Understanding the steps and processes required to piece together a painting is crucial. Believe it or not, painting begins even before you put your brush to paper! We will do a variety of exercises that will build your confidence in knowing what colours to use and at what time to use specific techniques. I'll go through my 7-step process that will ensure you end up with a painting you're proud of.

The process in summary:

• Choose a suitable scene or reference photo
• Identify the light and dark areas - Squint!
• Select the compositional and design elements you want to include/exclude. This also means thinking about perspective. You may need to alter the light source and shadows. Or change the colours. This is a tricky step and I'll talk about this more while we complete our projects together. I learned through trial and error and through some theory - the rule of thirds, odd-numbered subjects.
• Sketch in pen or pencil
• Paint the light
• Paint the shadows
• Paint the darkest areas and highlights

One of the most important skills you can learn is how to start your painting! Giving yourself permission to make mistakes or to create imperfect work is a must! I'll share with you a few tips that will help you avoid the common pitfalls associated with starting a painting.