30 Watercolor artist | OCTOBER 2019
a subject and then work from the photograph. But
there’s a danger, in that relying too heavily on photogra-
phy can actually stop you from taking the time to look. If
you don’t take the trouble or experience the occasional
discomfort of working outside, or at least spend time
looking out in the open, you’ll never see all there is to
see in terms of color, tonal relationships and the little
details that make all the diff erence to your composition.Working From Life
Most cameras can’t cope with the tonal extremes that
the average landscape presents. Cameras invariably
overexpose the sky and/or underexpose the area below
the horizon line. Th at means that skies will lose color
and tone, and shadows and darker areas will be too
dark. Taking the time to stand and stare—or to sit
down to sketch or paint—will tell a very diff erent
story: softer contrasts and color where you wouldn’t
expect it. Taking this plein air approach allows you to
see so much more, and painting is about seeing—or,
even more—about what you want other people to see.
Working on the spot does bring a host of problems
that have to be solved. It means sometimes having to
cope with heat or cold, with onlookers and occasionally
wildlife. It frequently isn’t easy—but then painting isn’t
meant to be easy, and work produced under somewhatI regularly go beating
for the local shoot with
a dog and a sketchbook.
Apart from the fact that
I love working a dog, this
is an opportunity to be
out in the woods and
surrounding countryside
in winter conditions.
I painted Stearsby
Beaters (watercolor
on paper, 14x20) in the
studio from a very basic
sketch of beaters and
dogs standing around in
the snow awaiting
instructions. It was very
cold, and the afternoon
sky was an extraordinary
color. I went back the fol-
lowing day to get more
detail on the tree shapes.trying circumstances often turns out
to have a vibrancy and sparkle about
it that’s lacking in a carefully worked
studio piece.
In the right outdoor conditions,
there’s nothing nicer than settling
down to paint for a few hours, but
often the location or the conditions
aren’t very accommodating. If the
weather is too bad for painting, it’s
worthwhile just taking time to stand
and observe. (If you want to take a
photo too, that’s fi ne, just don’t let it
be a substitute for looking.) Try to
analyze the colors, the tones and the
shapes so that you can remember
them hours later. Th en ask yourself:
Why this scene? What is it about the
location and moment that attracts me?
What’s the point of interest? How do
I turn it into a painting?To Start
With a Sketch
I live in the wilds of England’s North
Yorkshire countryside, and my home