Michelle Ward has encouraged the
Green Pepper Press Street Team to share what we are learning for our latest crusade. Being a curious person, I'm always learning. There are usually art books or magazines beside my favorite chair and beside my bed.
When I start a painting, I've been trying to remember to keep a record of the paints I use in a watercolor tablet. I learn what colors to mix for desirable combinations. This visual record can become the jumping off point for a new project. I'm learning that the tablet is an important tool for projects that are laid aside. When I return to the painting, the record helps me go back to the correct paint colors. Another lesson learned... if I DO NOT record my paints is bad. There is a painting that I will need to run color trials before I can work on it again since I don't remember exactly which paints I used and it's not a typical color palette for me.
Inspired by the book "Creative Computer Tools for Artists", I have been using my camera and Photoshop Elements to help me develop some of my paintings in progress. This image is an edited version of a wooden drawing model I photographed. I eliminated the model's stand and the background. I wanted to see if a figure in this pose would work on a painting in progress. After opening an image of the painting in PS Elements, I copied the model's image and pasted it on to a new layer of the painting's image. I could easily resize the model and move it around for placement.
This exercise was very helpful and much less stressful than adding an element to a very developed painting when I wasn't sure it would work.
I made progress on other paintings this past week because of my digital try outs. By using a translucent layer over an image of the painting, I could test the results of adding a glaze to adjust values. Next, I used the 'eraser' to remove the virtual glaze in areas I want to keep in the foreground. I was able to approach my painting with more confidence and did not worry that I would regret glazing over some of my lighter values.
Later, I photographed the adjusted painting. Because the painting has many hues, I made grey scale versions of the earlier photograph and the new one. In grey scale, I could more easily see that I had successfully adjusted the values.
There is another painting that is in its early stages, and I really liked how it looked. The problem was that I wasn't quite sure what to do next. After uploading a photo of the painting, I digitally painted more layers. I printed the results which I am using as a guide.
I hope to become more proficient with PS Elements through these exercises. There is a lot for me to learn about using digital brushes and I am excited about the prospects.
Have you used digital editing to help you with your painting progress?
The ground below the tree and water features are the next to be painted. When Hubby took this shot last night, the work light was pointed to the left which is why the wall color is uneven from left to right.
I have mentioned before that my husband is super-supportive. He even helped with this mural by removing some stray brush marks for me. First we dampen the area with water. Then we use a cotton swab and a dab of waterless hand sanitizer to gently remove the paint. This works well with thin layers of paint that have not cured for more than a day or two.
Oh yeah! I'm sitting on a footstool, and my hair is partially French-braided to keep it out of my face. I've grown so accustomed to having paint on my hands that I showed up at church last Sunday with mossy rock colors on my hand. Argh! A cool trick I recently learned is to use waterless hand sanitizer and a paper towel to remove acrylic paint from my hands (which led to the tip explained above.) Apparently I was so tired when cleaning up on Saturday night that I forgot that step. Usual hand washing doesn't remove the lingering acrylic film, especially on the fingernails. I know matte fingernail polish is in vogue right now, but I don't think this is what stylists have in mind. ;-)
