hey this is Eric from cafe watercolor
I've seen so many of these questions floating around the internet
and quite a few people ask me those question as well
but quite honestly they are often the wrong question to ask
wondering if you are asking the wrong question?
keep watching today's coffee talk
so some of the most common question I got from people
and some of the most popular YouTube video about watercolor is about this two topics
material and techniques
so the question about material include what brand of paper paint and brushes do I use
what's the size of the paper and brushes
what color of the paint do I use, and so on...
and the technique questions are like
how do you do what on wet wet
wet on dry making washes
how do you mix the specific colors
what color do you use to mix the color and so on
don't get me wrong this questions are legit and it's
great to know but quite often they are the wrong question to ask
notice, I said wrong question not bad question
why do people ask question?
because there's a problem that needs to be solved
but if you ask a good question in the wrong time
it's not going to solve your problem
therefore is a wrong question to ask
knowing all the materials and techniques
won't make you a great artist
especially if you want to paint and create a believable painting
that's based on reality
I have some great photographer friends who took amazing photos
just with their phone or their point-and-shoot little camera
yet they always got questions like
what camera are you using? what setting?
what program do you used to edit your photos?
and when my friend told them that
oh I shoot it just with my phone
and with a free simple app for editing
those people are usually disappointed
and that kind of made me wonder what did I expect to hear
when they ask those questions
I'm sure some people who asked
genuinely want to learn to become better photographer
but I wager that many people who ask those questions
are looking for like a magic bullet
that would instantly just transform their art or their photography
or they are expecting to hear that my friends are using some...
eight thousand, ten thousand dollar cameras
with expensive programs
so they can have an excuse
about their own photo will not look as good
because they can't afford the same level of equipment
or they thought knowing the exact same setting can make your photo look amazing
however it will be very unlikely that
they will instantly become a great photographer
just by having the same expensive camera gear or some expensive programs
same thing goes for watercolor
I feel some people are looking for the magic bullet
that will instantly transform
their painting and make it better
they think if they just get that
same brand of paper brush or paint
or if they just learned that one trick
it can make their painting look like the Masters
and while having good materials and technique can give you an easier time
painting and give you more enjoyment
it's not going to make you a better artist
don't take my word for it let's hear from what Joseph's Zbukvic
one the master of watercolor says
of course, I could paint with Mickey Mouse paints on the ground
and I would still be okay
okay so I don't know what Mickey Mouse paint is
but I assume it's not Daniels Smith, Holbein
Windsor Newton or whatever
let me show you the painting I bought from Joseph
guess what type of paper he's using?
it's not Sanders, Arches, Hahnemühle or anything
is a cheap sketchbook paper that actually not meant for watercolor
well he's a master that's why I can use some cheap material and still did a good painting
and that's exactly my point
they become mastered not because of the materials they use
but the time they put in to learn practice and honing their craft
as well as having a keen eye and sharp mind
to have a good vision for their paintings
learning the right technique is important
but if you don't know when and how to use those techniques
they are useless
learning how to mix a specific color is nice
but a great painting will still look great if you change the colors around
or just make it black and white
so you know it's not it
now, I understand this can be hard to take
but actually I want you to feel encouraged and even empowered
because now that you know a good artist is not made by some
external factors or some magical, legendary tools
but it is you
you are the one who can turn yourself into a better painter
all the materials are just the extension of you
this doesn't mean you go cheap on your painting material
that's not what I'm talking about at all
if you're serious about painting then you should
definitely invest into some good materials and tools for that
but what I'm trying to say is that
in order to make the most out of the materials that you have
we need to work on improve our artistic core
in my next video
I'm going to share some ways that can help you to become a better artist for free
you don't need expensive material
or learn some special technique to do them
it is a very important topic that I don't see a lot of artists talk about around here
and I don't want you to miss out
so if you're new here make sure you subscribe
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so you won't miss out my next video
that being said thank you for watching
I'm Eric from Café Watercolor
and I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are
bye