Plein Air Watercolor Easels: Which One Is Right For You?

[@colleenmcchesney1482]

Wow that’s a lot of great easels. I have made my own James Gurney style easel for about a total of $67USD & it weighs a total of 1 lbs . including the light weight tripod. It is about 3 lbs with all my art supplies & tote bag. Thanks 😊 for sharing your wonderful information about your easels & why you love them. I am about due for a new tripod soon so I will definitely be checking out the links for those. Have a great day & enjoy your weekend!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Excellent breakdown Emily. Answered lots of questions I had. Thanks!

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Thanks Steve! I’m gonna try that Etchr bag next!

[@mindofwatercolor]

@@EmilyOlsonArt cool, great bag for traveling when you need to tote a lot of varied supplies! Not great for hikes though. It’s heavy. Will be interested in your thoughts.

[@Blick_Art]

Excellent! As much time as artists spend at the easel, it's so important to get a good one that can make that time productive and enjoyable! While we have enormous respect for anyone who can DIY their easels, there's no shame in selecting one of the amazing designs there are to choose from in portable studio furniture. And, Emily, definitely don't staple your thumb to a board- there are much better ways to suffer for your art!

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

😂😂😂 So far all digits remain intact!

[@Shuvah2Him]

Excellent explanations! And I agree ... you need more than one to fit all needs ... I have built a bunch myself, and keep trying to improve on them ...

[@TheXine98]

Great video - these were the three I narrowed it down to so I was glad to see your review video. I urban sketch a bit as well as watercolor plein air and went with the etsy bamboo one and the tripod you listed. I'm eager to try this out! I pack all my gear in my bicycle pannier and ride to locations to sketch/paint so the lightweight nature of this setup was appealing.

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Glad it was helpful!

[@lenandtannismoody9890]

Great video and now I’m more confused but thank you ❤

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Hah hah! Sorry to confuse you! 🤷‍♀️

[@mrspaulgibson]

Thank you so much. This was an awesome video. I'm about to travel from the US to Bali and want a more portable easel then my traditional French box easel. This was wonderful.

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Glad it was helpful!

[@rachelbuyshouses7261]

The En Plein Pro is my favorite for watercolors. For oils, I user their Panel Holder. For sturdier easel I add the Coulter Box.

[@ronblackburn308]

I recently purchased the DayBreakEasel on line. USA made, light weight and functional for watercolor as a Pike palette will fit on the 9x12 model. Please review. Very reasonable price too.

[@Goldfinch593]

Thank you for the very through and informative comparison of these three easels. I am currently looking for a watercolor plein air set up. I love my En Plein Air oil painting palette and have been using if for about three years. But there is one big problem with the SLIK tripod that comes with it. The plastic latches crack and break! It happened to my first SLIK tripod that came with the set. One of the latches broke so I could not use the tripod. I called the company and they told me that they could not replace it because I had it for more than three months. So, I had to buy a second tripod at full price. And a few months ago, I discovered, after hiking out to the middle of a sunflower field to paint, that one of the latches on the second tripod broke the same way! The same thing happened to my oil painting instructor's En Plein Air tripod. I do not leave it out in my car so it was not affected by severe temperatures. So, I will not buy another replacement of that same tripod. Just sharing this so others can be aware of this problem. I sent a customer support request to En Plein Air a couple weeks ago and have received no response. Very disappointed with them.

[@ChantelleArts]

This is a great comparison and something I might have to get! I currently paint outside on my lap and it's not very comfy ❤

[@GretchenBender-kw2js]

Thank you ! I just purchased the En Plein Air Pro and I love it , I use it indoors too! I have been wondering how it measures up to others , so thank you for sharing your personal experience with these and thank you for your videos , I’m a huge fan ! Blessings from Tri Cities, WA

[@jajakaborge]

Thank you so much for this video! Really appreciate the time and effort this must have taken to film. I’m with you on would rather buy than build! 😅 Def getting the Taylor Seamount!

[@annrainboth3481]

Thanks for the great videos!! My question is do you ever use easels in your studio? What are the advantages and disadvantages of painting on an angle? I notice some artists use a slanted angle all the time and some paint flat. What do you think? Love to see a video on this topic.

