From Photo to Mix Media: Apple Tree Study

1. Intro: Hi, everyone, and welcome to my new watercolor class. This time, we will be painting a branch with vibrant red fruits and lush green leaves inspired by a beautiful reference photo. Instead of starting with a ready made sketch, we will use this photo as our guide and build the drawing step by step. What makes this class extra fun is that we won't be working with watercolors only. I will show you how to combine paints with colored pencils and even simple graphite. You can create rich textures and vibrant details in your artwork. Together, we will explore how to capture natural shapes, play with loose brush strokes, and add definition with pencils. By the end of this class, you will have a beautiful mixed media illustration that feels fresh, expressive, and truly yours. Grab your brushes, pencils, and sketchbook and let's get started. 2. Materials: Hi, welcome in my new class, and just like you see in the intra video, this class will be a bit different than the others because this time we will not my predefined sketch for this class and we will sketch by ourselves. In the project section, you will find instead of ready sketch, you will find this reference photo. This photo is downloaded from Osplash website, so it's royalty free and you can use it. For this project because we will use mixed media. You don't have to use watercolor paper. I will use Mixed Media pad. I bought it in action in Poland. This paper is not suitable for watercolor, but we will use also crayons and pencils. That's why instead of real watercolor paper, we will use this blog. So this one is 300 GSM, but you can use even 200 GSM also will be fine. We will also use pencils. Mostly gB and six B. This one is to B, but we will mostly use four B or six B pencil. I have my set of different pencils in here. Age B for sketching and six B for refining our sketch. Next, we will use Was watercolor paints watercolor paints, just like you see on my picture, we will mostly use greens and reds for our purpose for our work. You don't have to have different colors and the whole set of watercolors. You only need just a bunch of reds and bunch of greens. For that, we will use brushes for painting with our watercolors. So and we also use crayons. You can use whatever crayons you have. They don't have to be watercolor crayons. I will use corners aluminums. These are not watercolor crayons and I will also use crayons from Mondus Cohenour and these are watercolor ones. But we won't use the watercolor ability of these crayons. That's why they could be any crayons you have. For the last stage, from our work, we will add just a hint of guash to define some details on our work. That's all. I'll see you in the next video. 3. Sketch: Okay. This time, as a first stage, we will do a sketch for our drawing. Just like I saved you in a material section, we will not use watercolor paper. Of course, if you have watercolor paper, you can use it because at one step, we also will use some watercolor paints for our paint. I will show you the results. We used watercolor paints as one of the steps for our project. I think they will look much better if you use watercolor paper. But still, if you don't have it, you can use mixed media just like I did. I will use mixed media but this is from action. And just one thing. This paper is very smooth and it likes to smudge a pencil. That's why I will use some piece of paper which I can place my hand on it and this will prevent smudging. I will use three B pencil, but I will use it only because I want you to see what I draw. I recommend you to use number H pencil. Ge or HB, so you can check it in here, what kind of pencil you have. I think the lighter sketch is better. But just like I said, I will use three B because otherwise you won't see what I will sketch. Also we need some eraser for our sketch. As a first thing, I will draw a border for my work. I places here and there, I usually use for testing my colors. We have our working here and we still have some place to test. This is our reference image on which we will work. But I would like to crop it somewhere like that. I don't want to draw all of what is in here. I want this apple to be slightly lower than they are on original photo. Let's start with apples. Let's draw this one and this will be somewhere in here. So I simply draw an oval and I will place the center of this apple. Just like you see, it's not in the center of this oval, it's slightly to the left. I will also mark it somewhere in here. Next, we have our second apple, so it's slightly bigger and it's slightly under the first apple. I will draw it somewhere in here. It doesn't look like an oval in my case. Every time I draw something new on my sketch, I usually erased lines, which I don't like, for example, in this case, I don't like because it doesn't came up as an oval and I usually also erase the lines I don't need. I will correct my oval. Like that. The center of the apple is somewhere in here. We'll mark it. On the picture, we have four apples, one, two, three, four, but this one is so hidden that we won't draw it. And there is a role in the photography and in graphic design that human eye, human brain doesn't like even numbers even number of things on illustrations. That's why we will use odd number, only three apples. We only will add this third one, it's somewhere in here, just like you see, it's hidden, almost half of it, so it's somewhere like that. And this one is almost strt in here. This is almost a straight line on a picture, and we have something like that. Let's raise unnecessary lines for the apple. We don't need that because we don't see them. This erase and correct them the same with this. The center of the apple is somewhere in here, so it will be just like that. Okay. Next, we will draw a branch. So this branch, I will draw like that so it will go like this on our picture. Now let's move on to the leaves. I think the easier thing will be starting from this area. Just like you see on the picture, we have