The Practical guide to oil painting techniques and materials

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Do you consider starting oil painting but you don’t know exactly where to start ?

Do you ever feel that you lack the knowledge to use oil paint with confidence ?

Do you ever fear that what you do or what you use might cause issues on your painting ?

AN ALL-INCLUSIVE VIDEO GUIDE FOCUSED ON TECHNIQUE

The Practical guide to oil painting techniques and materials is a 6HR video guide focused on techniques and materials. It covers all the various practical issues oil painters have to face from the preparation of the surface to varnishing. Portrait, Still Life, Landscape, whatever you might want to paint is covered in the course!

Unlike many painting videos, this program doesn’t just present one way of painting but reviews a wide variety of different options so that you can come up with your own painting process and make the best out of the content of this video. It will guide you through all the basic and advanced know-how every painter has to know.

Price : Starting at 59.90 € (excluding tax)

COMPLEX KNOWLEDGE MADE CLEAR AND CONCISE

This program is conceived to explain the reasons behind things in a clear and simple way. Florent is great at making complicated things sound simple. You may have come upon Florent’s unique way of explaining oil painting techniques in one of his YouTube videos. In this program, he makes his knowledge available in a very comprehensive way.

This 6 hours downloadable video is packed with information, each topic is fully illustrated, making it clear and easy to follow for every skill level.

“I watched hours of tutorials on websites and I never managed to gather as much information as in your guide. For me it was a dream to paint with oil for a long time and thanks to you, I just started.”

Christelle

“I owe you a lot ! I wanted to start oil painting again, but didn’t feel confident.”

Nicola

“Thanks for the effort to provide clear concise instruction. So much better than the “do as I do” method that a lot of others present. Blessings.”

Clod

3rd Edition – last update : May 2021

The Practical Guide is a program designed to evolve. There’s already been three major updates to the course.

Every time, the update is free for all the previous customers, it always will be. It might seem that the world of oil painting is the same as always but there’s actually more innovations than one might think, especially with the development of solvent-free alternatives and water mixable products. Florent is always looking for new products and innovations to add to the course. Likewise, Florent welcomes feedback and suggestions from students and works on making the course clearer and more practical.

New in the third edition :

+1 hour of new content has been added in the third edition, based on feedback from the community, making it go from 5hr to 6hr.

WHAT YOU WILL FIND IN THIS PROGRAM

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THE PRACTICAL GUIDE

The main part of the course is the Practical Guide : with simple and clear explanations, Florent guides you through all the technical and practical knowledge oil painters need to know. Conceived like a book, this video guide is divided in various chapters that will help you navigate through the different segments of the program.

This program is very intensive because it contains a lot of information, it is not intended to just be watched once, it is designed so that you can go back to it whenever you need, just like a practical guide.

The Practical Guide is divided in 5 videos:

The first video covers general things about the material and the studio set-up : easel, palette, lighting, palette knife etc. as well as important teachings on safety. You’ll also find a plein air section, a section dedicated to small studio spaces and a “starter kit” for complete beginners who want to have a quick and easy start.

The second video focuses on the surface, a fundamental but  sadly often forgotten part of painting. In this video, you’ll learn how to prepare all types of surfaces, what sizing and priming mean, how to transfer a drawing, how oil paint dries and how to fix potential issues with the surface.

The third video of the course is all about paint and color. This part covers all types of oil paint, including water mixable oil paint and alkyd based oil paint. You’ll learn about pigments and their properties : drying time, tinting strength and opacity. And of course, you’ll learn about color theory and color mixing and how to create the color that you need for your painting.

For many beginners, mediums and additives are the most puzzling part of painting. In this section, you’ll understand everything there is to know about them : drying oils, solvents, resins, dryers, impasto medium, cold wax etc. You’ll learn about the “fat over lean” rule and how to make a medium to achieve the effect that you desire. More than 12 formulas are presented, providing a wide variety of options for all painting styles. Of course, this video finishes with the “Non-Toxic Studio” a complete overview of the safe alternatives to turpentine and mineral spirits and detailed instructions to paint solvent free!

The fifth and last video of the Practical Guide covers brushes and brushwork. All the tools and how to use them. You’ll learn everything there is to know about brushes so that you always know which one to choose: size, shape, type of bristles etc. You’ll also learn about how to apply the paint with your brush: dry-brush, glazing, impasto, stippling, wet on wet, wet on dry etc.

THE PORTRAIT PAINTING DEMONSTRATION (3rd Edition)

What good is theory if you don’t know how it applies to an actual painting situation ? The point of this portrait demonstration is to illustrate as many techniques as possible and present an effective painting process that will allow painters from all skill levels to improve significantly.

The process is based on the indirect approach to painting, which implies painting with multiple layers, starting with an underpainting, a first painting and a second painting. This classical approach is great for experienced artists as well as beginners. It allows careful planning and makes correcting mistakes easy.


