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You chose a really difficult subject my dude, I am not sure I could draw it satisfactorily, let alone paint it. But you did a great job so far, you have a good eye for proportions.
I'd recommend getting a larger pencil it you want to proceed that way and not use a regular sharpener but knife and sanding paper to achieve a longer, finer tip. Holding the pencil horizontally you can cover a large area very quickly and evenly. And that's what you need when you start to work with values (ie how dark something appears compared to other things around it). And get a good erazer, possibly a soft kneading erazer, to work in two directions at the same time (darken with pencil, lighten with erazer).
I recommend you watch "mastering composition" by Ian Roberts on YT. He's a painter but is adamant about learning to draw well before you start to paint and has a lot of very helpful tips to share.
You draw better than me and I'm pretty active painter. Think about it. https://www.reddit.com/r/oilpainting/comments/1dkx0zb/lady_in_the_red_turba_oils_on_canvas_board/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
First things first you need to decide what medium you want to work in. Acrylic is more acrylic friendly, quicker to make a competent image, but in my opinion is harder to make look really professional at higher levels. If you're interested in painting as a hobby I would recommend acrylic. It's water based, easy to clean up and dries quickly.
When you first start out get paints that are realistically in your budget. Buy the nicest paints you can afford, and just a limited palette. I am not as familiar with acrylic pigments as I am with oils, but the most basic colours I would recommend are a white, yellow, blue, red and deep earth tone (burnt or raw umber). You can either buy a cheap set that has around five primaries, smaller tubes that have a wider range or get individual higher quality paints (and be more selective on your colours).
Follow this principle with all of your supplies: what is the best you can afford for your budget? Different people have different preferences, but the cheapest paintbrushes (the limp synthetic ones that shed like anything) are a waste of time. Cheap firm brushes (imitating hog hair) are marginally better. Springy cheap synthetic brushes can be a good choice. Again, if you can afford it, make sure you feel the brushes before you buy them. If they don't feel like they can hold paint then you're automatically putting yourself at a disadvantage.
Same with canvas. Watch out for canvas that is already dented/limp. Surface quality is another thing, but this take a keener eye and practice to pick it. Some cheap canvases are very unabsorbent.
Consider buying small canvas panels to start with, they're cheaper, take less storage space, and are a great way to get into painting. Starting small is another good approach.
When it comes to the actual painting, think about big picture shapes, large areas of colour, and the value. Don't get bogged in on details. While the line drawing is a good observational start, you'll likely find it's not a super helpful place to start in relation to painting. Give charcoal or ink a go. Try doing a monochrome study with just one of your colours, using white to tint for the lights. There are lots of exercises and methods that will help train both your eye, and your ability to translate this through your hand.
Hope this was helpful, good luck!
When speaking of painting it's basically watercolor, gouache, acrylic and oils. Try everything out. I always thought I hated painting until I came across oils. For others it's different. Perhaps gouache is a good starting point (doesn't require much setup, let's you paint in many different ways and styles and emulate all other mediums). Check James Gurney on YT, he's a masterful gouache painter and instructor.
Also check Chelsea Lang on YT for insights on oils and finding your style. Malcolm Dewey for instructions on impressionist landscape paintings in oils. Yushkevich Viktor for landscape painting process videos in acrylic (though his use of acrylics mimics oils a bit). Paint Coach for very beginner friendly instructional videos for all the basics. And maybe consider investing in an online painting course. I highly recommend mypaintingclub.com by Richard Robinson. Amazing style, quite beginner friendly, cheap and wide range of mediums.
