Paint Colorful Autumn Leaves (Easy Watercolor Tutorial)

Learn how to paint colorful autumn leaves in this easy watercolor tutorial. In this simple online art class find out how to create three different types of leaves and the best way to color them

Painting fall leaves is fun for everyone, from kids to adults. Autumn leaf painting is great practice for beginners and those with more art experience.

A watercolor painting of three colorful autumn leaves next to a paint palette.

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Materials
How to Paint Autumn Leaves Video Tutorial
Transcript
Art Lesson
Tips and tricks
For More Practice
Frequently Asked Questions
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Learn an easy trick for sketching a leaf on your paper and how to paint it. In this quick online video art class, practice the skill of painting simple autumn leaves with easy-to-follow instructions

When the leaves change color and start falling from the trees it is time to get in the fall spirit. Painting nature and what we see is a great way to celebrate autumn and the changing seasons.

Painting leaves can be challenging so keep practicing and have fun with the creative process.

Materials

Watercolor paper - I am using Strathmore Vision cold press watercolor paper, 140 lb., cut down to 6 by 9 inches
Watercolor paint - tube watercolor paint on a pallet or a box kit of watercolor paints. You can use whatever colors that you have on hand, these are the colors that I use:
- Cadmium Yellow
- Cadmium Red Light
- Ultramarine Blue
- Alizarin Crimson
- Yellow Ocher
- Burnt Sienna
- Burnt Umber
- Black
Paint brushes - I am using a #8 round brush.
Water
Paper towels

How to Paint Autumn Leaves Video Tutorial

Transcript

Read Transcript

Hi everyone. Let’s have some fun painting colorful fall leaves!

Start by either sketching out your leaf or you can just set your leaf right down on the paper and trace around it. I love this trick it makes it so easy.

Trace one side of the stem and then trace [draw] in the other side by hand, otherwise it can end up a little bit too thick.

Start by painting the lightest color. I'm just going in with yellow and going to leave a white spot for a highlight, that is light reflecting off of the leaf.

I've mixed together a little bit of blue and yellow for a nice bright green color and just going to add it in into a few spots on the leaf

Going right over the top of the yellow are areas and that's going to give us some nice blending, a nice combination of colors.

Once I've added in my green I'm going to rinse out my paintbrush and then, and then just blend together the transitions, where the green meets the yellow, just a little bit. To soften the edges. I don't want to blend the colors together completely, just soften the edges. Now I'm using red and I'm adding in just a few little dabs of red here and there.

Make sure to keep your strokes nice and loose.

And then I will go back in with a damp paintbrush, clean damp paintbrush, and then just soften where those edges are meeting. If I work quickly and work while the yellow paint is still a little bit damp then when it dries it will get some nice blending. The colors will just blend together very nicely and smoothly. All right moving right into this maple leaf. Filling it all in with yellow and again leaving a few areas of white for reflection.

I'm going to add in a few dabs of red.

Fall leaves are actually one of my favorite things to paint. They're so much fun, I just love all the colors that they have.

So I can even pick up some of the pigment that I already have down on the paper and move it to another area.

Now as you're working it's really great to sit up straight and then keep your shoulders down and back. Then keep your arms relaxed and keep your neck relaxed as well. That helps you not get so fatigued as you're painting.

So just building up these layers of color little by little, take your time with it. And I can always rinse out my paintbrush and then just soften the transition soften the edges where the, the colors are meeting. Now I'm adding in a crimson. I just really love this color as well it's so nice and just really pops on this fall leaf. Just in a few areas because I still want that yellow coming through.

And soften the edges just a little bit. And lastly our oak leaf. Fill it all in with yellow leaving a little area of highlight.

Now that is yellow ochre, just add in a few dabs of yellow ochre in a few areas.

And some burnt sienna. I'm just getting a range of all these really nice warm colors into this oak leaf.

And a little bit of burnt umber, this dark brown just really adds a little bit more dimension to this leaf. So great! Then, again, I can clean out my paintbrush and kind of soften the edges where the colors are meeting together.

It can also help to look at a real leaf while you're painting these so you can get an idea of where you want the color to be, or you can just follow along with me as I paint.

Now I'm going to add a shadow to the side of the

leaves. Just using a black, water it down just a little bit so it's not too dark.

I'm going to add this to the right side of the leaf and the bottom side but not, not both sides just one one side, to make it look like a real shadow.

And then I rinse out my brush and then soften the edge on the right hand side where the shadow is, is blend it out just a little bit.

All right, and rinse out my paintbrush, use a damp paintbrush just to blend out the edge, get a nice soft edge on it.

