Here are fifteen self-critiquing things you can do when you think your finished a painting.

   1.  Why are you painting this scene? What do you want to say?
   2.  Do the shape and size of your canvas help or hinder the overall theme of the painting?
   3.  Is the division of space decisive? Is the scene clearly a landscape, skyscape, or a closeup?
   4.  Is there an organized movement through the painting?
   5.  Have you grouped objects artistically?
   6.  Is there just one focal point?  Is it wll located?
   7.  Is the perspective correct without being mechanically boring?
   8.  Have you created a sense of depth?
   9.  Is the value range consistent with the mood?
 10.  Is the overall relationship of one value to another correct?
 11.  Is the basic light-dark design an interesting abstract pattern?
 12.  Are the negative shapes in the painting varied?
 13.  Is the painting predominately warm or cool?
 14.  Is your brushwork expressive?  Have you used detail appropriately?
 15.  Is the total presentation attractive:

These are terms that we use in the artistic world.
   
      *  Horizontal - restful, calm
      *  Vertical - rigid
      *   Perpendicular - stable
      *  Crossed - static
      *  Crisscrossed - conflicted
      *  Zigzagging - active motion
      *  Diagonal - dramatic action
      *  Radiating - bursting
      *  Curved - meandering
      *  Wavy - flowing
      *  Swirling - inspiring
      *  Arching (concentric) expansive
      *  Wedged - distance, depth
      *  Square /triangle - architectural
      *  Pyramid - stable (unstable)
      *  Cone/Cylinder - solid
      *  Undulating - dramatic rhythm
      *  Circular/Coiled - continuous
      *  Pinwheel-Like - rotating
      *  Spray-like - spontaneous (natural growth)
      *  Convex - formal (natural growth)
      *  Concave - deterioration (manmade)
      *  Sloping - peaceful, gentle
      *  Parallel - mechanical (manmade)
      *  Bent - wilting, tired
      *  Straight - confident
      *  Arching - strong
 

The color wheel is the best way to get familiar with the concepts of color.  Since there's a great range in the hue of many primary colors (compare Cadmium Red Light to Alizarin Crimson) you will get different results from the generic color wheels painted in books.  Use on a color wheel these colors - Grumbacher Red, Cobalt Blue, and Cadmium Yellow Light since they're closest to the spectrum colors.  Then mix equal parts of red with blue, blue with yellow, red with yellow to form purple, green and orange.  The secondary colors, place them between the primaries from which they were mixed.  You can see then that the primary color has a complimentary color that is opposite it on the color wheel.  Color temperature can also be quickly understood by looking at the color wheel.  Basically, all the oranges, yellows, reds and purples are considered warm colors, while the blues, greens, and blue violets are thought of as cool colors.  Thinking about color temperature is a good way to relate the colors to each other.  Green compared to red, cool or warm indicates on which side of the color wheel a particular hue appears. 

But they need to be used carefully so they don't threaten the prominence of the dominate hue.  The color wheel can also guide you in mixing some exciting grays.  Mix pure color with its compliment to get grays.  Mixing equal amounts of a color and its compliment will make a neutral gray but by varying the amounts, all sorts of rich and subtle grays are possible.  Reds grayed with Sap Green, as well as Ultramarine Blue, Cadmium Orange aand white tones in a pleasing rhythmic pattern, and I let the lights and darks flow around the focal point.

Color adds depth, just a line drawing you have no depth.  Good color  harmony can help a poor drawing, the two must work together, a good drawing plus color; one should not overpower the other.  To obtain the illusion of depth is to overlap objects with the scene.  A vertical object placed in front of horizontal objects work wonders on the imagination of the viewer to assist in creating the illusion of depth.  Another way to create depth is to soften lines.  Hard edges catch the eye and seem to come forward in the painting.

These are some interesting techniques that I found for successful landscape paintings.
      1.  Redesign your subject whenever necessary
      2.  Look for the dramatic (striking-standout appearance) possibilities of an unusual vantage point
      3.  Include only one center of interest in a painting
      4.  Understand and apply the rules of perspective
      5.  Prevent the viewer's eye from leaving the picture
      6.  Guide the viewer's eye into the painting with directional lines
      7.  When in doubt, simplify your design
      8.  Vary your solution to the same subject
      9.  Occasionally tell a story in your painting
    10.  Simplify areas to accentuate detail
    11.  To bring a painting to life, include a figure
    12.  Choose the best lighting for the subject
    13.  Play lights against darks, not color against color
    14.  Group lights and darks to avoid a spotty painting
    15.  Limit the amount of light in some paintings
    16.  Make the focal point a tonal climax
    17.  Emphasize the dark shadow sides of white buildings
    18.  Utilize the decorative cast shadows of trees
    19.  Make shadow directions consistent
    20.  Paint luminous shadows
    21.  Paint the foreground in shadow for a dramatic lighting
    22.  Dramatize a composition by adding cloud shadows
    23.  Emphasize the foreground by placing the background in cloud shadows
    24.  Achieve tonal harmony by departing from the literal (as written)
    25.  Perceive the colors in white snow
    26.  Achieve harmonous color through restraint
    27.  Create atmospheric distance by the use of color
    28.  Introduce warm colors into a summer painting
    29.  Paint moonlights with more colors than blue
    30.  Observe more colors in water than blue
    31.  Paint cool shadows to make sunshine sparkle
    32.  Perceive the colors in white clouds (to become aware of)
    33.  Make patterns of sunlight on buildings, paint toward the sun
    34.  Exploit (use) wind ripples on water
    35.  Darken the adjacent sky to dramatize a light object
    36.  Choose back lighting for dramatic effects
    37.  Design roads in an interesting way
    38.  Pace horizon above or below the middle of the picture
    39.  Diminish (make smaller) sizes to create greater depth
    40.  Diminish values for a feeling of distance
    41.  Create depth by strengthening foreground detail
    42.  Maintain distance spatial (space) planes
    43.  Try placing the focal point in the distance
    44.  Keep distance water below eye level
    45.  Make tree shapes varied and  interesting
    46.  Relate tree trunks and branches to the whole tree
    47.  Keep the sky lighter on the side of the source of light
    48.  Make skies interesting without competing with the landscape  
    49.  Paint a more dramatic sky than the one actually there
    50.  Vary cloud shapes for a better design


