HOW TO PAINT A LEAF IN WATERCOLOR - EFFORTLESSLY

Watercolor has a bad reputation for being a difficult medium to work with - but it simply isn't so! In this step by step full length tutorial I will show you how to paint this leaf with fast results, to help boost your confidence. I have used a limited palette and it is suitable for beginners. I use both wet on wet and wet on dry methods in this tutorial so that you can try both application methods for yourself, which will improve your skills as a watercolour artist.
Materials Used:
300 gsm hot pressed watercolour paper (I used Saunders Waterford)
Spotter brushes: No 6, and No 4 size
Flat synthetic brush - Number 2 size
Paints:
Sap Green
Olive Green
Perylene Green
Magenta
All by Winsor & Newton
but just use the green colours that you have
The Spotters are from Rosemary & Co and Jacksons Art Supplies

[@helencampbell]

Hi everyone please feel free to drop a comment below and let me know if there are any tutorials that you would like to see in the future. I’m in the process of writing my schedule for 2021 so if you’d like to see something in particular then drop me a line

[@bartee807]

I need help with curling petals.

[@dorothygladsjo3510]

Rose leaves and flipped and curling leaves:)

[@fouzanairfan2934]

This leaf drawing . Where can I find it ? I mean the pencil sketch

[@helencampbell]

There’s no drawing for this one. I supplied the drawings, a little bit later on in my KZbin journey. However, it is a fairly simple shape, so it should be relatively easy to draw.

[@vanessap9124]

I don’t care how many times I watch this tutorial, I learn something each time. AMAZING!!!!!

[@helencampbell]

Aw thank you

[@radhikaomar921]

Hello madam, I am from India and this tutorial was so wonderful that I was able to score good marks in my high school art exam. Thank you very much.

[@helencampbell]

Wow that’s amazing. So pleased

[@engraciarodriguez5357]

How can anybody not love it??!?♥️

[@helencampbell]

Thank you 😊

[@coffeewithmia7498]

That was excellent! Thank you!

[@helencampbell]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@deannamunro8148]

who thought that a leaf was so beautiful and intricate! Thank you!

[@helencampbell]

Thank you x

[@nykole720]

I spent a half hour on one leaf and loved every minute of it! Thanks! I would love to see how you paint a sunflower

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I’ve a flower tutorial scheduled for next Tuesday

[@geraldinehomenchuk8655]

Absolutely loved this tutorial, Helen. Just starting out myself and collecting my WN tubes (prof.) a bit at a time. I've "liked" & subscribed and can hardly wait for the next one! Thank you so much your "soft approach" and encouragement.

[@helencampbell]

What a lovely message Geraldine. Thank you. Oh and you won’t have to wait long for the next one (which I’m sure you’ll like) as it’s out tomorrow, Tuesday 13 April 2021 😀

[@illarion5]

Спасибо вам за урок!! Люблю писать ботанику ❤🎉

[@maryink549]

Thank you) I will try this. And about covering of the whole painting by water to merge layers is a good idea) I use it too!

[@helencampbell]

Isn’t it. I love doing this. It really makes such a difference

[@yk.n00r]

I love aquarelle sm!! It's so soothing and incredible to mee

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@alinasart477]

Thank you for sharing! Beautiful

[@helencampbell]

My pleasure x

[@gingerkelly5146]

You are truly amazing to watch. Explaining every step to help me understand and learn!! Thank you so much. I want more than anything in the world to learn how to paint a bearded Iris in soft colors. I have seen one of yours in the background, but can’t find your teaching of this. Hopefully you will consider teaching your process of one of these! I would truly be grateful!! Thank you again for your beautiful teachings!! Love your videos!! 💐

[@terezacristinacascaldi]

So beautiful!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@juliebrocklehurst-woods5247]

Wonderful, thank you.

[@helencampbell]

My pleasure

[@valentinavadillo]

You are so good explaining! Thank you

[@helencampbell]

My pleasure. Thank you for watching

[@artifexmom3824]

Thank you for sharing your nice tutorial my dear. And it’s very helpful for me. ☺️❤️

[@sandysanzenbacher7313]

This was fabulous to watch!!!! What a great lesson.