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NOTICE :  The price tag doesn’t include VAT. Gumroad processes all transactions in USD. Customers outside of the US may be subject to an additional fee for international purchases, depending on the policies of their credit card company. 

EXTENDED VERSION INCLUDING A STILL LIFE PAINTING “ALLA PRIMA”

If you want more content, you can buy a the extended version of the course.

This still life demonstration is intended to show you a completely different approach than the one presented in the first demonstration. Contrary to the portrait demonstration, which is following the indirect approach : this still-life is done “alla prima” or au premier coup, which means that the complete project is completed in one layer, wet on wet.

This painting demonstration will allow you to see the techniques at work on a classical still life painting for two extra hours. It’s a way to expand the field of possibilities.

To purchase the extended version, just select it as an option before checking out on gumroad ! Nothing is easier…

As you select “I want this” on gumroad, a tab will ask you to choose an option : you can choose the main option with the portrait demonstration or get the extended version with both the portrait and the figure painting demonstration.

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Also available as a stand alone video, here.

PLEIN AIR LANDSCAPE DEMONSTRATION

NEW IN THE 3RD EDITION

2HR Oil Painting Course about Plein Air Landscape Techniques

In this third demonstration, Florent takes you in the footsteps of French Realist painter Gustave Courbet in the breathtaking landscapes of the Jura Mountains.

Not only a follow my steps kind of program, as usual : Florent reviews many options for plein air, easels, pochade box, and all the accessories that will make your excursions successful !

Also available as a stand alone video, here :

Copy/Paste the link below in your URL bar if the links don’t work

https://gum.co/AfAmG

CHOOSE AN OPTION

The course is flexible, pick and choose the option that works for you.

  • Main Program (6 hours) : Practical guide + portrait demonstration
  • Extended version 1 (8 hours) : Practical guide + portrait demonstration + Still-life “Alla Prima” demonstration
  • Extended version 2 (8 hours) : Practical guide + portrait demonstration + Landscape Plein Air demonstration
  • Super Extended version (10 hours) : Practical guide + portrait + still life + landscape

Buy now

If the links don’t work, copy/paste the following link in your URL bar :

https://gum.co/practicalguidetooilpainting

NOTICE :  The price tag doesn’t include VAT. Gumroad processes all transactions in USD. Customers outside of the US may be subject to an additional fee for international purchases, depending on the policies of their credit card company. 

INFORMATION ABOUT THE DOWNLOADABLE VIDEOS

This program is only available as a downloadable mp4 file. No DVD version. The course can be watched on Ipad, Iphones and tablets with the Gumroad App, but most smartphones don’t have enough disk space to allow the videos to be downloaded.

It is recommended to download the course on your computer.

  • Format (container) : mp4
  • Codec : H.264
  • Chapters available
  • Language : English (spoken)
  • English subtitles (except for the demonstrations)

The mp4 format is compatible with all media players on modern computers, tablets and cell phones. The codec used is H.264, which is also a standard for modern HD videos. If you can’t read the videos on your computer, you can download the VLC media player by following this link : Download VLC media player

For practical reasons, this 5 hours program is divided into six videos :

  • Video 1 – duration 45:09 (HD 1080p) – 574 Mo
  • Video 2  – duration 48:46 (HD 1080p) – 652 Mo
  • Video 3 – duration 44:04 (HD 1080p) – 512 Mo
  • Video 4 – duration 01:07:31 (HD 1080p) – 690 Mo
  • Video 5 – duration 49:23 (HD 1080p) – 609 Mo
  • Video 6 – duration 02:10:53 (HD 1080p) – 941 Mo

Space required for the main program : 3.97 Go

  • Still Life Video – duration 02:06:23 (HD 1080p) – 1.1 Go
  • Landscape Video – duration 01:57:17 (HD 1080p) – 1.04 Go

Total space required : 6.08 Go

FAQ

  • Y a-t-il une version française ? (Is there a french version ?)

Oui, un version française est disponible, seulement pour la seconde edition :  Cliquez ici

  • Is there going to be a DVD ?

No, there won’t be any DVD version of this program. This reduces cost and makes the entire program more affordable than it would be if the production and shipping costs of physical copies had to be included.

  • Is it ok to burn this program on a DVD to watch it on a DVD player ?

For private use only, you are allowed to burn this program on a DVD as long as you own a legal copy of the original video. However, you are not allowed to reproduce it, share it or sell it.

  • Can I play the videos on a tablet or a smart phone ?

You can either download the files on your computer first and transfer them on your phone or tablet by using the built-in system of your device.

The videos can be streamed and watched on any device, simply using the links provided after purchase.

The other solution to enjoy this content on your mobile device is to use the Gumroad Library App and access your videos from the app. More info about the app here : Gumroad library app

  • Are there subtitles ?

All the videos of the main program have subtitles, the demonstrations are not subtitled. To turn the subtitles on, in VLC, go to > Video > Subtitles track > Track 1 or Track 2.

TROUBLE ACCESSING THE COURSE ?

Read me – FAQ Practical guide to Oil Painting