Photo of this had the colors changing too much. This version I tinkered with f stop and white level to get it closer, but still a little off. I’m not sure l like how well defined the tree is versus the more abstract-ness of the sky and ground. This is using acrylic for the black and white, and watercolor from a tube for the green. I’m thinking I need a finer bristle brush. Comments or recommendations are appreciated.

  • Valmond@lemmy.world
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    10 days ago

    Very nice! I did think it was a river and another shore on the top side. If I block out the top 20% it becomes a beautiful sky. It’s probanly the glares that makes the sky look solid.

    Yeah taking photos is hard, it’s like the AI or something in phones “see” more than what meets the normal eye and adds like what’s painted underneath.

    I found short videos are easier/gives better result, but it’s still really hard IMO.

  • fakeman_pretendname@feddit.uk
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    10 days ago

    What material are your current brushes made from? Are you aiming for just finer bristles (in the same size of brush) or also looking at a finer/thinner brush?

    If you’re looking at a finer brush, you might find you need a sturdier material, as finer brushes can just kind of “fold themselves flat”. Something sturdier should allow you to paint finely with the tip, leave minimal brushstrokes and hold the shape of the brush (you may, of course, want the opposite). These days, good synthetic brushes are probably “springier” than natural hair ones, but there’s a lot of personal preference there, and it’s very dependent on medium and style.

    It may be worth looking for a “comparison brush set” like the following: jacksonsart.com comparison brush set (obviously look for an equivalent in whatever country you’re in). You get a pack of pretty good quality brushes of different materials and… see what you like. You can also get sets for comparing brush head shapes and so on.

    • Valmond@lemmy.world
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      9 days ago

      I’m not OP but for the looks op seems to like bold brushmarks, so I’d recommend a large bristle brush? You can do it all except very fine details with them. IMO!

      One caveat (I’m still figuring this out) is that if you drench your bristle brush in water to clean it (like regularly when you paint, not once a day) it wrecks havoc with the bristles.

      • fakeman_pretendname@feddit.uk
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        9 days ago

        Yeah, totally - if it’s actual hair like “hog hair” etc, it can pretty much get “split ends” like human hair does. You can spend a lot on artist brush cleaners/conditioners if you want them to last ages (and you can often rescue a splayed brush with the same stuff) - or you can try and wipe them with a wet cloth instead of dunking them underwater - it depends what sort of paint and how much it’s dried on. Also, some people recommend you dry them sideways, or hanging downwards, rather than “bristle upwards”, to avoid the water/gunk collecting under the ferrule, which can also splay or even rot the base of the bristles.

        • Valmond@lemmy.world
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          8 days ago

          At the moment I’m trying to gently rince it in a sort of dilutant (w&n dillutant/thinner for WMO) without wetting the ferule and czrefully dry on absorant paper, it seems better but I also had an enormous glass jar of water so maybe I was not using water the right way…