[@helencampbell]

Thank you Sandy

[@shubhangimisale6578]

Great learning and super technique. Result is awsome

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. I’ve a ton of others on my channel. Please consider subscribing so you won’t miss new uploads every Tuesday 😘

[@jenniferspotten915]

Great tutorial! Thanks for sharing!👍 I’m going to practice right now!

[@helencampbell]

Brilliant. Let me know how you get on

[@Tushaspaintingstutorialstryit]

Thank you for sharing 😍

[@helencampbell]

My absolute pleasure

[@earthrooster1969]

Loved your video! The leaf comes alive 🌿

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@grahamekellermeier8280]

Stunning painting leafs me speechless.

[@helencampbell]

Thank you Grahame

[@nikkilenihan8063]

Lovely!.This is great practise and nice and easy to follow.Thank you for sharing.I would love to see you paint some snowdrops.They are usually the first flowers to come up and remind me that spring is close.I find painting something white can be quite challenging.Thanks again for this lovely tutorial 👏👏👏

[@helencampbell]

Thank you I’m glad you like it and I’ll certainly put the snowdrops on my schedule for early next year so keep an eye out and hit that subscribe button 😃

[@celiavictoriaarteyblog6833]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge such joy 👌💖

[@helencampbell]

My absolute pleasure x

[@lotusflowerpassion]

lovely leaf

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@duresabih]

You're awesome

[@bhumi4upatel497]

CUTE PAINTINGS AND YOU ARE SO SWEET.

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. Glad you like them

[@nickdouglas7866]

It’s very helpful for my painting. Thanks Helen.

[@helencampbell]

You’re welcome 😊

[@swathimurthynathan6851]

Lovely tutorial.. Looks so effortless and easy to understand.. Thank you for sharing knowledge ❤️

[@helencampbell]

I’m glad you like it. Do join in when you have the chance. X

[@sine7836]

Thank you Helen, im so inspired as you are a self taught person

[@helencampbell]

Thank you 😊

[@kimdungtran344]

Really lovely

[@dorothygladsjo3510]

I did it!!! Well, with your help☺️ my leaf looks like a REAL leaf! How can I ever thank you! Thank you💗

[@helencampbell]

My pleasure

[@prabharavisundar4252]

Very nice painting

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@menestralarteypintura3981]

Muy bonito

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. Gracias

[@pantalonious3984]

I can’t tell you how much finding your channel has helped increase my confidence and helped inspire me to start painting again. Your tutorials are wondering and create gorgeous personalized artwork in our own style if we want and that’s fantastic !! Thank you thank you thank you!! My bell has been clicked I don’t want to miss a single video of yours! I only wish I had found your channel sooner!! What other platforms are you active on? I’d love to follow you anywhere else you create content!!

[@helencampbell]

Thank you so much that’s very kind of you. We have weekly videos here on KZbin so if you subscribe and hit the bell notification you’ll be notified every week. Please consider joining our Facebook group, links are underneath all of our videos. We are on Patreon, also link in description. Thank you for your kind words

[@pantalonious3984]

@@helencampbell i already have the bell ring AND am a member of the group! I will absolutely consider becoming a Patreon, I will look into your options!! Thanks so much for everything you do!!

[@helencampbell]

Thank you very much for your kind comments 😀

[@tablet5643]

Thankyou for this. I'm self taught over the last few years and wondered why the techniques o found weren't in any tutorial, thinking I'm painting wrong but not caring as it worked for me I continued. Happy to see you post this 🥰

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@bwessp31w42]

Hi! I just found your channel and am new to watercolor. I've been trying all kinds of different exercises and fell in love with using a tiny brush. I thought I was just being chicken to use the bigger ones. LOL They say your style finds you... maybe mine is detailed and tight. ??? I love that you are self taught. That tells me that what you show is tried and true. I love your paintings!! I think something I struggle with personally is knowing when to add more. My stop point is about halfway of yours... then I get lost and don't know what to do next. Looking forward to watching your tutorials and trying your exercises. Your paintings are gorgeous!

