I started off by applying a couple of thin coats of yellow ochre to my board, which gave me a useful coloured ground to work on, which I left to dry overnight. I worked from a photograph supplied by Patching’s for this demonstration, but I’ll only be using it as a guide, nothing more. It will be my interpretation of the scene, not a copy!

Using a thin mix of raw sienna, I started drawing out the main structures of the composition. The larger trees were loosely indicated using a No 2 Jackson’s Black Hog Round. The arch of the bridge was the tricky part, so I cut out the shape of the arch span from a piece of mountboard and used this as my template to draw in the bridge. It’s the focal point of the painting, so this had to look reasonably convincing.

My usual method of constructing a painting is to work to a simple formula, applying the paint in thin layers to start with then adding more substance during the final stages. I proceeded to block in the darkest areas with the same colour mix of raw sienna, looking for some degree of tonal balance at this early stage. Working from dark to light, and building up these stages in thin layers, helps me to plan and develop a painting more easily, keeping everything simple and under control.

Using a mix of phthalo blue, Indian red and white, I started by strengthening the darkest areas. I planned to achieve a strong contrast within this painting, as in deep tonal shadows with hints of strong sunlight shining through in patches – that should give me maximum impact in this relatively simple study.

My intention was to keep the whole thing  impressionistic and full of impact, rather than a laboriously painted copy from a photograph – there’s no point in doing that, we’ve already got a photograph!

I started to add a few colour contrasts in the water, using rapid brushstrokes to indicate water. The reflection from the bridge would play an important role in the finished work. The area under the bridge is the lightest part of the painting, a focal point, in fact, along with the bridge itself. I tested out a mid-green in a couple of areas, just to give me an idea of colour, before moving on to the next stage. So far, it was all relatively straightforward.

It was time to introduce more foliage and cover the ground colour, leaving hints of this showing through in places. I began with a selection of greens, made up primarily from mixes of cerulean blue + lemon yellow, phthalo blue + cadmium yellow, and ultramarine + yellow ochre.

I suggested a few branches, strengthened the main tree trunks before adding patches of reflected green here and there to the water.

I always work dark to light so the lightest areas were left to last. These highlights will, I hope, help to create the illusion of bright sunlight through a wooded copse. The arched wooden bridge was a shade of turquoise, which was kept light in order to be seen against the dark background foliage.

I always enjoy this final stage as I pull the whole thing together. More variations of greens were blocked in, using a flat brush and broad, positive dabs. Some of this colour was added to the water, remember that water will reflect its surroundings.

I selected a small area within the dense foliage, and added some highlights using Naples yellow light mixed with white. You need to be cautious here. Dotting highlights all over the place is distracting to the eye and focal point, which is obviously the bridge. The lightest highlights were then added under the arch of the bridge, helping to draw the eye into this area. The bank to the left received a similar light colour, which aided the visual flow from left to right towards the bridge.

Finally, keeping my hand as still as possible, I tentatively drew in the bridge with a loaded brush of turquoise mixed with white. I was relieved to find that it did actually stand out from its surroundings, I also added a few dabs of this same turquoise mix to the water. A few indications of branches were added using a rigger brush, plus some lighter brushstrokes were applied to the larger tree trunks.