even starting point for that. It's somewhere under this apple, we have the starting point and we have some tree, but we could draw more leaves coming out from this point. Let's draw the first one. We have somewhere, something like that. I will make thinner stems. We have a second leaf which goes beyond the border. First, I will only draw a stem line and then I will draw a leaf. This leaf is folded in here, it goes something like that, that it's without any distractions in here, but it has folded part. Now we have this leaves, this leaf, which goes something like that, and this one is also folded. In that case, it's easier to draw the part we see for example, like that, let's erase these lines because we don't need them. Also I will raise some under this leaf. Over the leaf and let's draw the second part of the leaf, which is far away from us. It's something like that. I will make the stem thicker. I think I will draw some more leaves in this area. We have some mess in this picture and I don't want that mess. I want to have some leaves. I will draw leaves which there are not on this picture. This is one leaf and over here, we can have a leaf which can go, for example, under it can go under or over just like you want. Just be aware which lines do you erase. If the leaves goes over the apple, you need to erase these lines. If it goes under the apples, you should erase the lines. For example, let's make a little change in what I draw before and this leaf will go under the apple, like this. We create illusion, what goes over or under what? We have this part done. I want to draw also this stem with this few leaves because I like the composition of the leaves. But I think I will draw them slightly higher because we have some area in here. For example, this stem will go like this. This branch, it's even a branch, not a stem, it goes here. We have some leaf which goes almost from the top of it. Let's draw it erase the lines we don't need it even could goes like this. It will easier for us painting later, right now, let's draw these leaves which are slightly On the side. Once again, let's draw a stem the side we see. For example, it's like that. I don't need to erase anything and I will draw this thing. Simple the same goes with this leaf, so I will only draw some thicker lines. We have this leaf Okay, let's erase unnecessary lines, and this one I will draw a little bit different than it is in a picture because I have some area in here and I want to cover it in here and I don't want to make this repetition of the shape of the leaves. And we also will draw this one, it goes somewhere. This and just like before we can draw it slightly different than it is in the picture. Just remember that this picture is only a reference for you. You don't have to draw exactly as it is on this picture. You can add you can add your own details or you can remove whatever you don't want to repeat on your picture. We have the top part of the picture of our sketch done. We need to move slightly down because um, it lacks some details over here. I think we will draw this leaf, which covers this apple, I will draw it here and I will cover this apple a bit. Let's erase unnecessary lines. We have also this leaf. I like it in that picture. That's why I think we will also draw it here. Okay. I think that's all. That's all for our sketching part. In the next part, we will make some details with the pencil. But for that stage, we will need some softer pencil. If you use T B, I think we will need something even softer than T B and I usually use Tombo six B pencil for that. But it doesn't have to be tumbo. It could be any brand you have, see you in the next step. 4. Pencil: Just like I said before, we will use a softer pencil. In this stage, we also need this additional paper on which we will place our hand at that stage, we will add some more details on our sketch. We will add just a simulation of shadow. For example, we will add outline some leaves. For example, this one and we will cross hatch some areas. So we will only add some simple light shading. Because this is a mixed media class, we will use different tools. We will move on to the next to the next leaf. So for example, this one, I will outline it first and make some shadows. Only light shadow. In this way, we create contrast between dark areas, dark areas and light areas. We don't only draw apples, so we will leave them as they are. We only will do the streak on leaves. The shadow don't have to be exactly as they are on a picture or example. I don't have to be, but it's your choice. For example, here, this will be darker and this will be lighter and this part we will leave white. Because this is a very soft pencil. I can smudge the areas which I want. For example, this one in this one a little, not much. This leaf, I will only outline, I think I will leave it without cross hatching, without this hatching. Let's go in here. Okay. And here I will have some little shading. And I will smudge with my pencil, the back of the sleeve. We can leave this leaf unpainted for now without hatching because it will create interesting contrast with the hatched ones and this one, which is almost white. We have the last leaf in here. And I will only hatch this s, this side, and draw the branch. Also, I will draw a branch. Let's draw our branch and we have two more leaves to go. This one I also will leave it white without hatching. I think it will be quite nice because we will have odd number of unhatched leaves. It will also create this odd number and the last leaf in here. Okay. I next stage, we will move on and we will use some watercolor paints. So we will paint the apples and we will add some colors to the leaves. So see you then. 5. Paint: So right now we will add some color with the watercolor to our work. So we need um, green or two shades of green and two shades of colors for our apples. So let's mix them on a palette quickly. I will mix them in 50 50 ratio. My first color is autumn green, so it looks like that. It's granulating color. This is my favorite