[@StClair008]

Thanks for this video--it has been incredibly helpful. I especially appreciate the tip about changing the Plein Aire Pro to a backpack. I was really struggling with that duffle bag. I bought the one you suggested, although I have not had a chance to try it out yet.

[@jessbutterfly1934]

Thank you so much this video was very helpful. I’m in Australia and looking to start painting outside but the different styles that are out there are overwhelming and as a watercolour artist there are some that just sent to not make sense. Now I know why. This will be great to help me create one that I like the best. I have a really good friend who is gonna design one for me.

[@LauraGYoung]

You’re right - different artists will have different needs. I’ve used my En Plein Air Pro watercolor easel for well over 10 years and LOVE it! It’s far more durable than I initially thought it would be, and as someone who likes to work medium to larger sizes, it’s perfect.

[@jixargenal]

Hi Emily! Thank you for your review, always learning from you. Have you hear about the Cup Easels? It looks so functional but not cheap

[@ElisaExplores]

Excellent!

[@nancytipton2640]

A great review of these easels. Thank you so much. I have the Ein Plein Aur Pro (Slik) easel but a different model than yours I think. I really like it. It came with a black backpack (lots of pockets) for carrying everything, including all the watercolor essentials (bug spray, hats, etc. included.) I really like it, however, the paper/canvas holder occasionally gets a bit loose & I have to re-tighten it. Otherwise a great easel for me.😊

[@myrnalandersartist]

Thank you for this! I have a question about umbrellas...I often see plein air painting videos that have an umbrella fastened onto their set up. Anyone try this?

[@madhyahusta8470]

Hi Emily! I have been learning a lot from your videos. Thank you for that. I am not a plein air artist, but I like easels that swivel so I can control the water. Which of the three easels you reviewed swivels the best? I currently own the Daler Rowney rotating table workstation. It swivels in all directions, and it's small enough so I can easily position it on any table. Of course, it is not for plein air artists, but I love it for watercolor.

[@mjpete27]

I gave my travel supplies away when I started a digital workflow. Now that I am back to paper I am working in the studio and have not planned any excursions "Into The Wild" I thought your prices were a bit high, do you have a more budget friendly offering? I have always liked the James Gurney easel maybe I can build one of those if I get the desire to go out. Thank you for sharing your easels with your viewers. Have a Lovely Day

[@PinkCappuccino]

Thanks for the comparaison! It really help. With a family it’s never easy to know if I’ll have time to paint so I prefere to pack light in case I have to carry but not paint. If I have time to paint, it hase to be small to take not too much time. So I have a small palette that can be fixed in a tripod. Magnets to secure a small piece of paper but not a sketchbook. I can draw little postcards only but I can enjoy painting and walking with not too much weight. (I have some shorts on my Chanel if you want to check it out. Lighter than you lightest easel.)

[@cherylk1196]

Thank you for making a video on plein air palette set ups I have been searching for one. What metal cup do you use for water that sticks to magnets? I’ve only found smaller ones with clips.

[@reneechelsawatercolors]

I use an aluminum frame easel (less than $30 with a coupon from michaels) that I attach a waterproofed piece of cardboard to and then lay it flat like a table. I love that it’s very light and not too precious. The downfall of course is that wind can easily knock it over. It hasn’t been an issue too often, however ,so I’ve never felt a need to get anything nicer.

[@debradavisfineart]

I usually paint in oils. The 6x8 is cute but do you have enough room with the palette. Do you still recommend the 6x8 or do you wish you had a larger one, maybe the medium? Thanks,

[@mechadebzilla]

Best easel is the one you will use.

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Agreed!

[@marykrigbaum9021]

So you don't have an adjustable easel? That would accommodate up to 18x24 canvas?

[@EmilyOlsonArt]

Truthfully I’ve never painted outdoors on a paper or panel that large so I’ve never needed that. I do have a wooden adjustable easel in my studio but for plein air I paint no larger than 11x15.

[@chantelmcskimming6633]

Very nice video!! Btw I accidentally bumped the thumbs down button. I hit the thumbs up immediately after.

[@proton9551]

bigger easel means you can paint smaller if you want BUT small easel means you have to buy yet another easel if you want to paint bigger.