Jane Ward shows how to create the effect of mist in your landscape painting.

Mist effect 1: water spray

Using Prussian blue with a hint of permanent rose, paint the most distant mountain and soften with a damp brush afterwards.

Then apply very watery washes of pure colour, letting these merge together. The mixes are quite bright, but be aware of colour diluting later, which will weaken the effect significantly.



Working speedily, soften around the edge of the watercolour just applied using a damp, clean sable. The outer halo should have no colour and be just water.



The fun starts now! Spray gently with clean water. This will dilute the colour and allow the watercolour to merge gently together.

Leaving the paper to dry naturally, it’s wonderful to watch the colours merge softly together and see what magic has appeared.

Mist effect 2: softening with a brush

Paint the mountains using a watery mix of Prussian blue and permanent rose. Notice the puddles. This gives time for you to soften into a mist effect before the paint starts to dry and leaves a hard line.

To soften, I use a brush two sizes smaller than the brush I apply the paint with. This ensures that less water can be held in the brush and should help to stop ‘cauliflowers’. Weaken only the edge of the paint, constantly washing the brush with clean water and taking out excess water on a rag.

Discover more top tips and demonstrations for painting mist and fog.