How To Change The Focal Point In Your Landscape Painting

Learn how to change the focal point and improve on the photo reference you have to work from. Photos an be very helpful, but we always need to improve on it by possible changing the focal point, colors, contrast or the shape.
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[@346UNCLEBOB]

Helpful? YES, INDEED. Thanks Phil.

[@philstarke.artist]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MB-kf3yx]

Enjoyed the discussion and photo references...plan to attempt to incorporate your suggestions. Thanks for sharing your expertise.

[@philstarke.artist]

You're welcome

[@timothyjack_art]

Helping me see the Main Point in photos and scenes a bit more - cheers!

[@philstarke.artist]

Glad it was helpful!

[@Chaotic313]

❤❤❤

[@jimfoote8066]

Thank you Phil. Great advice for landscape paintings. Though to me these are secondary when people,animals and human objects are added. Objects in motion like a ball also. A video on how to weigh in these would be helpful. Thanks again

[@anasofialozano7914]

Very helpful video! Gave me a lot of clarity! Thank you!

[@shaukatmi]

Thank you Phil. Very instructive and succintly explained the concepts of painting. Bravo.

[@philstarke.artist]

You're welcome, glad you liked it

[@ruthkozsey4122]

Thank you! Extremely helpful!

[@philstarke.artist]

You're welcome!

[@alfalasi_art]

hi phil , love your art, would you kindly make an art tip about how to paint the cloud so it would support the point of intrest , thank you

[@philstarke.artist]

To make the clouds more important, I would lower the horizon to make the clouds bigger and reduce the value contrast with the objects on land, making the darks a little lighter and the lights a bit darker.

[@reneekroyer5104]

At 19 minutes in, I'd love to see that tree that was on the far left of your photograph replace the barn. lol I really like that tree but I do get what you are saying . . . too much does not make for a good composition. I may try to paint this one of Colorado as you have it, but eliminate the barn and replace it with the tree.

[@reneekroyer5104]

Thank you so much for this wonderful video, Phil. I learned a lot from it. I wish my husband would watch it because he just can't seem to get it into his head how we are not TRYING to copy our inspiration photograph -- it is just a place to start -- our inspiration to paint a scene. I keep trying to tell him that. I also tell him that if I want a photo, I'll just frame a photo. lol I love impressionism, not realism. I am really enjoying your videos, they are very helpful to a new artist like myself.

[@philstarke.artist]

Keep at it! Your husband will come around

[@reneekroyer5104]

@@philstarke.artist I don't think so, but thanks anyway.

[@charmcrumrine8750]

Thank you Phil, I have heard all of what you said in this video many times before but I really understand it the way you presented it today. I look forward to putting it into practice.

[@pjjmsn]

Hi Phil, great lesson, thanks! I understnd that copying a photo comes with a lot of difficulties, but what about copying a photo of a painting? I found that fraught with difficulties as well. I thought I had a trick up my sleeve in that I had a program that indicates the value zones of a photo based on the 10 zone-system scale. So I converted my reference photo to black and white and put it through the program, thinking it would help me easily nail the values of my painting. I was mistaken. My painting based on these values didn't read correctly at all. The sky was too blown out and the land was too dark. It took me a long time to get it to read half-way decently. I am still confused as to why that is. Maybe my monitor is off? I stink as a painter?I am curious for your thoughts/insights as to why it read so poorly, if it is something that perhaps is not unique to me.

[@song4night]

does our eye go directly to the focal point, or to the path leading to the focal point?

[@pjjmsn]

Good question, I am not an expert but I believe what happens is that your eye first goes directly to the focal point (I think Phil mentioned that in the video), and then moves around the painting from there, but I could be wrong.