I'm going to add in a few little hints of veins running through the leaves. I don't want to overdo it but just add a few in.

I'm using the dark brown, the burnt umber to add these veins in.

You could experiment with different colors and see what works best. If you're actually looking at real leaves you can look at them, they often times have different colored veins depending on the different type of leaf. So it is kind of interesting.

And just add a little bit more color to the stem.

This leaf is still a little bit wet, but I'm just going to go ahead and add in the veins anyway just so you can see, see what they'll look like. But ideally, this would be a little bit drier when I'm adding in my veins.

And adding the shadow to this last leaf.

Rinse out my paintbrush and then soften the edges of these shadows.

Now looking at this, my leaf on the far left is a little bit dark in the shadows so I'm going to actually just go back in and lift off a little bit of that pigment that I have in there. So that the shadows on all the leaves can all be similar.

All right just softening up those edges and then lifting off a a little bit of that pigment with a clean paint brush. And that's it. I hope you had fun painting full leaves along with me. We'll see you next time.

Art Lesson

Sketch the leaves
- Sketch in your leaves by looking at them or placing them on the paper and tracing around the outside. Only trace one side of the stem and then draw in the other side by hand or it will be too thick.
- Paint using the lightest colors first and then move on to the darker colors. Paint one leaf at a time, work quickly while the first layer of paint is still damp.

A leaf on paper with pencil tracing around it next to a cup of water and fall leaves. — Trace or sketch leaves

The beginnings of a watercolor painting of fall leaves net to autumn leaves and a cup of water. — Paint leaf yellow, leaving a white spot

Paint the first leaf.
- Fill in most of the leaf with light yellow paint. Leave a small area white where light is shining on it.
- Mix yellow and blue paint to make bright green. Add the green paint to several areas of the leaf, painting over the top of the yellow tone. Make sure to leave plenty of yellow showing.
- Rinse out the paintbrush and dry the excess on a rag or paper towel. With the clean damp brush soften the edges of the green paint where it meets the yellow.
- Make sure not to over-blend the colors, just soften the edges a little bit.
- Daub on a few areas of red and then soften the edges with a clean damp brush.

An artist painting an autumn leaf in yellow and green watercolor paint. — Daub in green paint

An artist painting an autumn leaf in yellow, green, and red watercolor paint. — Add a little bit of red paint

Paint the second leaf.
- Paint the leaf with yellow paint, leaving several small white areas.
- Add a few areas of red paint to the maple leaf, concentrating mostly on the outside edges of the leaf.
- Then use crimson paint to add more bright color to the leaf in a few areas.
- Clean the paintbrush and soften the edges of the different colors where they meet.

An artist painting an autumn maple leaf in yellow and red watercolor paint. — Paint leaf yellow, add some red

A watercolor painting of two colorful fall leaves. — Paint some crimson around edges

Paint the third leaf.
- Fill in the last leaf with yellow paint except for a small white reflection area.
- Use yellow ocher to begin adding the layers of color. Follow this by adding daubs of burn Sienna and finally burnt umber.
- Where the colors join, gently soften the edges using a clean, damp paintbrush.

An artist painting an autumn oak leaf in yellow, ocher, and brown watercolor paint. — Paint the leaf yellow, add yellow ocher

Paint spots of burnt sienna and burnt umber

Add the veins.
- Paint in a few veins in each leaf after they are slightly dry. Damp paper is ok but make sure there is no paint sitting on top of the surface.
- Using watered-down dark brown paint, push very lightly with the brush to just paint with the tip. Do not add too many veins, just a few lines give a nice impression.
- Twist the paintbrush slightly as you paint to create an irregular, organic-looking line. Do not add veins in the white reflected areas.

An artist painting the veins in on an autumn leaf. — Paint a few vein lines

An artist painting shadows on the side of a colorful autumn leaf in watercolor paint. — Paint and soften the edge of the shadow

Paint the shadows.
- Adding shadows is optional but I love the look of the shadow and it grounds the leaf within the space of the page.
- Add black paint to the right and bottom areas of the leaves. Rinse out the paintbrush and then blend the paint away from the leaf. Soften the edge of the shadow by gently painting over it again with a damp brush.
When it is dry, erase any pencil lines that show through.

Tips and tricks

Trace around the outside of the leaf for a quick sketch. Only trace one side of the stem and then draw in the other side by hand or it will be too thick.
Paint the lightest colors first then move on to the darker colors.
Paint one leaf at a time and work quickly while the first layer of paint is still damp.
Make sure not to over-blend the different colors as you add them. Just soften the edges a little bit where they meet.

A watercolor painting of three colorful fall leaves next to a paintbrush, paint palette, and leaves.