[@helencampbell]

Hi. Thank you for your kind comments. It is very true that your painting style finds you. Watercolour painting is certainly all about practice. The more you do it, like everything else, the easier it becomes but the most important thing, is enjoying it. Have a lovely Christmas. And keep painting x

[@hannastocksick7395]

Sunflowers 🌻

[@vedericacopacanti7575]

Thank you for experience Important to know

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@melodycrites3145]

Wow

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@menestralarteypintura3981]

Gracias

[@helencampbell]

De nada 😀

[@duresabih]

I love this Diffenbachia plant lol sadly mine died as I'm a plant killer. But this video has made me wanna paint it again x.

[@ilknurakbay]

Hi Helen, thank you for the amazing tutorial. It would be great if you could show the reference photo while you're painting like in the yellow orchid one. I love that tutorial too. It was so good to see the photo and painting together.

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. I’m pleased you enjoyed it. I’ll consider the reference photo in split screen for upcoming videos x

[@ilknurakbay]

@@helencampbell That's awesome. I will join your patreon in February. I love when you say "use any color you have." Oh my God, what a relief to hear this statement. I fell so discouraged when I see many artists saying "use this brand and this number..." well I wish but I don't have, so I stopped painting all together. Now I can go back to painting. Thank you so much!!!

[@helencampbell]

You have literally no idea how happy this makes me. I hate the restrictions that are put on people. I am passionate about helping beginners grow xxx

[@namitajoshi1762]

Nicely detailed video loved every minute of it. I would really love to know how to decide the undertones in any picture ..Or how you decide on colours to be used

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. I tend to skim over that since it’s more in-depth. My Patreon site tends to lean more this way

[@ummhawraa]

👌🏻

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@notme3252]

Thank you for this. I would have really liked to have a link for your template because it looks so beautiful! I may try this one. Greens are such a challenge for me!

[@helencampbell]

Hi. We started providing tracedowns last year but this is a fairly simple shape so give it a go x

[@notme3252]

@@helencampbell Thank you!

[@gildaalmeida5589]

❤❤❤❤

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@marcelabishop1442]

Helen , I love the way you teach and your realistic technics, this is the way I want to learn how to paint. 😃 I am a beginner and need all the help I can get , how can I get the pencil drawings you show in your tutorials? Can I buy them from you ?

[@helencampbell]

Hi. Thank you. You do t need to buy them unless you want to join our Patreon. They are free on KZbin. Lately we have been putting up at the end of each video, and on our community tab but that’s only for the last few weeks if you want access to all of them you need to join our Facebook group just click on the link in the description of any of our videos and just answer the usual questions x

[@lorettaheadrick8288]

You're more than half way through 2021, and I'm just popping in. I wondered if you would consider three tutorials that would make up a triptych, each flower of similar size. I have three children and would love to paint these items for each for Christmas. Perhaps too late for this year, however. I just finished and posted your lovely magnolia leaf. If only one flower to choose, I would love a tutorial on a vibrant geranium. Thanks much, can't wait to get started on this leaf and this week's tutorial, the Moonglow anemone. Cheers.

[@lorettaheadrick8288]

I meant to write your lovely magnolia blossom. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[@helencampbell]

I love that idea. I’ll give it some thought. I am already about five weeks in advance, but I will think it over. I saw the Magnolia that you painted on the Facebook group page and it looks beautiful. As an aside, we do have a geranium tutorial on the Patreon site if you are interested. The Moonglow anemone is a joy to paint

[@helencampbell]

I saw your post. You did an amazing job

[@nanetteatienza4297]

Love this tutorial. You made things look so simple. It’s beautiful and very realistic. I wonder if you have made a tutorial of a fall leaf that’s getting dry. You mentioned buying that brush at Jerry’s. Love the point. And you are using hot pressed watercolor paper. May I ask when do you use hot pressed and cold pressed paper? Thanks for this tutorial.

