July is World Watercolor Month. Ever since the beginning of the year I have wanted to try watercolor painting, so this should be the perfect time. I have watched countless YouTube videos, bought all kinds of art supplies, and even purchased some books. Despite all of this, I have not been able to overcome my fears and actually put paint on paper. In my job, we sometimes talk about “the paralysis of analysis.” I have been stuck in place, unable to take my first step as I try to figure out how best to start.
I think that I am supposed to do practice exercises and learn about color mixing by swatching my paints or perhaps even take a class. I don’t really know how to sketch and probably should learn to do that first. Maybe then I would be ready.
Well, today I decided that, ready or not, I am jumping into the deep end and that I will learn about watercolor painting by actually trying it. What a novel concept!
I decided to use some pretty basic supplies—a Winsor & Newton Cotman Sketcher’s Pocket Box; some Derwent water brushes; and a little block of 4 inch by 6 inch 140 lb cold press paper by Fluid 100. For the subject, I drew inspiration from a landscape photo taken by one of my friends (who is a real painter) that depicts a little house on the prairie, with grass in the foreground and mountains in the background.
The second image below was my first attempt. Things got out of control pretty quickly and I felt like I was hurrying myself. The first image below is my second attempt and is somewhat of an improvement. I felt more comfortable and a slight bit more in control of what I was doing.
I am pretty excited to play some more soon, perhaps in a more systematic way or maybe not. I think that most of all I need to work towards letting go of my inhibitions and becoming more like a child.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Yay! I am so glad you decided to take the plunge. Great job, Mike! I am really impressed with what you achieved on just your second attempt. I use watercolour a lot, as you know, but I use it more to “colour in” my illustrations than in a painterly way. I would still say, however, that the best way to learn and develop your skills with the medium (which is harder to control than people think) is just to play and dabble and see what happens. A lot of it comes down to personal preference too. I, for instance, like lots of separation and blooms and puddles because I like that element of chaos with the paint given how tight my line work is. Other people, of course, exercise much more control or precision. So just play and experiment and see what you enjoy doing with it because you are definitely off to a very strong start.
Thanks for your words of encouragement, Laura. I follow several folks on YouTube who do a lot of line and wash work and I love what they do. I suspect, though, that I will lean more towards a looser style. I will probably use a regular brush the next time rather than a waterbrush, which may give me better control over the amount of water that I am using. I think that it has probably been at least 50 years since I last used watercolors and maybe even longer. Yikes.
Great fun, Mike. Always good to just have a go and play.
Thanks, Chris. I probably need to practice in private now, but there were several viewers who knew I was contemplating trying watercolors and were encouraging me to do so. This post was a way of letting them know I finally took the plunge. I can already see that, as with photography, there is so much gear out there for watercolor that I will probably start to accumulate more than I can possibly need or readily use. 🙂
Yes you will. I too have dabbled in watercolours and have a set on board. Not doing a lot of landscape or seascapes although I should especially with the colours of the reef! Did a few classes in botanical illustration several years ago. It is all about practice and observation.
These look great, Mike! Painting is a world of fun and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!
Well done, Mike, I look forward to seeing more of your work.
Nigel alerted me that you’d put up a watercolour and I was over the moon! Its beautiful Mike and I get a real feeling from looking at it of the open space and beauty of the prairie. I only know the prairie from photos I’ve seen on WP and from reading all the Laura Ingalls Wilder books! You’ve put a big smile on my face and its fabulous you’re using those art supplies to such great effect 🙂
Thanks, Liz. You’ve been encouraging me to get started and it’s been raining all day today, so it’s been a perfect opportunity for me to take the plunge. It was cool trying to mix colors and vary shades with the watercolors. It’s my own version of “exploring colour.”
Hahaha! Yes! Well done!
Hey congratulations! Love this post
It’s like anything else, practice makes perfect.
I practiced but I never made it to perfect. My favorite thing was wetting the entire paper with a 2 inch brush and then touching it with an artist’s brush dipped in different colors. The resulting patterns and color blends were fascinating.
You’ve touched on one of the reasons why I decided to try watercolor rather than acrylics. Watercolor sometimes has a mind of its own and the results are not always predictable or precise. I suspect that I will soon be trying the technique you described,
It’s fun!
I think you’re off to a good start, Mike. Congrats for making the ffort and good luck with it as you go forward.
Thanks, Dan. It’s a bit humbling to try something completely new and feel a bit like a klutz. Already I can see though, that this could become a new way to express myself creatively. There are all kinds of filters in Photoshop that could help to give my images a painterly look, but it is a whole different ball game to state at a blank sheet of paper and figure out how to create something from scratch.
It is, and watercolour is not the easiest medium to work with. I look forward to seeing more of these.
Hooooray! I remember sharing my very first watercolor a few years ago. Yours is SOOOO much better! Great job! Hope you enjoyed it. It is so much fun. Looking forward to more!
Thanks for your words of encouragement, Jodi. I definitely enjoyed the process and am ok with the result. Yesterday I got my package from Doodlewash that included the large pouch I ordered with your yellow bird on it. Now I have a place to store some of my stuff that has the added bonus of being inspirational.
Oh Mike! How sweet to hear ☺️. Enjoy!
Well done Mr. Mike! Benjamin and I had looked at this post earlier, but had to hurry off before commenting. We are very impressed by your first painting. I am also impressed by this spirit of adventure that is taking you down an unknown path. Benjamin also wondered if you will be painting dragonflies and I told him that just maybe you might! Happy painting! Thank-you!!
I think that I might eventually try to paint a dragonfly, but those wings will definitely be a challenge. Picking up a brush was only half the battle. Deciding to post my first efforts was harder in some ways than actually making the paintings.
Nice Mike! It is always fun to try new endeavors! Have fun with it!
Very impressive, Mike, both the images and that you took the plunge! Looks like you’ve started a new and fun adventure!
Thanks, Ellen. I have spent most of my life doing analytical things and only now am I branching out and trying to tap into the underdeveloped creative side of me. I know that I can be creative with my photography (and try to be when I can), but I like the idea of creating art from scratch. I don’t know how serious it will get–for now playful exploration is what I am mostly doing.
Brilliant, well done for giving it a go. I love painting outdoors with my watercolours, Indian ink and coloured pencils. Thank you for stopping by my blog and following me. 🍃
Thank, Katharine. I think that I am going to start carrying a small watercolor set with me when I go out with my camera to photograph nature and see what I can manage to do. Who knows? It is inspiring to see what others like you are doing.
Thank you Mike. I find including less detail in my sketchbook allows me to capture the essence of a place whilst on my walks. Without holding up everyone for too much time. This comes with time. Someone recommended I try a water paint brush. I love using them. https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=pentel+water+brushes&index=aps&tag=googhydr-21&ref=pd_sl_79vjkaet5_e&adgrpid=56955237721&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=259099145971&hvpos=1t2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=9145466244428515296&hvqmt=e&hvdev=t&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9041113&hvtargid=kwd-309418776215
I also started up with watercolor recently, and bought the same paint box as you, actually ☺ It’s quite frightening to plunge into something new, but I’m slowly getting more and more into it. Now I just can’t stop! All the best to you!😊
Thanks. It is definitely frightening to face the absolutely blank page and realized that I have to start from scratch. I am so much used to taking photos. With photos, I can make creative adjustments with software, but there is a starting photo from which to start. Good luck on your painting journey. We may have to check each other’s progress from time to time.
Likewise!☺ Yes, we might have to do that 😊