A simple watercolor palette for beginners (and experts)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ส.ค. 2024
- I frequently get asked what watercolor paints I use, so here is a quick run-down… As an experiment, years ago, I decided to try a very minimal palette with paint colors more or less matching the four ink colors in a standard desktop color printer (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black). So, I started with just these Winsor and Newton paint colors (listed here with their pigment codes):
Winsor Blue (green shade ) - pigment code PB15:3
Quinacridone Magenta -- pigment code PR122
Winsor Yellow -- pigment code PY154
Payne’s Gray - pigment codes PB15, PBk6, PV19
Winsor Blue is also called Phthalocyanine Blue in other product lines, and Winsor Yellow might also be called Azo Yellow Light, or Benzimidazolone Yellow. You can compare the pigment codes to determine if two different paint names from different product lines contain the same pigment.
Payne’s Gray is a convenience mix of Phthalocyanine Blue, Lamp Black and Quinacridone violet, and even in its most concentrated form it’s not exactly black. So, to my four basic color-mixing paints listed above, I also added Lunar Black by Daniel Smith, which I mostly just use for very dark backgrounds, because its gritty texture doesn’t look good in mixtures. It does however have a nice velvety softness when applied thickly and quickly. Those are the five colors I use about 90% of the time, even now.
I eventually added the following additional colors, which I use only occasionally:
Winsor Green (yellow shade) - pigment code PG36
Winsor Blue (red shade) - pigment code PB15:1
Cadmium Red Medium - pigment code PR108
The addition of the latter two paints gives me something close to a classic “split primary” palette, where you have warm and cool versions of each traditional primary color, except I have only one yellow, and I’ve also added green, gray and black. It’s still a very simple set, which I like because I’ve gotten to know these paints really well and there are no surprises. I also like that most of them are staining pigments, which I prefer for realistic watercolor painting because you can get intense saturated colors or thin them way down for subtle glazing, and because washing over previous work done with staining pigments doesn’t lift off the dry paint (much). The downside of staining pigments is that it’s harder to correct mistakes, but I’ve shared some helpful error correction methods in my previous videos.
I’ve used these same 5 to 8 paint colors to make over 200 watercolor paintings to date, and that has all worked out nicely. I neglected to point out in the video that there’s at least one thing my palette does not have much of, which is texture, because one of my goals has been to make watercolor paintings that don’t look like traditional watercolors. If texture is more your thing, then you will probably want more sedimentary colors on your palette. But if you’re a beginner feeling overwhelmed by all the possible paint color choices, or if you’re an experienced painter wanting to try something new and different, perhaps a minimal palette like mine might be a good starting point for experimentation.
Anyway, thanks for watching!
[And many thanks to Bradford Yorks for pointing out the errors in my first uploaded version, which I have hopefully now corrected!]
![ง้อ (ALRIGHT) - FOURTH Prod. by URBOYTJ [ OFFICIAL MV ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Qs8ZeV6Dqj8/mqdefault.jpg)
I wish i saw this 2 months ago and hundreds of dollars sooner.
This has been VERY helpful. Thank you for teaching me what you know.
I'm glad you're finding my content useful, thanks!
Im doing a search on the pigments that are needed on a limited palette, I've seen a lot of videos like this but this one is the best so far! And it is only 4 minutes filled with amazing direct informations. This is the best limited palette I've actually seen 😍
Thank you! 🙂
Yes, so helpful! I have a walnut brain as well. 😂
Out of those oh so many videos you get the only 100% on the information ! You use a easy to mix uncomplicated palette! THANK YOU!
I'm glad the info was helpful, thanks!
OMG, this is so brilliant using colors based on a printer. I will definitely try this simple version instead of the many color palettes. Also, it would probably be very useful to have a second part video to this one on how to actually mix colors with your palette. I know we can use the color wheel, but sometimes it helps to have the visual while trying at home. Thanks for the video!
That is a great suggestion, thank you!
