How to paint a sunrise landscape with a waterbrush.

I love painting with waterbrushes. They are now the only brushes I use, even in the studio. They easily create graded washes (an application of paint that transitions from more intense pigment to a pale tint) which I find everywhere in nature. As you paint, the pigment in the brush gets used up but the

How to paint clouds with a flat waterbrush

Flat brushes are incredible tools for creating the random edges of clouds. By twisting the brush between your fingers and rocking it to paint with edges or corners you build beautiful chaotic patterns. If you try to create these kinds of edges with a regular brush, you may easily fall into a pattern of regular

How to draw a Forest (video)

Learn how to draw distant evergreen forests and the view from within the woods. Here we explore layering values (from light to dark) and intentionally controlling the values and detail of each layer.

Sierra Sunset Landscapeito

There you are in the High Sierra. The sun has set over a nearby ridge and the light is beginning to fail. As you put on your hat and extra layers to prepare for the night, you look to the east and see the “Belt of Venus”. The blue line, low across the sky made

Color and Value (video workshop)

Color Gets All the Credit, Value Does All the Work Want to get more of a pop from your watercolors? Wish they were easier to use? Would you like an adaptable system to help you get your paint down on the paper? It is easy to get wrapped around the axle about accurately matching a

How to Draw Waves and Whales (video workshop)

Learn to sketch marine mammals as you see them in the field. Whether you draw from shore or head out whale watching, this class will help you capture the moments on paper. Learn relevant anatomy for artists and field sketchers to help you draw whales, seals, sea lions, and otters. Understand the series of shapes

5 Minute Landscape: Water Soluble Pen

Most pens are not waterproof. They bleed in the rain or turn a sky gray when overpainted with watercolor. But pen solubility does not have to be a liability. it can be a feature. After you make a quick pen sketch, stroke your pen lines with water to create a gray wash. Some brands make a

5 Minute Landscape: Watercolor Pencil

Watercolor pencils are great tools for fast sketching. Start just like a pencil sketch and then add a little bit of water to blend some of the strokes. Three big tricks to help Keep it small. Thumbnail sketches can be just as satisfying as big landscapes and they take less time. Just use one color

5 Minute Landscape: Graphite

A soft (2B) graphite pencil and a blending tool are great fast sketching media. The trick is use the blender not just as a tool to smooth pencil strokes but as a drawing tool itself. Once you get graphite on the tip of the blender you can use it like a paintbrush to add value into

The Five Minute Landscape (video workshop)

In this workshop we explore landscape drawing for the artist on the run- how to draw and paint a landscape in five minutes or less, while standing up, in wet weather. Learn how to see basic shapes, simplify values, and discard unnecessary detail. I show several techniques including water soluble pen, aquash pencil, limited palette