In so many of our watercolor subjects, it’s really important to get the light and shadow right. But it’s not something that can be an afterthought.

In order to depict the gorgeous light of a scene...

Today I'm painting and Irish Landscape, and I walk you through my process step-by-step.

From Drawing to Darks and Details

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The 3 Step Watercolor Process

Water...

As much as I love painting outdoors, you’ll often find me using a reference photo for watercolor inspiration. In fact, it is commonplace to find me working from a photo in my studio. 

But the proc...

One of the most critical stages of the watercolor painting process is right before you begin those last watercolor steps to polish up your scene. The decisions you make here can make or break your ...

Skies are an inspirational sight and have the power to elevate a scene. Therefore, it is often that I’m asked about how to paint dynamic, colorful skies in watercolor landscapes. 

Skies are loose ...

Below, I have placed two of my paintings - one is an older painting, and one is more recent. There are many differences between these two paintings. The first one has several mistakes, but one mist...

Today I'm teaching how to paint morning light in watercolor.

What Supplies Did I Use?

I am painting on Saunders Waterford Cold Press 140lb paper, and I have my surface tilted to 35 degrees.

I ...

The light effect that we refer to as “dappled” creates a particularly pleasing atmosphere, both in real life and in art. There’s something soothing about shadows created by the natural world, somet...

Capturing light in watercolor is always a primary goal when I am painting a street scene. The light play on buildings, shadows in the streets, and the brilliance of the sky, when done well, can com...

Have you ever finished a watercolor and just sensed that you missed the mark somewhere? 

When this happens to me, it is often because there’s a lack of focus in the painting. My eyes don’t know wh...

Here in Kansas, we don’t have a lot of geographic beauty, but what we do have are gorgeous skies. And there is nothing more suited to watercolor paint than the vibrant colors of the sky.

So today,...

While most of my watercolor paintings are landscapes and street scenes, I really love the challenge of painting interior scenes. Sometimes an interior just enthralls me, and I have to paint it. 

B...