Landscape Beginner Bundle

If you’re new to plein air painting and would like to start building your personal resource library of art instruction videos, but not quite sure where to start, let us help! We have put together a special bundle of four excellent video courses that will help you get off to a great start in your new-found passion - plein air painting! Included is everything you’ll need to build a strong foundation — design, working with a limited palette (very important when painting outdoors!), cityscapes, and landscapes. Regardless of the medium you normally use, there is something for everyone here. Here’s a chance for you to learn from four master plein air artists who will share the same methods and techniques that have helped them achieve monumental success in their careers as professional artists.   John Pototschnik: Limited Palette Landscapes   If you make the wrong color choices: Your tones don’t complement each other or intermix well… The elements in your work seem disjointed or flat… The structure and values of your composition feel wrong… Your paintings don’t make an emotional connection… …and all of this creates disharmony in your work and makes makes things appear “off” to the viewer.   John Pototschnik will guide you through every step of his painting process from A to Z… …beginning with the very first stages of selecting your subject, all the way to making the final adjustments that speak to your viewer on an emotional level. You see, anyone can try painting with these basic colors, but without understanding the method to color harmony, you may miss the boat. But this video isn’t just about color. It’s learning how this master painter starts and finishes a painting.  You’ll also discover: How to select your subject and identify exactly what you want to portray with your painting How to use a special tool to lay out your composition and establish the correct proportions An easy way to decide what surface and size to use for your work John’s technique of using a single specific color and a soft brush to create a monochromatic painting that makes it MUCH easier to manipulate your values What reference photos can and can’t do for you as a painter An easy way to find your horizon line, and why this is so critical for getting your painting started in the right direction How to make the area of interest stand out more so that your viewer is more engaged and emotionally invested in your work How to make the light tones “pop” so they draw your viewer into appropriate areas of your painting How to stay true to your original concept through the use of the appropriate color, value, and quality of light John’s secret to working with dark and light accents and how to subtly (and not-so-subtly) manipulate the shadows to highlight different elements of your work How to make your subject more personal and relatable for the viewer How to work with a “muted” palette that speaks softly and almost seduces your viewer into the painting Tips and techniques to capture a sense of peace, morality, and security within your subject All the building blocks of a successful, gallery-quality landscape painting What you should focus on when painting the foreground and background How you can get BETTER results with just three primary colors (you can mix a massive variety of additional colors you need from this palette) How to mix your colors and get every shade you need for your painting — including the buildings, trees, sky, foreground, background, and more How to paint the calming, peaceful sunlight peeking through the clouds How to find inspiration and let your painting evolve as you go How to create paintings that speak emotionally to the viewer …and much, much more.   Jim Wodark: Composition for Painters   In this video training, Jim Wodark shows you: Exactly how great composition leads to great paintings — it’s a fact, and it’s all here for you! Ways to help people read the story of your painting How to convey feeling and emotion in your art How you get faithful fans who want to see and collect your art How to rearrange nature to make a better painting every time Rules vs. options — what you must do and what you can choose NOT to do How to bring dramatic effects into your paintings without interrupting the harmony A breakdown of critical design concepts The ONE quick-draw technique you’re probably not using that you’ll now want to use forever And so much more!   Jim Wodark says that painting your canvas with color before nailing the composition is like trying to spread pretty frosting on a half-baked cake. No matter how good the frosting is, the cake isn’t going to hold up … and you won’t be satisfied with the outcome. In this powerful video, Jim proves that the answer to “What makes a good painting good?” is great composition. It’s what high-level artists know and use to make their paintings rise above the rest. Suddenly things will start feeling right, all because you understand these composition principles. And one of the best ways to understand the mind of a painter is by listening to an interview to really get the motivation behind the art. A personal interview with Jim is included for you. You’ll really appreciate his tremendous insight and the sage advice he shares here. Then, take the time to view some of Jim’s best paintings in the gallery. Not only is this great eye candy for you, you’ll be able to see the outcome of Jim’s tried-and-true composition techniques in the end product because now you’ll know what to look for! Here’s a trick: Before you even watch Jim teach the composition secrets, look at the gallery segment first. Then after you view the instructional video, look through the gallery again. You’ll recognize his tips and tricks at work in every painting. BONUS: Be looking for the bonus segment on mixing grays. Believe it or not, this is another secret that most of the great masters use to actually make paintings feel more colorful! Mary Garrish: 6 Elements of Design   Have more fun painting when you learn the 6 elements of design! In this video workshop, artist Mary Garrish shows how to save time and frustration when you start with a strong foundation. Through her examples and step-by-step demonstration, you’ll learn to use line, shape, value, color, edges, and texture to create great paintings every time!   