Watercolour Landscapes From Photographs - Hardcover

Ranson, Ron

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0004133153 ISBN 13: 9780004133157

Publisher: Collins, 1998

Synopsis

Ron Ranson is a very successful artist and well-established author of over 20 best-selling books on art instruction. One of the most popular subjects on his worldwide painting courses is painting landscapes from photographs, whether holiday photos, or ones taken specially for the purpose.

Ron Ranson does not advocate copying directly from photographs, and emphasizes that the camera’s role should be that of servant rather than master. In this book he explains how to use reference photographs of favourite landscapes and then shows how to distil the essence of the scene in your painting, without putting too much detail into the watercolour. He includes photographic examples of landscapes he has painted around the world and describes what he eliminated in his painting, what he changed in the composition and what techniques were needed to ensure a successful result.

Contents include:

The camera as the artist’s tool
• Composition in watercolour
• Tonal sketches
• Painting skies, water and flowers
• Figures in the landscape
• Buildings in the landscape
• The four seasons

About this title

From the Back Cover

In 'Watercolour Landscapes from Photographs' Ron Ranson shows how to interpret photographs creatively in order to paint water-colours that are fresh, exciting and original. Several practical projects are included, as well as essential advice on:
• taking suitable reference photographs
• composing your water-colours
• making tonal sketches
• painting skies, trees, water, flowers, figures and buildings

In 'Watercolour Landscapes from Photographs' Ron Ranson looks at the often controversial subject of painting from photographs and shows how, with imagination and skill, this way of working enables you to paint landscapes in water-colour that are fresh, exciting and original.

The secret of successful painting from photographs is to realise that the camera's role is that of servant rather than master. The challenge for the artist is to avoid direct copying and to learn how to interpret the elements of a photograph in such a way as to bring them to life in a water-colour painting.

In 'Watercolour Landscapes from Photographs' Ron Ranson offers practical advice on taking suitable reference from photographs, composing your paintings and making tonal sketches, and includes tips and projects on painting skies, trees, water, flowers, figures and buildings. The book features numerous examples of Ron Ranson's atmospheric water-colours of landscapes from around the world, together with the photographs to which he referred when painting them. These paintings not only reveal many useful techniques, but also provide an invaluable record of this popular artist's work that will be an inspiration to all painters of landscapes in water-colour.

Edition details

• Publisher: Collins
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0004133153
• ISBN 13: 9780004133157
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 128