The Beginner’s Guide to Oil Painting: Simple Still Life Projects to Help You Master the Basics

I think this book offers a great balance of beginner instruction with intermediate insight, allowing the user to use it again and again to expand their skillset. I’m so glad I purchased this!

I own a bunch of books and feel this one is very well written and really appreciate his breakdown of how he mixes his paints before painting as it makes for smoother painting, knowing your lightest and darkest values in advance (very helpful). Some books, the author/artist can lose themselves in pages of florid language describing the importance of this technique or that mindset without ever touching how to create what concept they are speaking to. Stephen just cuts to the chase which makes him so much easier to follow and apply what he’s sharing.Do wish he described his brush and knife techniques more. His textures in his examples were fantastic and yet he staid focused on color mixing and basics of shape. Maybe he’ll write another book on techniques?? Pretty please!!

Each sample is shown in simple steps using few colors with descriptions that seem quite doable. There's nothing intimidating, it's worded and described in simple steps with directions that seem really down to earth. The paintings are simple, great samples of what can be done, by nearly everyone, with just basic colors and limited investments in supplies in mind. This writer is a great teacher, and super beautiful painter, lots of kudos to this artist and author. I love this book and recommend it to EVERYONE who wants to paint, from simple things to more complex layouts, terrific book, you should definitely start with this one!!!!!!!!!!

Whether you’re a beginner looking to finally learn to paint in oils, or a more experienced painter wanting to brush up on alla prima painting skills, this is the book for you. Clear, concise exercises and examples show you it how it’s done. It starts with an overview of supplies and setting up the workspace using simple materials, and you only need to buy a few colors and a couple of brushes. Craig shows you how to mix colors and render simple forms, then moves on to more complex subjects. He emphasizes the importance of practice to get better at painting, just like anything else, the more you paint, the better you get at painting. I’m a professional artist and have been painting for 40 years, if I was teaching again I would have this as my textbook.

It is a good book, just not what I expected. I wanted landscapes etc. But ordering, I couldn't tell what was inside. But it is a good instruction for still life.

I love the approach in this book. After a little getting started info, the author eases into painting projects. The first several are monochromatic paintings of basic shapes—a cube, a sphere, a cylinder. Then a pear, first monochromatic and then in color. After these preliminary exercises, he demonstrates paintings of various fruits and household objects which become steadily more complex.This systematic approach to learning to paint is what every beginner needs. The instructions along with the photos give the reader insight into how a painter must think in order to successfully recreate what they see.Though this book focuses on still life painting, the same principles apply to virtually everything else one might want to paint. Whether a fledgling artist is interested in landscapes, portraits, or fantasy scenes, this is a great place to start.Though the author demonstrates the various projects in oils, they can be done just as well in other opaque mediums like acrylic or pastels.Highly recommended!

I am so impressed with this book! Compared to all the other oil painting books I own- this one is for amazing for beginners and intermediate painters alike!Other art books contain so much extra information that it’s hard for a beginner to know where to start. (I’m speaking from personal experience!) But, this book is different. It’s like having your own personal teacher walk you through step by step.The book progresses in such a well-thought out manner, introducing ideas and concepts in very digestible steps. The pictures and descriptions are so very helpful. And best of all, there are numerous exercises to work through that are easy enough that you’ll actually want to do them!If you are a beginner painter, save yourself so much frustration and get this book first!!!

I just started oil painting a couple of months ago, I haven't ever painted anything, so I'm on the hunt for good basic and understandable direction in oil painting. I haven't done all the exercises in this book, although I've done a few of them, but I do think it's very helpful. It gives you basic exercises to do with good instruction. It tells you what paints you need to get started and step by step directions to finish the painting. I would recommend this book, I plan to continue the exercises and hope that this helps me to paint better, because it's not easy.

If you think of starting to paint in oil this is a good book to get. It helps explain many details, like paining surfaces and mediums which were all a blur to me when I started and can be a total turn off if you don't understand the differences. If you're going to put the time and effort into a painting or learn this medium this is a great book. I wish I had heard of it when I started.

Please drive demand to reprint this book. It is outstanding quality. It's the bible for anyone wanting to get started in Oil Painting and Still Life. Craig's a brilliant teacher, we need him and his book.

A very good reference book.

It’s all good. the Book is new and beautiful!

Very good book for beginners