I highly recommend PBk31 Perylene Green and PV29 Perylene Violet as the darks/blacks. I use them to mix a wide range of darks from warm to cool.
Proof that walnut brains are still as clever as watermelon brains!
These are great tips, thank you! Also, your paintings are unbelievably stunning 😮
Me and my walnut-size brain thank you for your kind comments and feedback! 🙂
Thanks very much Paul, I've just found your channel and subscribed. From England. Take care, David.
Thank you, David!
I am just starting out with watercolor painting. I bought a very inexpensive practice set but now I want to create my own pallete with higher end paint. This was very helpful to me because I do not want to spend a ton of money on my first pallete since I am new to mixing colors. I feel I can buy larger tubes of just what I need to mix more colors :) Thanks so much!
I'm so glad you found it useful! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
You're welcome :)@@watercolorish
CYMpaynes gray is still my palette to this day :) or the base of it.
Love this! I also believe a limited palette helps though mine extends to 8-10 colours. I do use the split primary palette but a single yellow plus a convenience green and two browns ( burnt umber, burnt sienna) I also am a fan of DS raw sienna (Monte Amiata) - it is a glowing transparent ochre colour
Thank you for sharing your color choices! I probably should experiment more with other colors, but I haven't tried anything new in years. Maybe one of these days 🙂
Phenomenal mind, eye, and hand control. Ai will never have anything on your skill and imagination.
You are very kind, thank you!
This is super helpful!!!
Unfortunately I saw this two years late. The ink cartridge example was simple and brilliant.
Your strategy makes so much sense. Love this video!
Oh I just ❤️❤️❤️ your idea of using the colors in a printer! I’ve a bizillion tubes of watercolors and a little less, pan sets.
Yep. Love the limited pallete especially the printer colours. I’ve subscribed to this channel
This is a top video! So short with so much super useful information! I am still a beginner and often over think colours. 🌻☮️
I’m so glad you’re finding it useful - thanks for the feedback!
Nice! I hope you make a detailed video discussing all the possible colors that you can make using these limited palette and what subjects you can use it to.
I understand your reason for not using Ultramarine (granulating, liftable, not so staining). But for me, I will not replace my Ultramarine with anything. (^_^)
this is soo helpful for me who is trying to learn about watercolor, thank you so much
Thank you for the info! Please tell us more about your paintings!
they amazingly beautiful and mind blowing!
The combination of objects in yr painting are great!
thanks again for sharing!
Thank you for your very kind words! I have more videos in the works, hopefully coming soon.
Thank you so much for sharing with us your wisdom out of a walnut! 😉
I‘ll try that, cause I’m often so lost with the abundance of colours and tipps which doesn’t help me to remain concentrated… ❤️❤️🎨❤️❤️
I hope you find this useful, and thanks for your interest and feedback!
I remember hearing many times that you cannot simulate printer colors when painting, so it took a while to try it. I did read some good color mixing basics and color lightfastness books in the 90s that made a believer out of me on both mixing and the importance of lightfast paint! Just having magenta, cyan and yellow is really fun, but my eyes open wide when I look at paint! Way back when Dan Smith was bringing new paints out back then, I bought a lot at a very reasonable price - addicted to the pretty colors and how they mix. I do like the old Quinacridone gold in mixes. I do think the biggest difference is in how we paint. When I try to do multiple layers with staining paints, the edges do not meet and look sloppy so I stopped trying. Maybe I need to play with that again.
Thank you your thoughtful and knowledgeable replies. And I do agree that research is great, but experimentation can be even better! 🙂
I was given a set of watercolors for my birthday as it's something I've wanted to try for some time. I'm not one to dive in without a little prep, so your palette concept is a great foundation. I think learning to blend colors will be enlightening and the experience will help me make other decisions along the journey. Thank you. I look forward to exploring more of your suggestions and seeing more of your gorgeous work.
Thanks Lin! I really appreciate your interest and enthusiasm!
Amazing.
