Landscape Paint by Numbers Tips: 5 Ways to Paint Better Skies & Water
Article Summary
Landscapes are among the most rewarding subjects to paint, but capturing the realism of nature takes a few special tricks. In this guide, we reveal 5 professional techniques to help you blend seamless skies, paint realistic water reflections, and create incredible depth in your landscape paint by numbers kits.
With the right techniques, you can bring any landscape to life.
There is a reason our Landscapes & Scenery collection is our most popular. From the rugged Scottish Highlands to tropical sunsets, these scenes offer a wonderful escape. But have you ever finished a landscape and felt the sky looked a bit "stripey" or the water looked flat?
Nature doesn't have hard lines. To make your landscape look professional, you need to master a few simple techniques that soften edges and create depth. Here are our top 5 tips for painting the great outdoors.
1. Master the 'Soft Sky' Blend
The biggest giveaway of a paint by numbers is a sky with hard bands of colour. To fix this, you need to blend.
When painting a sunset like our Sunset Shore or Cactus Sunset, apply your two adjacent sky colours (e.g., orange and yellow). While both are still wet, use a clean, slightly damp brush to gently stroke back and forth over the line where they meet. This creates a seamless transition that mimics real light.
2. Create Liquid Reflections
Painting water, like in our Eden Falls or Lake Mirage kits, requires a different touch. Water is always moving.
To paint realistic reflections, use vertical, downward strokes. Pull the colour of the object (like a tree or rock) down into the water area. Then, use horizontal strokes of the water colour to cut across it. This grid-like motion creates the shimmer of a reflection rather than a solid block of colour.
Vertical strokes blended with horizontal lines create realistic water.
3. The Rule of Atmospheric Perspective
This is a pro artist secret! Things that are further away should look paler and bluer than things close up. This creates the illusion of distance.
If you are painting distant mountains in kits like Canyon Echoes, don't make them too dark or sharp. If the kit creates a hard line, you can thin your paint with a tiny drop of water or mix in a dot of white to soften the distant peaks, pushing them into the background.
Fading distant colours creates a sense of vastness.
4. Texture is Everything
In a landscape, different elements feel different. A rock should feel hard; a cloud should feel soft.
- Rocks & Bark: Use "Dry Brushing." Wipe most paint off your brush and drag it lightly over the canvas to create a rough, scratchy texture. Perfect for the cliffs in Emerald Arch.
- Leaves & Grass: Use "Stippling." Dab your brush repeatedly to create small dots that mimic the texture of foliage.
5. Don't Forget the Horizon Line
The horizon line is where the sky meets the land or sea. In reality, this line is rarely razor-sharp (unless it's a clear ocean day). To add realism, slightly soften the horizon line. This helps the land sit naturally against the sky rather than looking like a cutout.
Ready to Paint Your Escape?
Now that you have the techniques, choose your destination. From serene forests to vibrant deserts, we have the perfect landscape waiting for you.
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