Green field landscape | step by step watercolor tutorial

Before I began painting with watercolors, I would think “boring” whenever I thought of a green field. Nowadays when I see a green field, I notice the different shapes, colors, and values. And I think to myself of the different ways I can capture those elements on a piece of paper.

This time I decided to share with you, a simplified version of this landscape idea so that you can enjoy it with me!

Materials used in this tutorial

  • 300gsm watercolor cold pressed paper
  • watercolor round brush: size 6, size 4, size 2 (this may vary on the size of paper you choose to use)
  • Hb pencil, eraser
  • 2 jars of water
  • paper towel
  • masking tape
  • watercolor paint: Ultramarine, Cobalt blue, Prussian blue, burnt sienna, Lemon yellow, Raw umber, burnt umber, yellow ochre.

Color scheme

  • The sky:
    • Ultramarine + burnt Sienna= Dark blue gray color
  • Trees and grass:
    • Cobalt blue + Lemon yellow= Light green color
    • Prussian blue + Lemon yellow= Medium dark green color
    • Prussian blue+burnt Umber= Super dark green
    • Yellow ochre
  • The road:
    • Raw umber
    • Burnt umber
    • Paynes Grey + Burnt umber= Dark brownish color for the shadows and tree trunks.

Green field: Step by step tutorial:

1: Painting the sky

I began by first drawing out the basic sketch of the landscape, nothing too fancy, just a very light outline of the trees, the road, and the horizon line (where the trees and the grass meet).

Next on my paint palette I prepared the colors of the sky; dark blue gray.

  • Ultramarine + burnt Sienna= Dark blue gray color

Wet on wet technique– Using the size 6 round brush I began by prewetting the sky, try not to add too much water, just a light wash will do.

I gently dabbed the dark blue gray color across the top of the sky. I made sure to make it more darker at the top and lighter towards the horizon.

Afterwards while the paint was still damp I used a paper towel to pick parts of the pigment off the paper.

painting the sky with watercolors

2: Adding the background of the trees

Colors to premix:

  • Cobalt blue + Lemon yellow= Light green color
  • Prussian blue + Lemon yellow = Medium dark green color

Still using the size 6 brush I added a soft wash of light green along the top of the tree foliage. With the paint still wet I added a medium dark green towards the centre and bottom of the foliage.

3: Laying the foundation of the grass

Colors to mix for this step:

  • Cobalt blue + Lemon yellow= Light green color
  • Prussian blue + Lemon yellow= Medium dark green color
  • Prussian blue+burnt Umber= Super dark green

After prewetting the grass area on the paper I brushed a soft wash of light green. With the paint still wet I then added medium dark green to express the darker tones along the grass on the side of the road.

4: Finishing the grass foundation

  • Cobalt blue + Lemon yellow= Light green color
  • yellow orchre

To add some warmth in the grass I added a few strokes of yellow ochre then blended it to the background as shown in the image below:

It was time for another layer of grass (in the image below). While the paint was still damp, I added streaks of light green and used the tip of my brush to create pointed grass-like shapes.

how to paint an easy watercolor landscape.

5: Back to the trees

Once the base layer was finished drying I decided to add some darker tones.

  • Cobalt blue + Lemon yellow= Light green color
  • Prussian blue + Lemon yellow= Medium dark green color
  • Prussian blue+burnt Umber= Super dark green

I mixed prussian blue with burnt umber to get that dark green. Then, using the tip of my paintbrush (size 4, round) I painted dabs of green foliage. I made sure to concentrate the darker tones at the bottom of the trees where there’s less light.

While the first layer was damp I added another layer repeating the same step, but this time I painted in concentrated dark areas and I used less water in my mixture:

Finishing the grass

  • Prussian blue + Lemon yellow= Medium dark green color

At last the base layer was dry! Here I picked up the size 4 round brush and began brushing medium green color using the dry brush technique. I simply dampened the brush on my paper towel and used it’s side to paint with. I repeated this process on both sides of the road.

It can be easy to get carried away so keep in mind not to add too much paint and remember to keep the yellow ochre slightly visible as well.

Painting the road

Colors used in this step:

  • Raw umber
  • Burnt umber
  • Paynes Grey + Burnt umber= Dark brownish color for the shadows.

Using the size 4 round brush, I first prewet the paper (only in the road area), then added a light wash of yellow ochre. While the paint was still damp I added small amounts of raw umber in the sides. This gives the illusion of a curved road.

When the layer was almost dry I added small amounts of burnt umber to the bottom left side of the road to indicate a shadow. I made sure to use pointy lines to mimic the shape of the grass.

Finally, using a mix of Paynes grey and burnt umber I darkened the shadow. However, I was careful not to add too much water otherwise it would dry with blotches.

Painting the tree trunks

  • Paynes Grey + Burnt umber= Dark brownish color for the shadows and tree trunks.

Its time for the final step. Here I used the size 2 round brush to add in the tree branches. I made sure not to draw continuous lines here, this way the branches disappear in the foliage and reappear like they do in real life.

End of tutorial

That is it for this tutorial! If you enjoyed this tutorial, you may want to try painting a loose flower field landscape for something a little more challenging.

I hope you enjoyed working with this particular landscape! I would love to hear your thoughts if you have any questions so feel free to comment down below 😉

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