How To Use Any Reference Photo To Paint A Stunning Watercolor

Aug 25, 2025

Have you ever had a reference photo that has elements you like but also has some problem areas that hold the scene back from its potential?

Today I want to give you permission to make your scene exactly what you need it to be while still drawing inspiration from what you love about your reference photo.

How to Transform Any Reference Photo Into a Beautiful Watercolor

Sometimes as artists, we are following rules that no one has actually set for us. For example, maybe you took a photo on a vacation but when you printed it out and displayed it in your studio as inspiration for a painting, you realize that it's not perfect. The scene was gorgeous when you were on location, and it means something to you, but the picture itself is lacking.

Maybe there are obstructions to the main focal point of the scene.

Perhaps the scope of the photo is too broad.

Maybe the composition leaves something to be desired.

The unwritten rule you might assume you must follow is: I must paint this scene as close to the actual photo/location as I possibly can.

But here's the thing - you are not a documentarian; you're an artist. You're not simply reporting the details of the location; you're creating a mood, arranging elements creatively, and capturing the essence of a scene.

So let go of the obligations you feel when you look at a reference photo and embrace your creative intuition.

Crop the photo to suit the needs of your watercolor painting.

Cropping your photo to highlight the areas of contrast and the focal points of your scene can dramatically improve your final product.

That nagging voice that says you must include everything in your reference photo is not always your friend. Instead, study your photograph. Identify what attracted you to the scene in the first place:

the light in the sky?
the texture of the side of a building?
the colors and motion of a cityscape?
the dappled shadows on a lawn?

What is it that's most important to you in the scene? When you're able to answer this question, then you are ready to crop the picture so that it features this main idea/focal point.

When you crop your photo, also consider the rule of thirds.

The rule of thirds is when you divide your painting with two evenly spaced out vertical lines and two evenly spaced out horizontal lines. Where those lines intersect are the parts of your painting that you want to place the most important parts of your scene.

This can feel like a simple change, but in many cases it is the difference between a focused and unfocused scene.

Feel free to move elements of the scene.

There may be particular scenes that you feel such a loyalty to that you want to depict it exactly the way it is. When something is particularly sentimental to you or connected to the recipient of a painting, this is absolutely understandable.

But in most cases, more than anything else, you want to lay out a paintable scene - one that you'll be comfortable completing. Let's look closely at the reference photo that I used to paint this week's painting.

The two differ from one another a lot because I took out some of the shapes in the foreground that were impeding on what I wanted to paint. What needs to take precedence in this process is what will serve the overall scene. And to access the parts of this scene that I was drawn to, I had to declutter it a bit.

I give you permission to do the same thing as you plan out your watercolor paintings.

Activate Your Artistic Intuition From the Beginning of the Watercolor Process

Again, you are in service to the best painting that can come from the scene in front of you, not to a copy-and-paste replica of the scene.

The photo serves as inspiration, not a guideline. Your interpretation and artistic vision that spurs from the original image is the value you bring - along with all the techniques and hard-earned talent you want to implement, of course.

So free yourself up from the obligation to recreate something that already exists. This is your iteration, your creation. So have fun, change things around, and own it.