We Love What We Know! Mary is a firm believer that practice makes perfect. And she is not alone! Based on experience and inspired by an article she read, Mary says, “Making a painting is a performance that comes after studying. A basketball player practices drills and shooting before going on the court to play a game. He puts in many more hours at practice than at playing. We should do the same.” Shortcut those years of wondering what went wrong when you follow Mary’s method of study in this video so you can approach your easel with enthusiasm!  “When I first started painting, especially in plein air, I would go out and look around at a site for a bit, and then, without doing any other prep, I would set up and start painting. I don’t do that anymore. I study and take my time and prepare.”    Here’s what Mary has planned for you in The 6 Elements of Design: The impact different formats give to a painting — are you choosing the right format for your subject? An understanding of value and the important role it plays in advancing your work from “blah” to breathtaking! A proven method for choosing colors that work with your design so your paintings have the feeling you are looking to portray. Making shapes that make the painting! A magic medium you may never have used — fall in love with texture all over again, and learn where and when to use it to your advantage. How to finish a painting. Warning, this technique is not for the faint of heart! But once you try this you’ll find it an essential step for better paintings!   This Video Includes Start-to-finish demonstration painting of a moonlit marsh landscape, broken down chapter by chapter. Mary makes understanding design through painting accessible for every skill level Fan favorite! High-Speed View of demo painting Inspiring paintings by the artist, set to music Insights from the artist And more!   Richie Vios: Confident Watercolor During this exclusive video course, Richie lays out the three core skills you need to confidently create watercolor paintings. These three core skills influence how you think, see, and execute before and during painting.   Gain New Skills and Confidence! Handle elusive watercolors — and let go of your need to control the paint The surefire way to let go of mental blocks so you can become a bold and spontaneous watercolor artist The one simple method to ensure your painting success before you even lift the brush Why it’s not enough to copy someone’s techniques, and how to become an artistic individual yourself instead The 3 simple steps to increase your confidence in your painting skills Richie’s never-done-before “charging and de-charging” technique that allows you to create interesting, new, and soft color transitions as well as interesting patterns. This alone is worth the small investment to change your painting. The sneaky method of correcting mistakes and creating lighter areas in your painting without using opaque white or other paints. How to add emphasis and fine details with this special brushwork technique Pulling off wet-to-wet and wet-to-dry washes through “gravity” The one special brush that makes dry-brushing fun and easy Richie’s secret method of applying paint without ever touching a palette   Learn the three strategies and watch your confidence soar through the roof.   How Can Richie Help You Boost Your Confidence As A Painter?   Richie himself put it best:  “If you don’t believe in your work, who does?”   If you have low confidence in your skills and results, it will show. Low confidence is visible in your finished paintings — but probably even more importantly, it shows in your painting process.   Without self-confidence, you can’t make bold moves. You don’t dare to try something new.    Instead, you hold back. Your paintings look restrained and stiff. Plus, you have a hard time enjoying yourself while painting.   Remember that confidence comes from being confident in your ability and your process.   Richie is bold in his paintings as well as in his teaching. In many ways, he’s a maverick.    And he’ll show you how you can unleash your inner potential by mastering the foundations first and knowing exactly what to do in each step of the process.   Chapter Breakdown: Introduction Basic Skills--a brief review of concepts you need to know about watercolor. No action, just examples and terms you need to know Visualization--review Richie’s visualization checklist before you start to paint and to keep in in mind as you paint so you have successful results: Focal Point or Center of Interest, Gradient, Shapes & Tangency, Ling of Sigh or Eye Path, Lost & Found Edges, Yin & Yang (value contrast) / Fire & Ice (chroma contrast), Gravity, Timing Build Confidence with Practice--a short, quick demo painting a boat in the water to establish the color scheme, timing, brushwork, etc that will apply to the larger painting to come Demonstration: Underpainting--lay in a wash on sky and water, following same process and colors as done on our practice demo Demonstration: Paint the Waves --Light to dark, wave, reflection. Moving the surface around can help your waves dry the right way Demonstration: Develop Larger Shapes & Distance--why NOT to mix more than 3 colors together. Painting distance. Easy tip to mixing a variety of grays with only 3 colors. Why using WHITE can be a good thing. Painting reflections---Reflections are like a rhythm. Wet-into-wet, charging with color and with water, hard vs soft edges, using tip of brush or belly of brush--techniques Demonstration: Develop Darks & Smaller Shapes--figures, details, fixing mistakes (getting the white back with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser), tip to harmonize edges and color Demonstration: Evaluate & Adjust--review the checklist as it applies to your painting to find areas needing improvement--correct shapes, add highlights, harmonize color like a filter Demonstration: Enhance Contrasts & Details--darken the shadows and adjust shapes, develop the figures and highlights with opaques, add splatter (You know you are confident if you’re not afraid to dirty-up your painting) Demonstration: The Final Stage--The Final Stage   EXTRAS Exhibit of Works: an inspiring slideshow of Richie’s paintings High-Speed View: (Viewer Favorite!) a time-lapse version of the in-process painting demonstration gives a quick glimpse at how RIchie paints this sunset scene at the boat dock Insights from the artist: Richie discusses growing up around art and how he became interested in pursuing art himself. Be inspired by Richie’s passion for painting!