How do you paint a complex scene in watercolor (see my source photo)? Watch my 8 tips in this advanced watercolor tutorial on how to paint a complicated subject and make it easier. Also in this watercolor demonstration I will cover techniques like drawing boats, laying down a graded wash, what brush to use, splattering, color mixing, brush strokes, negative painting and a lot more…
See my 8 tips below.
At the start of this video, I show my source photograph for the painting. If you want to keep referring to this during the video, then copy the URL of the video into another browser Tab or Window on your device. Run the video again, but of course pause it at the start where I show the source photo. In Chrome, you can also right-click on the tab and select ‘Duplicate’.
Would you like to paint scenes like this? If you join up at my Patreon site, in return for a small donation or pledge, I will give you a personal critique based on the regular projects I set with extra tips just for you! For more information, please go to
My 8 tips for painting a complex scene and making it easier
1. Consider painting into the light, contra jour as they say. So objects become silhouetted and simpler.
2. Next – think about shapes – squint your eye – observe the scene – but not too much!
3. Values – Think about the lights and the darks. Imagine the scene as a black and white photo.
4. Remove things which aren’t important to the composition. E.g. objects on the side or partially out of the frame.
5. In the initial drawing, don’t draw in every single thing you see. Restrict drawing time to 5 minutes or less!
6. Keep background simple and sometimes the foreground too.
7. Keep brush strokes to a minimum. A bit like a game of golf – you win with the least number of strokes.
8. Edges and brush marks give the illusion of detail – I demonstrate this in the video.
More information on watercolour demos, painting workshops, lessons and recent paintings by Tim Wilmot can be found at:
The paper I use and recommend is Saunders Waterford.