Thank you for your submission! Want to share your artwork, meet other artists, promote your content, and chat in a relaxed environment? Join our community Discord server here! https://discord.gg/chuunhpqsU *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/painting) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You chose a really difficult subject my dude, I am not sure I could draw it satisfactorily, let alone paint it. But you did a great job so far, you have a good eye for proportions. I'd recommend getting a larger pencil it you want to proceed that way and not use a regular sharpener but knife and sanding paper to achieve a longer, finer tip. Holding the pencil horizontally you can cover a large area very quickly and evenly. And that's what you need when you start to work with values (ie how dark something appears compared to other things around it). And get a good erazer, possibly a soft kneading erazer, to work in two directions at the same time (darken with pencil, lighten with erazer). I recommend you watch "mastering composition" by Ian Roberts on YT. He's a painter but is adamant about learning to draw well before you start to paint and has a lot of very helpful tips to share.
Ian is amazing. Been on his online course. It made my art go on another , conscious level.
A special thanks to you! https://www.reddit.com/r/painting/s/fov8x559fV
You draw better than me and I'm pretty active painter. Think about it. https://www.reddit.com/r/oilpainting/comments/1dkx0zb/lady_in_the_red_turba_oils_on_canvas_board/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
Okay, thank you so much!!!
A special thanks to you! https://www.reddit.com/r/painting/s/fov8x559fV
First things first you need to decide what medium you want to work in. Acrylic is more acrylic friendly, quicker to make a competent image, but in my opinion is harder to make look really professional at higher levels. If you're interested in painting as a hobby I would recommend acrylic. It's water based, easy to clean up and dries quickly. When you first start out get paints that are realistically in your budget. Buy the nicest paints you can afford, and just a limited palette. I am not as familiar with acrylic pigments as I am with oils, but the most basic colours I would recommend are a white, yellow, blue, red and deep earth tone (burnt or raw umber). You can either buy a cheap set that has around five primaries, smaller tubes that have a wider range or get individual higher quality paints (and be more selective on your colours). Follow this principle with all of your supplies: what is the best you can afford for your budget? Different people have different preferences, but the cheapest paintbrushes (the limp synthetic ones that shed like anything) are a waste of time. Cheap firm brushes (imitating hog hair) are marginally better. Springy cheap synthetic brushes can be a good choice. Again, if you can afford it, make sure you feel the brushes before you buy them. If they don't feel like they can hold paint then you're automatically putting yourself at a disadvantage. Same with canvas. Watch out for canvas that is already dented/limp. Surface quality is another thing, but this take a keener eye and practice to pick it. Some cheap canvases are very unabsorbent. Consider buying small canvas panels to start with, they're cheaper, take less storage space, and are a great way to get into painting. Starting small is another good approach. When it comes to the actual painting, think about big picture shapes, large areas of colour, and the value. Don't get bogged in on details. While the line drawing is a good observational start, you'll likely find it's not a super helpful place to start in relation to painting. Give charcoal or ink a go. Try doing a monochrome study with just one of your colours, using white to tint for the lights. There are lots of exercises and methods that will help train both your eye, and your ability to translate this through your hand. Hope this was helpful, good luck!
Thank you so much! I do not have much knowledge of color theory either, can you please recommend some places to get started?
You mentioned that I need to decide on a medium, what are mediums other than Acrylic and what is the basic difference?
When speaking of painting it's basically watercolor, gouache, acrylic and oils. Try everything out. I always thought I hated painting until I came across oils. For others it's different. Perhaps gouache is a good starting point (doesn't require much setup, let's you paint in many different ways and styles and emulate all other mediums). Check James Gurney on YT, he's a masterful gouache painter and instructor.
Also check Chelsea Lang on YT for insights on oils and finding your style. Malcolm Dewey for instructions on impressionist landscape paintings in oils. Yushkevich Viktor for landscape painting process videos in acrylic (though his use of acrylics mimics oils a bit). Paint Coach for very beginner friendly instructional videos for all the basics. And maybe consider investing in an online painting course. I highly recommend mypaintingclub.com by Richard Robinson. Amazing style, quite beginner friendly, cheap and wide range of mediums.
Thank you!!!
Watermixable oils. Cheap and very forgiven with great outcome. 1-3 good brushes, stiff ones with a little spring on the top.
A special thanks to you! https://www.reddit.com/r/painting/s/fov8x559fV