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Details on city landscape photos
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Message
Posted
Dear all,
I am quite new to painting, however i have finished a few painting courses so far. But this is a new type of subject for me.
I am trying to paint a Venice canal/street, on quite a small frame (24X18 cm canvas)
I am having trouble with all the details in the windows/doors etc that happen to be on the houses as they should be at least somewhat symmetric. It is difficult with small brushes.
Does anyone have any good suggestions how to paint the small windows and details on buildings with a small brush.
and make it look quite balanced and symmetrical ?
Below is the photo I am using as a reference - not my painting ( but I can post mine as well if needed :) )
Thank you all in advance,
Astrid
Posted
That photo is surely a painting - in which you'll see that detail has been kept to a minimum (unless it's your painting, and you've shown us that instead of the photo you're using for reference? That's the sort of mistake I'd make, so I thought it quite possible). Anyway, you can paint a "busy" scene of course, if you want to; but detail like people in their windows, balconies etc are probably best avoided in a small painting. If you want to go for detail, take a look at Canaletto (who painted on a much larger scale).
Alan Bickley is the man whose advice you really want here - far more his sort of subject than mine. About this painting, at this size, I'd suggest a couple of lightly sketched figures in that main window, and possibly another boat (I've forgotten what they're called now - barge, punt?) to put something in the middle of the water, quite far away, where the light hits.
Posted
That photo is surely a painting - in which you'll see that detail has been kept to a minimum (unless it's your painting, and you've shown us that instead of the photo you're using for reference?The attached photo is indeed the reference photo. ( I am using another painting as a reference - it makes it easier for me to learn, since the author probably already simplified it from the original ''photo'' ) My own painting isn't quite as finished. I am struggling with keeping all the windows in line and symmetrical, always seems like i am making some of them too small or too big compared to the others and the lines thin enough. Thank you very much for the answer, I will keep that in mind.
Posted
Canaletto painted on large canvases, this is tiny in comparison, tiny even by my standards - so my advice would be to forget about detail and work in a more impressionistic style… if you’re confident enough that is, but I suspect that you are not!
If you try and incorporate everything that’s in a Venice scene, including gondolas, you’ll end up with a very detailed, tight and not very convincing painting.
The painting that you are using as a reference has the detail somewhere near, although still too detailed for my taste… but I don’t like to see lots of unnecessary clutter in my paintings, detail can equal clutter!
So, my advice is to loosely define some of the windows, they don’t need to be accurate in the distance, just an indication, adding slightly more definition as you get nearer!
Make sure that you have a focal point within your composition.
Have a go, and let’s see how you are progressing… we can take it from there with further advice!
Posted
Canaletto painted on large canvases, this is tiny in comparison, tiny even by my standards - so my advice would be to forget about detail and work in a more impressionistic style… if you’re confident enough that is, but I suspect that you are not!I was trying to do a more realistic style, but it seems that its probably the size of the canvas and lack of space that is causing me trouble. I will try with a bigger canvas next time. This time around I will stick to your advice and avoid the tiny details and will upload the progress of my painting soon. Thank you for the advice and the quick reply, I appreciate it very much !
This post has been removed as it violates our forum rules and guidelines.
Posted
That picture does appear to be more of a painting. In it, you'll notice that the level of detail has been intentionally kept minimal. (Is it possible that it's your own painting rather than the photo you're using as a reference? I've made that kind of mistake before, so I thought it could be a possibility.) Nevertheless, it's entirely feasible to depict a "busy" scene in a painting, but when dealing with a smaller canvas, it's generally advisable to avoid intricate details such as individuals in windows or on balconies. If you're inclined to focus on intricate details, you might want to take a look at artists like Canaletto, who worked on a much larger scale.I could be mistaken but this post follows the framework of a bot. a) Register with no information b) first post jumps straight in c) choose a thread which has a lot of material in it. d) the whole post seems to be a mishmash (albeit grammatically correct, and polite) of what's already been said in the thread. e) It's using the site for AI learning about art. If I'm wrong then do let me know Mr Kulas, and I'll apologise and update my detection criteria!
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