Step By Step Light & Shade

This is a painting that's all about the light, with great cast shadows! It also has great natural perspective.



The full guide including step by step instruction and pictures and will be downloadable from PaintBox Media's new website ArtTutor Online.

Materials



I used 4 colours, cad red, cad yellow, cobalt blue and raw umber, the paper is Bockingford 425gms, I used a number 5 HB pencil and a putty rubber.

Approach

I made quite a few changes to the reference photo to give a lighter more serene appeal to the finished painting and I think its worked. I layered the watercolours allowing for drying time before the next wash, this way the transparent under painting shows through, this is particularly in evidence with the window, the shadow (although its one of the deepest tonal areas of the painting) allows the initial detail of the wondow to remain in a subtle yet very visible way, this for me is one of the strongest aspects of painting with Watercolours, I love the direct free approach I use with other paintings but sometimes I like to get back to the basics of the medium and put it on display.

About the subject

St Mary's is situated near Manchester International Airport and is a 15 century building, you can see the changes in architecture that have taken place during its history quite clearly, its makes a great subject, located on a leafy lane adjacent to the airport viewing park.