Creating a stunning landscape painting involves more than just picking up a brush and starting to paint. Thoughtful planning can make a huge difference in the final result. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you plan your perfect landscape painting.

1. Try Different Crops Before Deciding on a Composition

Experimenting with different crops of your chosen scene or reference photo can help you find the most dynamic composition.

Crop on Your Phone: Use your phone’s camera to take photos of the scene and try different aspect ratios and crops. Use ruler lines to determine what you want to be the center of your painting. This helps you visualize the balance and focal points, ensuring you pick the most engaging layout.

Sketch Multiple Thumbnails: If you don’t have a phone, you can achieve the same effect with a pencil. Draw small, quick sketches of different compositions. This lets you experiment with line strength and styles at the same time.

2. Do a Value Study

Understanding the light and dark areas in your composition is important for making your painting look three-dimensional. Do a quick study of your chosen scene using only shades of gray. This helps you focus on the contrast without being distracted by color. It is something you can always reference back to when you start painting.

3. Choose Your Colors, Then Make a Color Thumbnail

Limited palette: Select complementary colors and create swatches to visualize how they work together. Limit your palette to a few harmonious colors to ensure cohesion in your painting. By doing so, you’ll anticipate all possible color combinations and avoid unexpected outcomes.

Make a Color Thumbnail: A color thumbnail is a small, rough version of your final painting that helps you plan the overall color scheme. You can choose to paint as detailed or as loosely as you like. Simply fill in the main colors of your composition using your swatches as a guide. This helps you see if your colors work well together before committing to the full piece.

In the artwork below, I decided to reduce the amount of blue in the painting because it took away from the intended concept. Although it doesn’t look bad, it didn’t quite fit with the aesthetic I had in mind for this particular piece.

Final Thoughts

Planning your landscape painting with these steps will set you up for success. Experimenting with different crops helps you find the perfect composition, a value scale ensures strong contrast, swatching colors prevents surprises, and a color thumbnail provides a clear roadmap. With careful planning, you’ll capture the beauty of the landscape on your canvas, creating a piece that’s both beautiful and well-crafted. Happy painting!