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Bernard Victor

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I've just added a new sailing painting to my gallery, see bvpainter, land and seascapes.
michael

Michael Edwards

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Hi David. There is no right or wrong way but most watercolourists, me included, tend to use them in the way you have described - a squirt in the pan and then use it much the same way as you would if it were in blocks. Given the cost of a tube it is certainly so much more economical than using just a bit for each painting and then discarding the residue. Most watercolourists stick to a chosen range of colours ( I use about six core colours ) so the other benefit is that you can have just the colours you want in your palette rather than a lot of other colours which you may not use if you buy a set of blocks

Mick Saunders

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Yep you can use tubes too replenish pans and you can just use them straight from the tube on to the pallette, that's how I allways did it when I painted watercolours.  There is no need to wash away what is left after a session.bestMick

Avril Soldani

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Hello David. As already said there's no right or wrong, just what suits you best. I use tubes for my "regular" palette - browns and blues - as I make up big washes and get them strong easily. I find my mixes from pans a bit too washy ! I have pans for colours I don't use a lot of. For mixing I have lots of little porcelain chemists's dishes (car boot sale!) and keep them from one day to the next, just add a drop of water if dry!

Ruth Dolan

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Hi David. I use tubes to fill up my pans, and then before using them I spray with water from a fine nozzle bottle. This way you get more strength of pigment. It's OK to do plenty of spraying to keep them moist, they just dry out again in their own time, and there is no waste. It is a little bit hard on expensive watercolour brushes, though, eg; sable, to get paint from a pan so keep them good and wet as you go.
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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I'm a relatively recent convert to watercolour, so bear that in mind.  I am not convinced by the practice of squeezing tube watercolours into pans - I tend to use one or the other, although now and then one has no realistic choice other than to combine them - ie, if one's run out of a tube colour. <div> </div><div>The consistency of colour from the tube is NOT the same as that from a pan.  Many watercolourists do use the method of squeezing tubes into pans, but I think it's not the way to go, frankly.  Manufacturers vary greatly - some produce very moist colours, others don't; one emphasizes that you CAN use the colour from the tube and also from the pan.  Others don't....  On the whole, my view is that you need to choose one or the other and stick to your choice - you can certainly combine tube colour with pan colour; but I don't believe you'll get the best from your medium if you squeeze tube colours into pans and expect them to work the same way: they won't, usually.  They're not formulated the same way, after all, so why WOULD they work identically?  </div><div> </div><div>There are certainly painters who routinely squeeze their tube colours into pans, but they know exactly what to expect if they do - they are experienced, they're able to take these short-cuts.  For the beginner, at least - even for the more advanced painter - I just don't think this is a great idea.  </div>
michael

Michael Edwards

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Robert makes some interesting points but I must add the observation that of all the professional artists (and demonstrators) I have worked with and known I cannot recall any of them ever using pan blocks. Tubes were always the first choice as they are mine - in fact I just can't get on with blocks. I guess it's all down to personal preference