Paint Colorful Autumn leaves (Easy Watercolor Tutorial)

Learn how to paint colorful autumn leaves in this easy watercolor tutorial. In this simple online art class find out how to create three different types of leaves and the best way to color them.

Painting fall leaves is fun for everyone, from kids to adults. Autumn leaf painting is great practice for beginners and those with more art experience.

Equipment

Watercolor paper I am using Strathmore Vision cold press watercolor paper, 140 lb., cut down to 6 by 9 inches
Watercolor paint - tube watercolor paint on a pallet or a box kit of watercolor paints. You can use whatever colors that you have on hand, these are the colors that I use: Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Red Light, Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Yellow Ocher, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, Black
Paint brushes - I am using a #8 round brush.
Water
Paper towels

Instructions

Sketch in the leaves

Sketch in your leaves by looking at them or placing them on the paper and tracing around the outside. Only trace one side of the stem and then draw in the other side by hand or it will be too thick.
Paint using the lightest colors first and then move on to the darker colors. Paint one leaf at a time, work quickly while the first layer of paint is still damp.

Paint the first leaf

Fill in most of the leaf with light yellow paint. Leave a small area white where light is shining on it.
Mix yellow and blue paint to make bright green. Add the green paint to several areas of the leaf, painting over the top of the yellow tone. Make sure to leave plenty of yellow showing.
Rinse out the paintbrush and dry the excess on a rag or paper towel. With the clean damp brush soften the edges of the green paint where it meets the yellow.
Make sure not to over-blend the colors, just soften the edges a little bit.
Daub on a few areas of red and then soften the edges with a clean damp brush.

Paint the second leaf

Paint the leaf with yellow paint, leaving several small white areas.
Add a few areas of red paint to the maple leaf, concentrating mostly on the outside edges of the leaf.
Then use crimson paint to add more bright color to the leaf in a few areas.
Clean the paintbrush and soften the edges of the different colors where they meet.

Paint the third leaf

Fill in the last leaf with yellow paint except for a small white reflection area.
Use yellow ocher to begin adding the layers of color. Follow this by adding daubs of burn Sienna and finally burnt umber.
Where the colors join, gently soften the edges using a clean, damp paintbrush.

Add the veins

Paint in a few veins in each leaf after they are slightly dry. Damp paper is ok but make sure there is no paint sitting on top of the surface.
Using watered-down dark brown paint, push very lightly with the brush to just paint with the tip. Do not add too many veins, just a few lines give a nice impression.
Twist the paintbrush slightly as you paint to create an irregular, organic-looking line. Do not add veins in the white reflected areas.

Paint the shadows

Adding shadows is optional but I love the look of the shadow and it grounds the leaf within the space of the page.
Add black paint to the right and bottom areas of the leaves. Rinse out the paintbrush and then blend the paint away from the leaf. Soften the edge of the shadow by gently painting over it again with a damp brush.
When it is dry, erase any pencil lines that show through.

Notes

Trace around the outside of the leaf for a quick sketch. Only trace one side of the stem and then draw in the other side by hand or it will be too thick.
Paint the lightest colors first then move on to the darker colors.
Paint one leaf at a time and work quickly while the first layer of paint is still damp.
Make sure not to over-blend the different colors as you add them. Just soften the edges a little bit where they meet.

A watercolor painting of three colorful fall leaves next to a paintbrush and leaves.

For More Practice

Collect some fall leaves, sketch them, and then paint the colors you see.
Practice painting leaves from different trees, and observe the differences in shape, color, size, texture, and veins
Start a botanical sketchbook, draw specimens of different leaves that you see in nature
Draw leaves using different artist's materials such as pencil, charcoal, colored pencils, pen and ink, or soft pastels.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to paint autumn leaves step by step?

To paint a fall leaf sketch the leaf on watercolor paper. Paint the leaf with light yellow paint, leaving a small area white, where light is shining on it.

Add green paint to several areas of the leaf, leave plenty of yellow showing. Then daub red paint on a few areas of the leaf. With a clean damp brush soften the edges where the different color of paint meet.

How to paint leaves for beginners?

Sketch in the leaf lightly in pencil. Fill it in with paint, leaving a small area white for a light reflection. Then add other tones in a few areas around the leaf for variation. Adding layers of different colors will help give the leaf more visual depth.

What colors to paint fall leaves?

Fall leaves can vary greatly in color. It can be helpful to look at real leaves and paint the colors that you see. When painting fall leaves in watercolor I usually use Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Red Light, Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Yellow Ocher, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, and Black.

Watercolor painting of two colorful autumn leaves.

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