Pleased to meet you. This is sound advice you give here: I also use limited palettes... Like you I feel this keeps my noggin in good nick. And makes for better painting- but mental health may be the chief benefit, perhaps!
This is really helpful, thank you.
...the other 3 colours are close to the optical primaries in paint..ie RGB.
Oh, this is very, very helpful! Thank you!
Yes! Very helpful, thanks
Wow, beautiful paintings!
I love seeing artists' personal color picks! It shows a bit into our own personal preferences subject-wise and style-wise. It's so true that having so many colors is overwhelming, and it can slow artists down. I used to abide to a split primary palette, but I noticed I tend to use some colors more often than others, so I changed it up. Right now my top 5 most used are French ultramarine (PB29), cerulean blue (PB35), pyrrol red (PR254), imidazolone yellow (PY154), and raw umber (PBr7). A burnt sienna (PBr7) and raw sienna (PBr7) would make for my top 7. Sometimes I switch burnt sienna with Daniel Smith's transparent red oxide PR101, which I think is their best watercolor, if my ultramarine blue is a nongranulating version. Winsor & Newton is hard to find where I am partly due to trade laws I think, but I do have their potter's pink (PR233) and cerulean blue (PB35), which are great.
Thank you thank you for such a detailed and informative comment! I also started out with a split primary palette when I took my first and only watercolor class way back when... I decided to switch to the simple palette about 18 years ago, thinking I'd add more colors as I went along, but I've not had the need. But we'll see... things could change at some point 🙂
So helpful for a beginner like me! Thank you ❤
I'm so glad you found this useful... Thanks for your interest and feedback! 🙂
"Walnut-sized brain". Yeesh...if yours is walnut-sized, mine must be a shriveled pea! :D
Very helpful for an oldie newbie.
Thank you so much for this! I’m a single mommy money is super tight but I’m getting good at painting! My friend gifted me a Cotman set (tubes) but I was told they’re not professional grade so I wanted so much to get the professional. Can’t wait to try this now!
This was helpful, thanks.
Good video!
Great!!
Great info, thankyou
Sing to me brother! I’m a portrait oil painter and I use 4 main colors.. I’ve been trying to find a basic set of watercolors to buy to start doing some WCsketches (never tried) but every set has SO many colors. Blah!
Your work is truly lovely.
Thank you!! ☺️
Thank you!
New viewer Karel here I really like your watercolor style. How do you get dark brown with that combo?
Thank you! I usually mix browns with Winsor Yellow, Quinacridone Magenta, and Payne's Gray (with more of the Payne's Gray to make the mix darker)
Paul, Thank You for having made these watercolorish videos!!! They are clear and enjoyable to watch.
I was wondering why you seem to prefer Windsor and Newton over Daniel
Smith for your Yellow, Blue and Magenta, is it the texture, re-wettability or just because?
Hi Chantal, thanks for the nice feedback! I think the W&N Winsor Blue GS is slightly greener than the equivalent Daniel Smith Phthalo Blue, and there's more color difference between the GS and BS versions for W&N than for DS. And I believe my W&N core colors have a finer texture in general, but that may just be my own bias. I honestly haven't experimented with other brands in years. If you have the means, I encourage you to do your own tests.
Very very helpful, thanks!
I started with these pigments, after finding your website. I am not a watercolorist, by temperament or trade, I chose the medium because it scans in well, is very cheap, it puts the least wear on your brushes, and the paper is really great. So what I do with it is more like a 'professional' process (i.e., not fine art), like coloring in children's books or some similar art-adjacent thing. I make album covers and advertisements and stuff.
Anyway, these are the best pigments. I expanded out through all the phthalho colors, and most of the Quinacridones. I got Perylene Magenta and Green, and it was only recently that I started getting the heavier pigments that most watercolorists start with, like Ultramarine and Cobalt colors. I just bought a ton of other pigments because I am doing a project that is basically paint-by-numbers where I want tons of consistency across pieces, but again, not really making 'paintings'.
