Scooter and Riley Lesson 16

Using Quinicridone Gold and Burnt Sienna, both separately and together, work around the light areas of the dogs and develop patches of light and dark where appropriate.

Use other variations of the colors we used in the previous washes to develop deeper values, small brush strokes for fur where appropriate, and to be sure that areas make sense to the viewer.

Be sure to step back often at this stage to view the painting as a whole.

Scooter and Riley Lesson 13

This is the next stage of an on-going watercolor lesson.

At this stage I am going back to check the entire painting for value ranges. I want the strongest values changes, the most color, and the most detail around the dogs faces, which is my focal area.

I used VanDyke Brown to develop the darker shadows around the ears, mouth and eyes. I also used Burnt Sienna to develop the mid range values around the face and in the shadow areas of the legs and tails.

Scooter and Riley Lesson 12

Using the previous color variations (see previous post), I spent several hours working around the dog's bodies and faces to develop their shapes. I used the existing puddles on my palette, with lots of water added, and a number 10 round brush to begin to develop small, fine strokes here and there to represent hair.

Don't fall into the temptation to paint every hair!!! Only paint a few strokes here and there to indicate where some of the hair may show. Be sure when applying these brush strokes to turn your paper so that you can carefully control the direction and curve of the strokes. Especially on animals with long fur, the areas of hair may curve and twirl. You may want to practice these loose, light brush strokes on a scrap paper to get the feel before trying this on your important painting.