So it’s been over 2 years since I learned to paint and I wanted to ask for some advice on improving my color matching speed. When I first started it would take me 30-45 minutes to match a single color from my photo reference. Now it takes me 3-5 minutes sometimes much quicker if the only difference is the value of the color.
Does anyone have advice or tips on improving the speed of matching colors? Thanks
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What does your basic palette look like?
I paint with a 12 color full spectrum dual primary palette. From which every color is available fast and economical. I have a pdf document showing the fundamentals. PM me your email and I'll send it to you. It is not for distribution.
And I sent it c:. Also how long have you been using this new palette and how much faster has it made you?
The five Geneva colors is all you need. Actually all you need is Red, Yellow and Blue.
I guess I was suggesting there is nothing wrong with painting slower.
Different strokes for different folks.
Speed like color are relative things. Confidence is the thing. The more practice the more confidence. For instance if you're painting a big still life with a bunch of objects practice the different objects. Pay close attention to the light and relative colors and temperature. Chances are you'll jigger the still life to make a better painting. I do bits and pieces for most bigger painting. When I don't the painting fails. This is the traditional way of painting.
Most people can't paint in one pass (Alla Prima means one go not wet paint). Very few. They're either old or gifted. Most working artist have put in the time on the easel to get to that level.
It's key. In every brush stroke.
To speed my mix times I would batch mix master tones for the common group colours. For example a tomato reddish brown as a base to darken, lighten, cool and warm for skin tone painting. The master tones would be kept in airtight snap caps and would be useable for about a year. The same strategy can apply to green vegetation and blue skies. Powell takes this approach and has published recipes.
Acrylic block in under paintings, with oil over is an excellent way to quickly obtain a receptive, opaque, coverage that allows the oil to display temperature and texture. Michael James Smith (YouTube) demonstrates this very well.
Denis
In my own work I casually draw and even more casually paint as a retirement hobby.
Helpful when working with lots of short sessions and lots of long sessions is premixed values in airtight containers. Referred to above as snap caps. These are always ready to use, directly from the container, no mess to clean up. No stopping the creative flow to mix more paint. Handy for touch ups a week later.
‘Ready for wipe out and re do sections. Remnants can be used to tone canvasses for use in the future.
keeping your brushes suspended in an oil immersion bath and premixed values in snap caps means instant start, instant stop and continuous work flow. What’s not to like?
Thats exactly it and , I found once I got into the rhythm of doing it it made me realise how much I procrastinate, or over fuss on certain detail that isn’t always necessary.
It kind of freed me up from that inner critic.
It was a course I did in December and I posted most of them in this thread if you want to check em out
https://forum.drawmixpaint.com/discussion/12738/completed-a-painting-a-day-for-30-days/p1
I will message you if you want more info.
I need to conquer my fear of actually doing a portrait
Ha, today would be lovely but, and I really dont think this is procrastinating.
I’m a frontline Mental health nurse working with young people. As you can imagine COVID has sent mental health issues through the roof.
Presently half my nursing team are off work, which means those of us who are in work are doing our best to take up their slack.
So while I appreciate your prompt, at the moment I tend to recover in the evenings, from the stress of the working day.
I mainly try and paint at weekends, it is definitely therapeutic for me.
But I have a week off coming up soon and yes I am going to face that fear of doing a portrait.
PS
I have done one actually, its of my cat Louie