For a view of my painting approach, also see my video 'Amsterdam Crossing' on Youtube by clicking here

Here is an example of a small value/design study I did using sharpie marker and 6B graphite pencil.  It is a scene of a Paris street I shot in summer 2012.  I was taught by Frank Webb and others to do these little studies for every subject, to help work out the major shapes and values, before attempting a painting.   Design is a good thing in art, and often heads off major problems that one may encounter when diving right into a painting.

---

Above is a value study done in gray marker, of an Amsterdam scene. It was a rainy day and two figures were walking down this alley toward me. The marker gives more defined value differences compared with a pencil sketch.

Here is a pencil value sketch of Ellicott City, Maryland done during their plein air painting event in July 2014.