    

You should have a strong center of interest, or focal point.  This is the element to which all other elements will direct the viewer.  You may have secondary elements, but attempt to have just one center of interest.  Use the other features in your painting, sky, trees, flowers, to lead and keep the viewer coming back to the focal point.  Doing this will also create a sense of depth and space  in your painting.

Technically, there are two kinds of balance in a composition.  Symmetrical balance (also referred to as  "formal"), and asymmetrical balance (also called "informal balance").  Symmetrical balance produces paintings that are restful, calming, and visually stable.  Asymmetrical balance is characterized by arranging related or unrelated objects of differing visual weights counterbalancing one another.  This can heighten interest, bring informalality, or even produce tension in a painting.  While both ways are correct, yet each offers different advantages and purposes. 

These are keys to paint successfully in any medium and no matter what subject you want to paint.  These are a good set of rules to go by when you want to have a successful painting.

      1.  One center of interest in a painting
      2.  Perspective
      3.  Prevent the viewer's eye from leaving the picture
      4.  Guide the viewer's eye into the painting with directional lines
      5.  When in doubt simplify your design
      6.  Simplify areas to accentuate detail
      7.  Choose the best lighting for the subject
      8.  Relay lights against darks, color against color
      9.  Group lights and darks to avoid a spotty painting
    10.  Make the focal point a tonal climax
    11.  Use the decorative cast shadows of trees
    12.  Make shadow directions consistent
    13.  Paint luminous shadows
    14.  Paint the foreground in shadow, for dramatic lighting
    15.  Create atmospheric distance by use of color
    16.  Paint cool shadows to make sunshine sparkle
    17.  Place  horizon line above or below the middle of the picture
    18.  Make sizes smaller in background to create depth
    19.  Create depth by strengthening foreground detail
    20.  Make tree shapes varied and interesting
    21.  Keep sky lighter on the side of source of light
    22.  Vary cloud shapes for better design

These are a list of the toughest painting problems in any medium that you use.

      1.  Keeping Perspective
      2.  Making Space
      3.  Holding the viewer's eye
      4.  Focusing the eye
      5.  Nailing the design
      6.  Illuminating the lights
      7.  Avoiding a spotty look
      8.  Value of light
      9.  Shaping the values
    10.  Seeing color
   11.  Reflection on water

These are principles of design for oil painting or used for other mediums as well.

      1.  Focus/Impact area?
      2.  Do  my paintiings have a  mood/feeling?
      3.  Creativity?
      4.  Composition/Design/Interesting shapes, both positive  and negative?
      5.  Shape sizes?
      6.  Is the picture  elements arranged in a dominate design scheme?
      7.  Rectangular/diagonal?  Geometric forms?
      8.  Do they work together ?  Does the design work with or against the subject?
      9.  Does it attract attetion to itself?  Is it a balanced composition?

These are oil or acrylic painting terms and techniques.

      1.  Dry Brush - A brush filled mostly with paint and very little medium or water.
      2.  Double Loading - Placing two separate colors on your brush at the same time.  You do NOT mix these together on the pallete and then put them on your brush.  They are separate blobs of paint on each edge of your brush.  You apply these to the canvas at the same time using dabbing or streaking motions depending on the desired effect.
      3.  Triple Loading - Placing three separate colors on your brush at the same time.  These separate blobs of paint, applied to separte spots on the ends of the bristles.
      4.  Feather Stroke - A very light, blending stroke used to create soft edges.
      5.  Glazing - Thin transparent washes of colors layered on top of each other to create highlights and/or to subdue (tone down) the color in an area.  This technique is especially useful to create water reflections.
      6.  Inky -  A thin, flowing mixture of color that you achieve by adding water (for acrylic) or medium (for oils) to the color while it's on your palette.
      7.  Negative Space -  The space around an object that helps give it interesting form.  Negative space should be well organized to create good eye flow.
      8.  Position of Brush - A vertical or horizontal brush position refers to the position of the ends of its bristles.  When a brush is held horizontally, the end of the brush will lie parallel to the top or bottom of the canvas.  Held vertically, the end of the brush will lie parallel to the sides of the canvas.
      9.  Underpainting - Blocking in an area with a single color.  This is always done before you add details or highlights.
   10.  Value - The intensity (lightness or darkness) of a color.  For example, to create a light value to show distance, add white to your color.  The less white you add, the darker and more intense your color values will be.  Your painting usually will be lighter and less intense in value as it recedes into the distance.

 

I use Winsor & Newton as well as Grumbacher oil paints and recently have been using Gamblin.  I have used in the early years of my painting less expensive tubes of paint and the difference in the higher quality of paint does make a difference. 

I have used a few small sample tubes of Schmincke oil paint which was purchased by my daughter at a yard sale. I have used Permalba oil paints but I still like to go back to the Winsor & Newton or the Grumbacher paints and Gamblin.  The Permalba has a creamy texture and has a lot of linseed oil in the paint.