To begin, dip one-third of the bristles of a flat, round brush into clean water. Dip the brush into your first color tray until an eighth of the bristles are coated in color. Create a two-inch stroke on clean watercolor paper. This is the hue, the purest color you can achieve.
Wash the brush and dab it until dry. Then place your brush in the middle of the stroke you just created, and drag the color out another two inches. This is your middle value.
Wash the brush and dab it until dry. Place your brush in the middle of your middle value and drag the color out another two inches. This is your lightest value (Robertson 18).
Here's my completed value chart of warm colors. I mistakenly added more water to the red value and created what's called a back run. Notice the gradation of the red is not as smooth because of the back run.
Next, I created gradations for the cool colors in my palette.
I found the value scale very useful because it taught me the ratios of water to paint that I could use to create different values.
What do you think are some reasons why using various values would be important while painting?
Robertson, Jeanette. Watercolor 101: Techniques for the Absolute Beginner. New York: Sterling Pub., 2007. Print.
ugh watercolor scales are so hard >.< I think they're important while painting because they gives us a way to compare colors differently to one another, when they are placed next to different shades and colors
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ReplyDeleteThis is such an informational tip! I find water color art to be difficult to do well, but I can see how the value scale can help an artist know how much water to use when trying to create shadows. Have you ever painted with a mix of two colors? If so, how is that different from other forms of coloring?
ReplyDeleteIn my next post, I create a color wheel showing the various shades you can create by mixing different colors :) It's different from other forms of coloring because you really have to be careful about the balance between which colors you use that you create with ratios of colors.
DeleteThese are so helpful! These look so pretty. I find watercolors to be really tricky, but this post is making me want to try again. Is there a particular brush that you prefer for painting with watercolors? If so, what is it?
ReplyDeleteThank you! There's not really any specific brush I use; there are a ton of different brushes out there that have different purposes depending on what exactly you're painting. For this project, I'm just kind of experimenting with the various types of brushes. So far, I really like the fan brush!
DeleteI love working with water colors! They're flexible and light hues that also give off a neat texture. I believe that the value of colors would be important while painting because for one, it's handy when portraying realistic objects which have shadows and light. Values also help show depth or even expression in an image. This especially goes for the amount and intensity of certain colors used within a piece. I see that you have a clear understanding of paints and I look forward to seeing more of your posts!
ReplyDeleteI love working with water colors! They're flexible and light hues that also give off a neat texture. I believe that the value of colors would be important while painting because for one, it's handy when portraying realistic objects which have shadows and light. Values also help show depth or even expression in an image. This especially goes for the amount and intensity of certain colors used within a piece. I see that you have a clear understanding of paints and I look forward to seeing more of your posts!
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