of my works. Be sure to follow me on Instagram to see the results. I used this especially for my portraits, such as this one of Santa Clause (;
And this is it, I will talk to you again real soon!
Here’s the complete review on YouTube. Read on for the written version (:
Cobalt Blue by ShinHan PWC
I purchased this alongside their Cadmium Red Deep and Cadmium Yellow Deep.
I really love this paint and have used it EXTENSIVELY, in many of the works I shared with you here and on Instagram for the past several months.
Here are some of my works showcasing it.
Cobalt Blue – Paint Info
Pigment: PB28 (cobalt blue).
Semi-transparent
Lightfastness 3/3
Series D (almost the most expensive on the A-E scale)
My Only Complaint With Cobalt Blue
My only complaint with this paint is that it doesn’t achieve dark enough values. It’s not as light as some ceruleans I saw, but it’s still not as dark as many of the Phthalo Blues and French Ultramarines.
I think this could work to your advantage if you are painting in a softer style. For me however – I love strong contrasts at times. I love to use a wide range of values.
Another issue caused by this is that it’s hard for the blue to be dominant when mixed with the red and yellows I purchased (partially my fault, as they are more opaque).
I do love the way it looks
With that being said, I produced many beautiful paintings with it, and love the way it looks.
I’d recommend getting it as a part of a gentle trio, alongside lemon yellows and rose-like colors.
Where to get it
These sell on Amazon as sets. I’m not usually a big fan of watercolor sets, but for the price point – these may be worth it.
Here are affiliate links (I get a small commission, you pay the same price):
Hi there! Today I want to quickly let you know about my favorite watercolor paper(s).
This really is a personal matter, so don’t worry if our opinions are different. That’s what opinions are for (;
Here’s the full video. For a written version, read on.
In Watercolor, Paper’s IMPORTANT
I want to preface this by saying that paper really matters when it comes to watercolor painting. It has to be of good quality.
I find that I can work well with simple brushes and ok paints. But the paper is crucial for success.
Cold-Press VS Hot-Press
These are the two main watercolor paper types.
Hot-press paper has a soft surface. Paint tends to sit a little more on its surface, and may take a little longer to dry.
Cold-press paper has tooth, aka texture. It tends to be a little thirstier in my experience. It tends to absorb paint faster.
I am an absolute fan of cold-press.
I love the texture and tooth. It’s very forgiving, and holds paint very well. It can be used to create different effects and “dictate” the focus in a painting, by using dry brush techniques.
An Argument FOR Hot-Pressed Paper
There is something to be said of the merits of hot-press watercolor paper. This type of paper allows for smoother transitions and edges. It’s considered more suited for portrait painting, and for works that require finesse and accuracy (which makes sense).
I also find that it’s sometimes easier to blend and soften edges in hot-press paper, though you have to know what you are doing. You usually need to dry the brush a little more (as the paper is smoother and a little more moisture in the brush can cause paint to spread more easily).
I think that the minimum is 300gsm (grams per square meter). Under that you are risking with dealing with major buckling, especially in larger sizes.
I actually love to use 600gsm paper, but it’s not a necessity. That’s me being spoiled haha.
Favorite Watercolor Paper Brands
I have two brands whom papers I love.
Arches and Saunders-Waterford.
These two actually feel REALLY THE SAME. I think I read once those are different lines of the same brand, thus the similarity. Though I don’t remember clearly.
These can take anything, multiple layers, lifting, scratching, whatever!
The paper I most commonly use in the last six months or so is Saunders-Waterford.
Sketchbooks
When in sketchbooks, it’s sometimes a challenge to find one with good paper.
My favorite would be an Arches paper organized as a sketchbook (haven’t seen Saunders-Waterford in that format.
However, there is a different type of sketchbook I like, and that is Canson Montval (and it’s not even cotton paper).
You can watch my review of it here:
Conclusion
I hope this gives you a clearer picture of the types of watercolor paper I love using. this
Hi there! Today I want to share with you an initial review I did for three paints by ShiHan PWC.
I initially came across these at a local art store, and got a free sample pack. I was surprised to find how much I loved and enjoyed using them.
Here’s the full video review. Below it you’ll find an update from when I originally purchased these (after playing around with them a little more).
ShinHan PWC and Other Lines of Paints
ShinHan is a Korean art supplies manufacturer. It produces three lines of watercolor paints.
PWC – These are their ARTIST GRADE paints. Their best watercolors.
Professional – These are their STUDENT GRADE paints. Confusing name, I know (;
SHAMI – These are watercolors aimed for kids (perhaps similar to the sets you’ll find in the art section of an office supplies store)
Just to clarify – I haven’t tried the other lines so I can’t give a first-hand review. In this review I’ll only talk about the PWC line.
ShinHan PWC Paints I Got
So I decided to kind of build my own primary set. I got three paints:
Cobalt blue
Cadmium Red Deep
Cadmium Yellow Deep
Here’s the first (EVER) painting I did with these.
Needless to say, I was very pleased with this result, especially for a first try. I immediately fell in love with these paints.
Individual Tubes Info
Cobalt Blue – A blue somewhat resembling French Ultramarine. Pigment – PB28 (Cobalt Blue). It’s semi-transparent and has excellent lightfastness.
Cadmium Red Deep – A semi-opaque, strong warm red. Pigment – PR108 (Cadmium Sulfoselenide). Excellent Lightfastness
Cadmium Yellow Deep – A nother semi-opaque paint. Strong warm yellow. Pigment – PY35 (Cadmium Yellow).
As chance has it, all of these are Series D (which is relatively expensive, the scale starts at A).
Issues With This Particular Primary Combo
Here are some issues I experience with this specific combinations. These do not necessarily reflect poorly on the paints (but perhaps reflect poorly on my selection haha).
The blue isn’t dark enough. Their Cobalt Blue is easily overpowered by the red. Its range of values simply isn’t wide enough.
This creates problems when trying to achieve a cooler gray, or simply a dark blue.
The red and yellow are a little too opaque for my taste. This makes them even more dominant in the mixture. It’s a bit hard to explain, but it’s like they don’t mix too well.
Again, this has more to do with color selection. I do plan on getting a few more, and this time focusing on transparency and a large range of values.
Here’s another painting I did using these. I love this one too.
Where to Purchase ShinHan PWC Paints
From what I saw, ShinHan does not sell the individual PWC tubes on Amazon. I got lucky, as I can easily get them locally.
However, they do sell sets. I usually don’t recommend sets, especially for beginners, and especially very large ones. But the price for these may actually be worth it. The price per tube is much cheaper that way.
Here are links to purchase two sets (affiliate links, you pay the same price – I get a small commission):
I would highly recommend giving these a try. They seem to be priced cheaper, but as far as I can tell they are beautiful, vibrant and lightfast. Many are single pigments too.
I would suggest doing a more proper research than what I did, and making sure you get a good combo.
I hope you enjoyed this one, and I’ll talk to you soon!
