I did start this watercolor for a demo at the Opus Art Store, this is why some areas of the painting are almost done at the beginning. I wanted to show different stages of the painting. Once back at home I did complete the painting and added some splashing for interest.

You might also like: How to paint trees and leaves with watercolor, a step by step tutorial

Here are the steps you can take to paint trees with watercolor:

This is my painting palette: Da Vinci Prussian Blue, Sap Green, Cadmium Yellow; Daniel Smith Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Holbien Horizon Blue and Permanent red.

My first step was to preserve white areas in the trees with masking fluid. The painting also has a lot of tiny light yellow areas, I did paint those ones, let them dry and then masked them also.

Masking areas painted with light yellow. I am using a silicon brush to apply the masking fluid. It is very convenient as once dry, you can just peel off the masking fluid off the brush.

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Colour Shapers Tools Apply oil or acrylic straight from tube with a Colour Shaper, then carve back into paint for unusual surface effects. Also for calligraphy. Use the rubber tip shapes to lift or blend paint, draw line, and draw contours.

I am painting the foliage wet in wet letting the colors mix on the paper, leaving the trunk areas unpainted.

I am painting the trees trunks by layering colors I start with a yellow layer ( a mix of cadmium yellow and yellow ocher)

I paint all the trunks with that yellow mix, and then let the yellow layer dry. When you are layering watercolors, you want to avoid lifting up the pigments from the previous layer. So it is better to use a very light hand and a soft brush. You also want to wait for each layer to be very dry before painting the next one.

Then I paint a red layer once the yellow has thoroughly dried. Mixing yellow red and blue watercolors will produce different shades of brown.

Then a few layers of blue. With blue watercolor, you don’t need much paint to shift the orange color of the trees to a brown color as blue is a very intense pigment. So it is better to start with very light washes as it is always easier to add more color than to take color off the paper.

I am a Blick Art Materials affiliate and I receive a small compensation for sales. That does not effect in any way the cost of the purchaser’s order but it helps me keeping the content of this blog free.

Yarka St. Petersburg Professional Watercolor Pans Same palette of traditional colors the great masters used a century ago. Liquid-poured means semi-moist pans respond instantly to a wet brush. 24 pans in plastic case. Also individual pans. – Master Set

I keep on adding layers until I am satisfied with the colors

Time for splashing with a mix of Prussian and Horizon Blue and White China

I am a Blick Art Materials affiliate and I receive a small compensation for sales. That does not effect in any way the cost of the purchaser’s order but it helps me keeping the content of this blog free.

Holbein Acryla Gouache, 152 Chinese White, 20 ml Acryla Designer Gouache is a fast-drying, opaque acrylic based watercolor paint. It’s water soluble while wet, and water-resistant, matte and opaque, even over dark surfaces. Great for grounds and layering.

Splashing the watercolor painting with a blue watercolor and gouache mix.

And then with a mix of Cadmium Yellow and White China

Splashing with yellow.

Then I let it dry overnight.

I take off the masking fluid and soften hard edges with a stiff brush and a bit of water.

 Hiking with the dogs,
Watercolor and mixed media on paper, 20 x 24 inches