Every person who at least once tried to paint a landscape, one of the components of which was water, knows how difficult it is. A river, a lake and even a puddle - all this is drawn according to one principle. The main thing is to do the work step by step. Only through daily work can good results be achieved in any business. In this article, we will look at how to draw a river for a novice artist.
Preparatory work
Any creative activity begins with an idea and inspiration. To get them, you need to either go out into the countryside and look at the landscapes, or find beautiful pictures on the Internet. Immediately it is worth noting the fact that drawing from an electronic analogue is much easier than directly from nature. After all, in photographs there is already a layout of objects and the light is caught. But it is worth noting that if you draw all the time from the picture, then you will not learn to draw from nature. Therefore, for a novice artist, it will be the best option to go on nature independently and photograph landscapes that he liked. In our case, the center of the composition should be the river. The most beautiful photos are obtained at sunset or sunrise, but in the middle of the day you can catch successful shots.
A sketch of the future landscape
Having become acquainted with nature, you can start drawing. How to draw a river in stages? You need to start with a sketch.
The first thing you need to do is layout. The river is a large body of water, and all of it cannot fit into the landscape. It is necessary to determine the places where it will flow out, and where to flow into. Even if you draw calm weather, you need to understand in which direction the river flows. After the layout is completed and all parts of the landscape are thought out, you can begin to work. How to draw a river at the initial stage? Outline it only with strokes. You should not immediately draw the waves, the boundaries of the water massif are quite enough. The remaining details will be further developed.
Graphic image
How to draw a river with a pencil? When the sketch is ready, you can proceed to hatching. Graphic water should be drawn through the play of light and shadow. Therefore, for starters, you need to lay streams on the surface of the water. Next, you should darken each individual stream at the base, and leave a natural highlight in the center.
The most realistic
water surface is obtained if the artist erases the finishing touches. The river has no transitions visible to the eye. Therefore, after the scattered black and white pieces are shaded, you need to go over them
with a cotton pad. It is not necessary to press heavily on it, since there is a high probability that it will turn out to be dirty. How to draw a river if there is no cotton wool at hand? In this case, rub the strokes with your fingertips. Light touches need to walk along the stream of water. The final step will be to draw the natural boundaries.
Draw watercolors
Painting is a complex form of fine art. And watercolor is one of the most complicated techniques, but, despite this, all people who are wondering how to draw a river should study watercolor techniques. Since, having mastered the most complex art, easier methods, such as acrylic or oil, will not be difficult to master. The first thing in the picture is to fill the river with the main color. Depending on the lighting, it can be blue, green or purple. Next, you will need to enter other shades with strokes. Water always glare. Even if you paint gloomy weather, you still need to leave some white spots on the surface. Off the coast, the river will be darker, as this part of the water is in the shade. In this place, you can use not only dark blue paint, but also introduce green, brown and ocher shades. After the river is drawn, let the drawing dry and draw the details.
This can be a trickle of the current that is visible from the shore, or a school of fish swimming by, or maybe foliage if the landscape was autumn. Thanks to the fine details you get a unique landscape. Train at least once a week, and you will surely succeed.