One basic watercolor technique involves painting your sketch with
clean water first and then applying a light wash of shading pigment to
the shadow areas while the paper is still wet. Next, the process is
repeated using colors. To create a dark neutral color to use as your
shading pigment, try mixing two complementary colors together, such
as: red and green, blue and orange or yellow and purple. The color you
end up with should be murky and sort of gray, and neither of the
original colors used in mixing should be obvious.
Once you have a good color mixed for shading you are ready to begin
painting.
Wet your brush and apply a generous amount of clean water to an area
of your sketch that needs shading.
Be sure to use one of your water containers exclusively for painting
clean water onto your paper, and the other for rinsing your brush.
Next, use your brush to pick up some of the shading pigment and apply
it to the water-washed area of your paper.
You can blot up some of the
paint with paper towel to help create depth and texture. Try applying
different amounts of paint and pressure to your paper. Experiment with
saturating your paper with different amounts of water and learn how
the paint reacts. Continue experimenting and working this process
until all of your shaded areas are painted. At this point you will
want to let your work dry.
It is important to remember that watercolor
painting consists of layering one wash of paint on top of another and
that each layer of paint needs to be completely dry before adding a
new one. You may want to use a hairdryer set on low to speed this
process along. Once the shaded areas are dry you may begin adding your
colors in the same fashion; first painting in the area with water,
then adding color and blotting as desired. Continue until your
painting is complete.