How to Paint Realistic Water Drops

Part 1: How to Paint Realistic Water Drops – 1:08:07
Part 2: Final Thoughts and Wrap Up – 02:39

Welcome to How to Paint Realistic Water Drops by Noah Elias. This masterclass will provide you the fast-track skills to create jaw-dropping water drops on your paintings. This technique can be applied whether you use pencils, charcoal, oils or acrylics.

What to expect: When I was painting one of my large floral images it dawned on me that there are artists looking to create just water drops. So, I decided to make a short masterclass on just this subject. This masterclass will reveal my approach to lighting and shadows with just a couple of colors. You will be watching over my shoulder during one of my real-life commissioned paintings.

A word from Noah: I once had a student ask, “How do you paint water?” I had to confess to him that I don’t paint water; I paint what I see in the image. Just shapes and values. After a while, it looks like water.

My friend, If you have been looking to learn tricks and special effects with your painting, you’ve arrived at the right place. In this masterclass, you’ll understand water drops and how to create them out of thin air. (excuse the pun)

*Note: If you are a beginner I would encourage you to first take the “Intro To Airbrushing” course to get your fundamentals down to ensure your confidence when attempting to dive into these water drops. However, you might just want to sit back and watch to gain an understanding of what’s needed to achieve this level of execution.

Pro tip: The key to this technique is to look and match your reference. Matching the lighting patterns and shadows is paramount to the realism of the drops. If you guess and “make up” random water drops you can easily cancel out the believability of your work.