shade of green. I use it almost in every painting. If you see my other classes, you will definitely see this sorry for my cat. I will definitely see this color. This is my first. The second color will be green. I don't know exactly the name of it because I have squeeze it on my palette. Sometime ago and I don't have the tube. I will show you how this color looks. This is just an ordinary green and I will mix it with fallow blue, green shade to achieve this very dark and bluish tone of green. It looks like through Christ. That's why I need to add more green to my mixture. Once again, let's try once again this. Okay. That's quite nice. And on this area, I also test how these colors look with each other. So if I see that they are well bounced and work well, I usually leave them. So we also need Red. For my dark red tone, I will use Alizarin. This is also my favorite red. This is Alizarin, Alizarin crimson and more of that color and as you see on reference photo, this area next the center of the apple is slightly lighter and the same goes in here. We need something which is lighter than the thread. It could be also like orange color, orange shade, or all use, this is naples yellow, but in reddish tone. This is not naples yellow. This is apples, yellow reddish. If you don't have naples yellow reddish, but you have naples yellow, simply add a touch of red to your mixture and it should look similar to mine. These are all colors. I will use this medium brush. Number four, it's from Princeton and I like it because it's very soft brush. It's not the end, it's not stiff, so it's very soft. That's why I can rotate with different directions. Let's start with apples. I will place water. This is remember, this is not watercolor paper, so I suppose the colors won't blend with each other very the same as on a watercolor pad. But it doesn't matter because it's only the first layer, so I'll start with this redistone, clean my brush, make it dry on paper towel and take my red, and add it to the edges. Just like you see, it's not very well for watercolors. It's mixed media paper, but these colors don't blend well, but it doesn't really matter in this painting because I tested it before and the results gets quite nice if you add more layers with crayons later. Don't bother if it doesn't look pretty. Pretty is a well word for that. Let's do second apple and just like you see it dries faster than on cotton paper. With this apple yellow red, reddish tone, and let's pick Alizarin. Alizarin from here. And perhaps some over here, and I will do straight from the pan. The pen has a trouble blend to flow on this paper. That's why it looks like that. But like I said before, don't worry much because this is just a process and at the end, it will look great. Trust me. Last apple, I will start with noples yellow, reddish here. Add some water to the edge and switch on Alizarin perhaps I will even add touches with this sarin here. Now we move on to the greens and I usually start with this lighter one, for example, we can add it here. I know that this one is granulating once, so I only place a few lines with this color and with my wet brush, move this paint around on the paper. You can go on, go beyond your outlines. It doesn't really matter in this kind of painting, so you could just test what you like or what you don't like. For example, I will add some strokes over here. We can add this color on lighter sides and darker sides. Now I will take this darker color because I want this color to blend with this lighter one and add it in here. Here we have some still with our colors, we can paint some additional leaves in the background. For example, in here, some in here, but I would like them to be very translucent. That's why I only place one dot of paint and then I blend it with the water trying to create the shape of the leave. I think we need more of this darker value. We can still with the water, blend it a little. And once again with my favorite autumn green, I will make some leaves in here, and I think here we need some colors, we'll add this autumn green in here. But we will add just a touch with this darker. That's all with the paints. In the next stage, we will go back. One more thing. I forgot that we also need to paint our branch. I will take my light brown color. This is my red or her color. I call it light brown because it's the only brown I have. Sorry for my other cat. We need to paint the branch, the branch goes in here and also in here and it was in here. And I will switch to smaller brush. I would like to also paint this branch but in different color. I have dark brown and I will paint it with dark brown. In my case, it's October 2023. It's straight from the pon because I want it to be very thick. Okay. I see that. It's quite thick. Now we'll add some of this darker, darker value of brown in here to the branch because this one, this part is in shadow. We need to leave it to dry and after it dries, we will go on with the next layer with crayons. It doesn't have to be watercolor crayons, but see you in the next video. 6. Crayons: Okay, my layer is almost almost already dry, but I will try to be aware of the watery parts. And at the beginning, we will start with the apples because they're dry now, so it will be easier to start with the apples. I have my crayons just like you see some of them are very, very small. This is number 36 from Cochenour Mondus with this color, I will only mark the centers of my apples. These are the centers and I will take my number 589. This is crimson alizarin from luminance. I only need it to be sharp. I will add outline on apples. It doesn't have to be exactly ideally what you have before. This outline can also be thick and we will create shape of the apple with rounded rounded strokes, we will create the illusion of ovalness on our apple. In here, we will start adding details. And still, just like perhaps you noticed that I don't go over the slight area. I only add these details in the area where I have my dark red color because here we will go with