Mixing Paint into Liquid Form

Mixing Paint into Liquid Form Illustration

Quite often I will mix paint into liquid form so it is easier to use for pours and washes.

The above illustration appears in the book.

Again, I combined a painting with a photo.

This is the painted version

Here is the photo:

The Disappointing Blow Dryer

Illustration of Blow Dryer

When a book is put together, there sometimes tends to be a few mistakes and other things that are overlooked. One of those mistakes in Watercolor 365 was a mix up with one of my favorite illustrations. Instead of the above illustration of the blow dryer being put in, just the photo made an appearance. 

Did I mention that this was one of may favorite illustrations? I believe I have. So it was a disappointment to discover that it was not in the final book. These things happen though and maybe my blow dryer was just meant for big and better things in the future.

 My favorite part of the whole painting was the shadow. I tried to make it much more interesting than the shadow in the original photo. 

Here is the painted version:

And of course the photo that appears in the book:

Cobalt Blue and Cadmium Scarlet Illustration

Cobalt Blue and Cadmium Scarlet Illustration

Two of my favorite colors when combined are cobalt blue and cadmium scarlet. The combination makes for a beautiful sky color, with using pure cobalt higher in the sky and then warming it up with the cadmium scarlet as it moves towards the ground.  I have an illustration of this mix in my book. 

This is the painted version:

And this is the photo:

Hole Punch Illustration

Illustration of Hole Punch

This illustration did not make it into the book but I just loved painting that purple handle and the many colors and the purples and blues of the shadow. That is why I chose to make that part of the illustration the painting and the other part the photo.

As I have mentioned before, I painted each tool from a photo I took, then combined that painting with the photo. 

Here is the painted version:

Here is the photo:

I ended up painting the handle with more blue than in the photo. I did this for a couple of reasons. First of all, the light in the photo washed out the purple color of the handle. The original hole punch is slightly more purple. Second, I liked how the blue in the purple mixture granulated. And finally, I preferred the way the pink of the photo combined with purple in the illustration.

Mixing The Two Must Have Colors

Illustration of Burnt Sienna and Ultramarine Blue

For this illustration, I chose to have my hand painted and the brush and colors to be the photo.

Here is the painted version:

Here is the photo:

Illustration of Hand Towels

Hand Towels Illustration

Starting in Chapter 4 of Watercolor 365. I started to combine my photos even more with the paintings.

The above illustration is of some of my hand towels that I use when painting.

I prefer hand towels over paper towels because I can just wash and reuse.

Below is the painting:

And here is the photo:

My Rubber Sole

Illustration of Masking Fluid Pick Up

As mentioned in my book, one way to get masking fluid off is to use a masking fluid or rubber cement pick up. This useful tool is made of some sort of rubber, similar to the bottoms of some shoes. That is why I call it my rubber sole. 

The painted version of it is below:

And this is the photo:

Soapy Water

Illustration of Brush in Soapy Water

This illustration is in the book and it makes it's appearance in Chapter 3. I just loved painting this illustration because of that beautiful blue color of the container. It is a portable water container that flattens out so it is easy to travel with. In the painted version, I did remove the tag on the end of the brush handle. 

Here is the painted version:

And here is the photo:

Ruling Pen

Ruling Pen Illustration

(combination of painting and photo)

A ruling pen is an item that can be used to apply masking fluid. It can also be used to draw in ink.

Painting of Ruling Pen

Photograph of Ruling Pen

Toothbrush

Toothbrush Illustration

This illustration appears in the third chapter of the book. Again, it is the combination of photo and painting.

Here is the painted version of the toothbrush:

And the photo:

Rigger Brush

Rigger Brush Illustration

This illustration is mostly seen as a painting in the book since it is only a portion of the illustration.

However, I have shown the combination of the photo and painting above and will show the fully painted version and the original photo.

Here is the painting:

And here is the photo:

Painting Chopsticks

Chopsticks

Chopsticks are not one of my usual art supplies but I did include them in my book. Why? you may ask. Well, you will just have to read the book to find out.

Anyway, I did the above image by combining a painted chopstick with a photo of one. However, the complete image was not included in the book, only a portion of it.

I only had to paint one chopstick and then make it into two.

Here is the painted version:

Here is the photo:

Watercolor 365 - Film Canister

Film Canister Illustration

For those of you that are familiar with watercolor, you probably already have guessed what I use film canisters for. For those that are new to the medium, you will just have to buy my book to find out :)

The above illustration is another combination of photo and painting. It is another illustration that appears early in the book. Therefore, it is more photo than painting.

Here is the photo:

And here is the painting:

And of course, the first image is the combination. 

Watercolor 365 illustrations- Masking Fluid

 Illustration of masking fluid

Part of my idea for illustrating Watercolor 365 was to start off with photographs of my supplies and painting tools. Then as the book progressed, my favorite supplies slowly turned into paintings.

One of these illustrations is of masking fluid. So, using my painting know how and my Photoshop skills, I combined a photo of masking fluid with a painting, creating the above image.

Here is the original photo:

And here is the painted version:

This illustration is an earlier image in the book, therefore it is more photograph. 

But can you tell which part is painted now that you know what I did?