Autumn Trees

It is November.  The air is cool and crisp.  Golden brown leaves swirl around on the sidewalks.  Morning walks are fresh and calming.  

It is time to be out and about with your sketchbooks studying trees with their interesting poses.  When sketching trees, just a portion of it is sufficient to make an interesting composition.  Below I have prepared a series of steps that you could follow to do a simple line and wash study.  

I am using a pencil, pigma micron pens 01 and 03, and watercolor paper, french ultramarine blue and new gamboge yellow paint.

Start with a pencil contour drawing, marking some texture and shadow patterns.  

Once you are happy with your drawing, go over your outline with your 01 pen.

Next, using your 03 pen, darken your shadow pattern.

Now, it is time to add your wash.  To keep things simple, choose a cool and a warm color.  Apply your cool color on your shadow patterns and soften some of the edges.

When this is dry, add your warm color.

This is it.  You may use my drawings to practice if you wish.  If you are going to post it online, please link it back to my blog.  

Here is another example.  Experiment with different cool and warm colours.  Let me know if you give this a try.  Happy painting!

-Miss Bronte

“I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house."― Nathaniel Hawthorne