Thumbnails

Notes on approaching landscape painting

SELECTING  A SUBJECT

Sometimes subjects present themselves to us, other times we have search for them. In the first instance, you may simply come across a great landscape scene while out for a walk. Hopefully, you have a camera, a sketchbook or a paint box with you so you can record the important aspects of it. Or you may have some great photos that you took last summer and think they would make a good painting.

Alternatively you may start with an idea or image in mind and go looking for an appropriate location or photo to work from. In any event, there are a few questions you should keep in mind when selecting a location or photo to paint. These are:

·      What has attracted you to the scene?

·      What is the major element?

·      What do you want to say about it?

·      Are there strong contrasts? (value, colour, shapes, line, etc)

·      Are the shapes interesting?

Whether you are taking photos to paint from or selecting existing photos, the above questions are equally valid. Remember that whatever the case, the photo is not the subject.

USING THUMBNAIL SKETCHES.

Your style of landscape painting is a very personal thing and style differs greatly from artist to artist.  Some prefer a literal approach, faithfully reproducing the scene, capturing the exact colours, shapes and detail.  For these artists, Plein Air painting is often the preferred approach.

Other artists work more expressively, trying to convey their own reactions to the landscape.  In this case, photos are helpful in recalling general shapes, values and colours for in-studio painting.  Abstract painters too will often use landscape scenes as a starting point.

So then, why do a sketch when painting in the studio from photographs? Primarily it is because photographs simply do not “see” the same as our eyes do, and some work has to be done in order to recall what we actually saw when we took the picture.

Some of the short comings of photos are:

Depth:  I’m sure many people have had the experience of taking a photo of some interesting landscape feature, such as an oddly shaped tree, that was so obvious in the field but totally lost in the photo. While in the field, we interpret depth from the relative movement of objects as we move our head.  Even slight breezes will also give us hints of where things are relative to each other. These things are not picked up by the camera and depth is usually compromised.

Focus: As we focus on that oddly shaped tree, the rest of the forest surrounding it is sort of blurred in our peripheral vision. The camera, however, shows us the entire image in focus. If we are to give the viewer of our painting the same sort of information, i.e. if we want them to focus in on a particular spot, we have to paint the landscape different than the camera sees it.

Values: The camera is just not capable of registering the great range of values that our eyes can so that the darks are not as dark and lights are not as light. Also, detail can be lost in the extremes of the value range.

Colours: Cameras don’t always render colours accurately. Personally, I don’t find this a problem since I manipulate the colours to try to communicate how I reacted to the scene, but some artist’s find it a problem.

Thumbnails then are an attempt to recall what we saw in the field. We use them to isolate and enhance the values and planes of the scene (by planes, I mean the different sections of a landscape, such as foreground, midground and background). 

We also use them to manipulate the elements (values, shapes and line) to help the viewer focus on what we want them to see.

How are they done? 

Thumbnails are usually done small, in the 3 to 5 inch range. They are done quickly, 5 to 10 min, and they are done often… meaning that you may do several with different subject placement, value patterns, etc.

They are usually executed in grey scale using 3 to 5 values. They are not usually done in colour and the reason is that colour can often make it difficult to asses the values. A medium value red will, for example, generally appear much darker than it really is.  It is common, however, for artists to follow up grey scale drawings with colour sketches to work out the colour relationships separately. Picture format (see below) is also worked out in the thumbnail sketch. Following are some things to keep in mind when doing thumbnail sketches:

Format: One of the first things a thumbnail sketch does is help you chose the format (square, vertical, or horizontal).  Landscapes are traditionally painted on horizontal canvases, but verticals are also popular. The square format is becoming more popular, but it is more difficult to deal with in terms of composition.

Value patterns: When looking at a photo or scene, the major value areas and planes are usually fragmented and hard to identify. It is these major value patterns though, that can make or break a painting, It is much easier to control them when you have them clearly identified ahead of time.

Improvements:  It is often said that nature seldom gets it right. The value patterns, shapes, lines, etc., may not support the important elements. Adjustments to those elements with a sketch makes them much easier to control in the painting.

# of values: Keep your sketch to 3 or 4 values and don’t try to include the minor variations that will naturally occur within these areas.

Lightest & darkest: On an average day the relative values will generally follow this pattern, from brightest to darkest:

·      Sky (brightest)

·      Flat horizontal areas (second brightest)

·      Sloping ground (third brightest)

·      Trees and other verticals (darkest)

There are situations where this sequence will change, but it is a good starting point.

Edges: Pay close attention to the edges of the major value shapes. Watch for sharp, soft or lost edges. These can be indicated in your sketch.

SOME COMPOSITION TIPS.

Cropping: Can the scene be cropped down to include only the major elements? For example, if you are trying to paint a clump of birch trees from a wide angle photo, crop the photo down to the essential image.

Eliminating: Eliminate extraneous elements that distract from or add nothing to the main subject.

Emphasizing: Is it possible to exaggerate contrast, shape, etc to emphasize the sibject?

Placement of values: Watch to see that the values co-ordinate well with each other. Do the darks and lights work to make the important areas stand out? Contrasts always attract our eye, make sure that they don’t emphasize areas that you don’t want to stand out One often stated compositional “rule” is to “never decorate your corners”. If you look at the work of great landscape painters, you may notice that they usually limit contrasts along the edges and in the corners of their paintings.

Pick out the interesting: Watch for interesting shapes and lines to see if you can pick out similar ones that would help provide unity or lead the eye where you want it to go.  It is ok to alter elements to enhance harmony, but don’t overdo it; remember “unity with variety”.

Do several sketches: Sometimes it is useful to do several thumbnail sketches changing:

·      Format (i.e. horizontal, vertical or square canvas)

·      Point of view (higher, lower, different angle, etc)

·      More or less cropping

·      Placement of major elements (“rule of thirds” can be helpful)

·      Value patterns (avoid fragmented patterns

Chose the one that is most pleasing and best conveys what you want.

Eye movement: Pay attention to how the eye travels through the image and how it arrives at the main subject.

“Rule of thirds”: The “rule of thirds” can be helpful.  Divide your canvas into thirds with two vertical and two horizontal lines. Place the center of interest at or near one of the crossing points.

Center of interest: While most painting instruction books emphasize the importance of a clear center of interest, it is not always mandatory to have one. However if you don’t have one you must have a strong alternative composition.

Subject size: It is not always necessary to contain the entire subject within the picture frame.  For example, extending a large tree beyond the top of the painting emphasizes its size very effectively.

Unity with Variety: Aim for “unity with variety”.  For example, a row of trees can provide unity, but they will be monotonous if they are all the same size, shape and spacing. Change these aspects from tree to tree and you will have a much better composition. Both unity and variety can be achieved with value, shape, line or colour.  It is most effective, however, to use one element to achieve unity and a different one to achieve variety.

A place to stand: When planning your landscape composition, it is generally a good idea to provide a place for the viewer to stand so that they feel part of the image.

At all times, remember that there really are no universal composition rules. Composition simply refers to the tools you can use to make the painting say what you want it to. If you have a clear idea of what your subject is and what you want achieve, selecting the best arrangement of the pictorial elements is much easier.