A Cows View. I paint what I know and growing up on a farm we had tons of fresh fruit and vegetables along with lots of animals to feed. One of the most important things an artist can do is get to know your subject. Take a lot of reference photos. When you paint animals it is best to take a lot of pictures from different angles. Now that phones have cameras in them you always have a camera ready to take a picture. My phone is one of the old kind so I still have to drag along my camera. I keep files of pictures taken from magazine,news paper,and down loaded from on line. I use them for references only. When I am work on a quick study I use 140 lb cold pressed paper but when I am working on a more finished work I use 300lb because I like the durability of it. I always start with a drawing. When I am working on a study I usually work right on the watercolor paper but when I am working on a larger work a do the drawing first on paper, make corrections, then draw it on the watercolor paper.
