Tips & Techniques

Reflections in Water

Transcribed from the program.
I know this technique wiill give you heart failure, but don't be afraid to try it. You'll be amazed by how it helps loosen you up and be more creatively free.

The one thing that really attracted my eye this day was the warm, warm colors.

It had some nice yellow and really pretty fall colors that were reflecting in the water and going over the bridge.

Now, I'm going to add some red that was on the roof and reflecting in the water and create a bull's-eye effect. To do this I used a fairly good-sized brush and dry paper.

I'm continuing the bull's-eye effect by adding blue for the sky and again increasing the size of the brush.

If you want to try this technique, be careful not to put the blue paint next to the yellow paint because you will get green.

See how this resembles a bull's-eye and notice how free and loose you can get. Now, I want the colors to bleed a little.

First, I'll turn the painting sideways. Then, with the help of my trusty spray bottle, I'll add some water to the image and let the colors start to blend together.

Once I'm satisfied with how things look, I'll flip the painting again and do the same thing in the opposite direction.

If this technique doesn't get you to loosen up a bit and try your hand at watercolor painting, nothing will.

In the end, what you see is just a little of the actual bull's-eye effect that you started with, but now you also have a perfect reflection of the roof, some of the sky, and just a few hints of yellow from the beautiful fall colors.

Once again, we took a fairly detailed and challenging subject matter, broke it down into its simplest form (in terms of color), and created a fairly realistic representation of the Ashuelot Covered Bridge in New Hampshire.

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