I have made some watercolor paintings though, and I will say that even if you want to use heavy granulating pigments and use more traditional watercolor techniques, I think that this particular palette is a really good choice for at least your first year or so. Along with the information at realcolorwheel.com and handprint.com, you can edge your way into buying new pigments at a rate you understand them. It also allows you to never have to use crappy paints, even on a budget, because tubes last a long time and your up-front cost is minimal with just five colors.
You get stuck with the Windsor and Newton magenta, because other manufacturers do not have a true magenta, but it is probably the best paint so that's ok. The caps on the tubes are just wretched, so I use other brands.
Your paintings are also very good. That one with the cat on the wooden floor is just crazy, that's the one I used to show people to blow their minds. Most people have trouble believing it is watercolor.
Oh PS: Once you know the relative tinting strength of the paints (Pthalho blue is at least 2x Quin Magenta, which is more than 2x Azo Yellow), you can look up hex codes online to try to figure out how to get a trickier color like a tan, peach or brown.
Your paintings are incredibly beautiful!!!
You are very kind, thank you!
Very nice, I was recently thinking about using less colors to simplify the process and make it faster, since you get to know your few pigments interactions by heart. Also, because is easy to match a mix you used in a layer (and forgot what is made of) if you know you used a combination of let's say 3 pigments vs a drawer with hundreds 😅. Now a question, because I'm nore into loose landscapes than illustration perfectly detailed subjects....would you still recommend this colors, or maybe some more heavy and desaturated pigments as Cobalt, Yellow Ochre and Light red...to say something.
Genius! Subscribed and watched the comercials hehe.
Sorry about the ads! I didn’t monetize my channel for a long time, but when some of my videos first started getting popular, Google put ads in them anyway and there seemed to be nothing I could do about it, so I figured I should at least get a cut of that. 🙃
I use a split primary I find I don't need much other than that. People who have palettes with 60 colors I just don't understand
didn't know this about stainning color !!! I take a look in your site , I m curious how you paint the glass sooo transparent?? looks real whie glass!!! How you think/planning the layer ?? Any tips to celulose awaufull paper begginers?
When I'm painting glassware, I use a good source photo and put it as close as possible to the area I'm working on. Then it's just a question of matching the abstract shapes and colors. And I would consider buying some decent quality watercolor paper even if you're a beginner. 🙂
Do you ever use any other paint colors like a purple. I have trouble mixing a good purple mix.
This is wonderful. What kind of tape you are using to cover some areas? Is that a technique? Thanks
During stretching, the paper is taped to the board with 2-inch-wide watercolor tape, aka kraft tape... It's basically the same as water-activated packing tape. And for masking, I use drafting tape (my current preferred brand is IPG) -- ideally, it's low-tack enough that it doesn't damage the paper or lift off color but still sticky enough to prevent leackage. I recommend testing a new roll on the same paper you paint on, thanks!
I love how much this guy loves watercolour
Good Video. Taken indoors with a hat?
Thank you! I sleep with that hat on!
As a beginner is it advisable to make use of color palettes 🎨
I think it’s useful for a beginner to explore a limited palette at first, in order to learn how to get predictable mixes and not get lost among too many color options. But since you ended with a palette emoji, perhaps you are asking about a physical palette, in which case I recommend an enable butcher tray for mixing your watercolors 🙂
Sorry, that was supposed to say “enamel butcher tray” 🙃
*YMCK* USER *YES*
by the way please tell me what is the pigment code for the other color (not just that 4 color) u have in ur palette
Winsor Blue red shade is the same color number as green shade (PB15). Winsor Green is PG7 and Cadmium Red or Scarlet is PR108.
The information is in the description box:
winsor green yellow shade is PG36
winsor blue red shade is PB15:1 (winsor blue green shade is PB15:3)
cadmium red medium is PR108
Wow. I love the dark backgrounds with the contrasted images in the front. They appear so bright. I assume you use masking fluid to mask those areas..?
Thank you! I usually use card stock and drafting tape to mask the foreground areas. I'll post a video showing this process in detail soon