the orange color. So some slight color values changes will be in here with my red, I will also add I want this bottom part of the apple to be darker. That's why I draw something like that with the side of my crayon. I will take the orange crayon, and this is a number five from Montes, Cochenour, and I will add the center, similar strokes, but from the center of the apple and we can go even to the reds with our orange. Okay. And we will do similar on other apples. First, this down one, I will outline the whole apple. Make this part where the two apples meet with each other darker if I had even darker shade of red in my crayons, I will also paint in this area because I want it to be even darker than it is right now. I will see if I have something which I could use. For example, I have this is a sugar plum from Derks I will use it in here so make it even a bit darker. Okay. And with this orange once again. But remember that these strokes should be rounded. And the last apple. So Outline. So perhaps let's start with this orange first. Perhaps it will be easier. And a bit of darker red. I will add with this sugar plum first, some strokes. After that, with my red with my Alizarin crimson. One more thing. I want to create this effect. That's why I will also draw some vertical lines and the same in here. So lines. Let's see what is dry now. We will go to the leaves and I like to start with the darker ones. I will use number 739 from luminance. This is dark sub green and I will add details on the leaves. Once again, not every layer which was first cross hatched with pencil, I will draw with crayon and just don't over draw the same line. So just add the color where you like simply. It could be just some lines on some areas. It could be the whole leaves, for example, just like in here. Remember that we will do the same with the medium green. Don't draw everything the spart. And here I will make this dark. I was wondering if this is already dry and I will switch to medium green. I call it medium green. This is two, 25 mouse green from luminance and I will use it in here. And over that, I will use a bit with dark subcreen. You just play in here. Just play test what you like. What you don't like. This is just like a playground. This line also can be very soft and notice. See if you like this kind of lines, or you can draw with a light tone on a dark background and also notice if you like this effect. If you like it, just try on the other leaf. Perhaps I will add. Sometimes it can be just like a few strokes here and there or just the outline. This is for you to test. I think this is final, and we also need to work on our branch. I will see if it already dries. I have number 31 from MondesT is like dot brown. I have also sepia, 50% from luminance and this is number nine oh six. I usually call it dark brown and I have French gray 10%, eight oh two from luminance, because I think sometimes lighter color looks very interesting or dark on darker backgrounds. One thing just like you see on the branch, we have these dots and we have this light on the left side of the branch, and I would like to simulate that. I I don't like the effect which I will achieve with my crayon, I will paint it later with the guash. But for now, I would like to test my crayon for that. I will add this later on a branch and the dots which are on a branch. I will take my darker color Sosepa 50% and I will create the exact form of my branch and perhaps I will add some simple details. It doesn't have to be much. Especially on the areas which are too light just like this one. I have this lighter brown, but I think I don't need it. This is all for the crayons and the next step, we will add just the touch of guash. It will be the very last layer on our work. See you then. 7. Gwash: Okay, so I have my squash over here and I will use a very thin. This is the thinnest I have number three brush. I need this squash to be very thick. That's why I only add a drop of water to the place where I have my own squash. And test over here if it's thick enough. We will add just a glimpse of light. When you see on a picture, we have some light over here. We also have some light over here and over here on apples over here on apples where the light just shines on it and it just diffuses it. We will add some details with it, perhaps maybe not exactly like this is on a picture. And on this apple, I will add just this single very thin details. Here. We can even add these lines on our leaves, but I didn't do it on my previous work and I just show you for you to decide if you want to add these lines with the white gouache on the leaves. You can see the result without these lines. For example, in here, I will add simple some lines just to test how it looks and if I like this effect, and also if I like this effect. If you don't have quash, you can also use some gel pen and for example, posca pen. I think I will add Sometimes it's hard to just stop. I think I will also add this white here on the places which I draw with my slider crayon. Okay, that's all. I hope you like it. This was a mixed media project. I would be very happy if you place your work or even stages of your work in the project section. I would love to see them. I usually give a feedback if you place your work in the project section and see you in a wrap up video. 8. Outro: Thank you so much for joining me in this class. I hope you enjoy experimenting with a different process, starting from a reference photo and layering watercolor pencils and graphite together. Now it's your turn. Upload your project to the project section. I'd love to see how you combine the different mediums and what details you choose to highlight. If you enjoy this class, please leave a review. It really helps me and other students discover it. If you're ready for more, check out my other classes where I guide you step by step through painting, birds, flowers, and more watercolor subjects. Most importantly, keep experimenting, keep painting, and keep having fun with your art. See you in the next class.