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. I think it’s hot pressed paper. this video is about a year old now and I prefer to use coldpressed watercolour paper as well as mixed media paper. I have a dry leaf coming out in a few weeks time so be sure to subscribe and hit the bell that way you’ll be notified and won’t miss it regarding hot Pressed or coldpressed, it is probably personal preference although most botanical artists prefer to use hot press paper because they think it gives a finer detail. However, I would argue that point because I like the way cold press paper allows you to build layers and achieve a depth of colour that simply cannot be achieved on cold pressed without to go in muddy, at least the way I paint LOL

[@nanetteatienza4297]

@@helencampbell Thank you. Yes, I have subscribed and hopefully, I will get notified once you release a new video. Looking forward to it….. using cold pressed paper this time. ☺️

[@helencampbell]

Thank you. And remember, we have new tutorials every Tuesday x

[@lttlod1]

That looks so good! I'm just getting into botanical painting with my own spin. Your leaf videos are super helpful!

[@helencampbell]

Thank you 😊

[@monicaraney5649]

❤

[@helencampbell]

Thank you

[@angela14962002]

💗💞💗

[@michaelklein5242]

Hi Helen! When you applied the water glazes at around 6.31, how much water would you say was on your brush? I'm up to this stage right now, and although you mentioned being nervous about it, I'm nervous about it--probably because so far, it looks really good! Cheers!

[@helencampbell]

Hi Michael. Lots. Pick up as much water the more the better BUT use a light touch and make sure the paint is totally dry before you do. The water forms a sort of barrier over the paint so you don’t scratch the paper. Light touch and try not to move the paint too much. Let me know how you get on

[@sharonmcmann-morelli4896]

beautiful instructions and demonstration. do you have any waterfall demos?

[@helencampbell]

Hi Sharon. Thank you. No we just do close up paintings. Mostly botanicals 😘

[@sharonmcmann-morelli4896]

@@helencampbell they are so beautiful, glad i found your site, i plan to stick around a lot.taking a wet on wet workshop and this is really helping me, thank you so much

[@helencampbell]

My absolute pleasure 🥰

[@sharonmcmann-morelli4896]

@@helencampbell your work is so delicate and beautiful, enjoy so much, thank you .

[@helencampbell]

Many thanks. So glad you like the tutorials 😀

[@bartee807]

I am new to watercolor and i have noticed that your brushes have really short bristles/hairs compared to mine which are significantly longer. Perhaps I need to get some. What do you recommend.

[@helencampbell]

Hi Kerri. They are called spotters. I have an affiliate link for them which I have on the Facebook group. I can’t post it here but they are underneath the videos in the description I think. If you go for the red dot version they are synthetic and are very good

[@kathryncurry2662]

Awesome tutorial! What exactly is a “spotter” brush?

[@helencampbell]

It’s a brush with shortened bristles. Makes the paint application easier. In my opinion 😀

[@kathryncurry2662]

@@helencampbell where do you get them from the US?

[@helencampbell]

@@kathryncurry2662 here’s the link. They are synthetic and they ship to the USA. It’s an affiliate link. I use sizes 0. 2. 3. 4 and 6 bit.ly/reddotspotter

[@mooms04]

Hi Helen where do I find the contour drawing for this leaf?

[@helencampbell]

Hi there isn’t one for this as I launched the Facebook group a while after but it’s a super easy shape so give a try freehand or freeze the video and print and trace from there perhaps x

[@LipsitaArt]

The leaf painting turned out gorgeous! Thanks for sharing. I recently did one leaves painting. Hope you visit. I would appreciate your reviews. Happy painting.

[@helencampbell]

Hi. Where did you post the painting. I’ll take a look

[@fouzanairfan2934]

Pls do a white and yellow frangipani asap

[@helencampbell]

I’ve a pink frangipani if that’s any good? I’ll post the link now

[@helencampbell]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/e2nLZ5qpodacd7s

[@fouzanairfan2934]

Thank uuuuuuuuuu♥️😊

[@helencampbell]

My pleasure x