The Landscape Painter's Workbook: Essential Studies in Shape, Composition, and Color (6) (For Artists)

This took a long time coming on pre-order but the wait was more than worth it. The book itself is beautiful with many lovely examples that illustrate the teaching perfectly. Some have suggested that it would be more suited to intermediate or advanced painters. I would beg to differ and having now read the book completely feel that it would not only help form a solid foundational framework of ideas and concepts for beginners but would also be helpful to all landscape artists whether working in wet or dry media. Even much of the colour related teaching could be translated to other media such as pastels and coloured pencils. As the author indicates from the outset this book is intended to have a much broader focus than his first one on oil painting (which I haven't read). There were a lot of "aha" moments for me reading this book but I agree with the author that greatest progress will come through making the time and effort to complete the exercises (which are more enjoyable than onerous). I would also add that while some may not like the non- glossy pages for those who prefer to make notes and marks on the pages of their book, the paper used is perfect for that. I suppose it is a workbook after all. This will undoubtedly be a well thumbed reference book for years to come.

Excellent book that even an experienced painter would find useful! My mother in law couldn't have been more pleased with it and gained lots of hints and tricks from this books. She is an excellent artist and very hard to buy for! She has since bought this book for her friends so it must be good!

I work mainly in watercolour and I have found this book very helpful on the subject of composition, especially on shape interpretation and NOTAN. Liberal NOTAN is a new concept to me and will definitely help me apply NOTAN successfully as a design aid, which I have previously struggled with. I haven't worked through the section on Colour Strategies but it looks like it will enhance my practice in this area. I was surprised however that a capable practioner and teacher like the author would categorise Ultramarine Blue as a cool blue and Phthalo, Cerulean, Manganese, and Teal as warm blues. This is repeated on pages 149, 158, 159, 160 and 161, so doesn't seem to be an editorial or proof reader introduced error. This doesn't seem to be a prevalent view among other artists.

Beautiful book , with nice illustrations and instruction throughout. As an a hobbyist artist Im always looking for inspiration and understandable instruction and this book delivers both . The cover picture initially attracted me to read the reviews as i like the particular style and palette he uses . The book is a softback and has nice very clear images printed on good quality paper , I definitely would recommend this book Mitch is an excellent tutor.

Excellent book so well written and full of knowledge that everybody should know about can’t wait for her next book🏆🥇

Excellent guide and very insightful.

I really loved this book. It looks like a coffee table book in terms of beauty but it's full of useful information on composition and colour that is just as helpful for (amateur) photographers such as myself as it must be for budding painters. Mitchell Albala is an accessible writer too and so the whole thing makes sense. while being an easy read. This all isn't too surprising because painters are about over a thousand years ahead of photographers in terms of studying what works in landscapes. So I plan on absorbing all the knowledge and then running to my camera to click away productively to my heart's content. So I now have lots of ideas on how to improve my photos using linear perspective, variation and movement while not making a blunder when changing my colours around in Photoshop. What Mitchell Albala calls "limited focus and the picture window" the photographers amongst us would call "cropping". Best of all I now have lots of ideas on how to make bland skies interesting without resorted to massively increasing the contrast on the clouds - a Lightroom/Photoshop trick that isn't often convincing. I also thoroughly recommend Mitchell Albala's other book - Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice. (I bought it with some book tokens and so couldn't use Amazon or leave an Amazon review for it.) Landscape Painting is a bit more detailed but equally fantastic for photographers. I would give that five stars too.

Great for the beginner

Content is excellent. Explanations clear, logical, exercises helpful. Would highly recommend for beginners, intermediates and all art teachers. Only disappointment was the quality of the paper used in the book. It is like printer paper and so the images are not as crisp as they could be. Do hope in future editions, glossy paper will be used. I'm sure this book will become a classic!

bastante completo, incluye varios ejercicios para practicar lo aprendido, explicaciones claras y texto conciso.

This is an exceptional workbook for any landscape artist. I've been working my way through it for a few months and am incredibly impressed with the quality and content. The book is beautifully constructed with wonderful illustrations, including both helpful instructional diagrams and stunning examples from master artists. The author has created ten useful exercises that offer practical, detailed guidance on key concepts like the harmony of neutrals, picture formats, and movement. What truly sets this book apart is the author's extensive knowledge from years of leading workshops. They share invaluable insights on how to problem-solve your paintings and, crucially, how to identify what to look for in a subject. This wisdom can take your work to the next level. Usually, I'm happy to get one or two useful things from an art book, but this one is packed with substantive lessons I'm excited to incorporate into my own practice. A huge thank you to the author for creating such a valuable resource for fellow artists.

This is a must read book for any artist, especially for landscape artists. Easy to read, great examples, and good exercise.

There are dozens of books about landscape painting . As a longtime teacher and practitioner of this art, I own nearly all of them. Most are so similar in approach and content that buying one would be sufficient for most of us. To broaden the market, such books all tend to assume that readers know little about the subject and therefore attempt to cover everything from choosing brushes and color to creating finished masterpieces. Mitchell Albala’s first book, Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plain Air and Studio Practice, now a classic of the genre, covers this same terrain, but also provides excellent, detailed guidance on as composition, simplifying nature, abstracting the landscape, and working with light and color. Albala’s recent book, The Landscape Painter’s Workbook: Essential Studies in Shape, Composition, and Color, provides practical instruction for applying these fundamental topics to one’s own work, through concise discussions, abundant illustrations, and excellent hands-on exercises. In other words, this is a true workbook. Beginning students could advance rapidly simply by applying themselves to the exercises. Experienced artists such as myself can draw upon Albala’s presentation and exercises to sharpen and refine our own presentation in classes and workshops. But it is serious intermediate artists, who already know but have not mastered the basics, who can benefit most from this workbook. It addresses their most troubling artistic problems and provides a way out of the confusion and frustration that plagues the struggling painter. Beyond that, Albala’s new book encourages and inspires all readers to step our of our comfort zones and try strategies in composition, value, and color that perhaps could lead our work in new, inspired directions.