As a good rule of thumb, you always want to start a painting out with a sketch.

All you need is a scratch piece of paper, #2 HB pencil and an eraser.

Sketching should only take you a few minutes. A sketch is like a roadmap telling you where you are going. You want to know where your focus point is going to be in your painting (make sure you follow the rule of 3 in this course!) and determine the values of your painting - where are your light, mid tones and darks are going to be. This will really help you to compose a great painting. A sketch doesn't have to have all the details - just the general ideas of what you are putting in your painting and where will you paint it.

Determine where your light source is going to come from and mark it on your sketch. I usually mark it on my paper with "LS" and an arrow, so I know exactly where the light is coming from. This will make it easier for you to know where your shadows need to be. Remember, your shadows are always a darker value so make them darker on your sketch.

When you finish your sketch, transfer it over to your watercolor paper. Your pressure should be very light, just enough to see. TIP: If you hold your pencil further out and almost horizontal, it will be easier to go light on the led. Don't worry about putting in your darks on your watercolor paper, you'll know where you are going with that because you have a good sketch!

Once you have transferred your sketch over, you're ready to start painting!

Below is the sketch for our painting. Try sketching on your own if you can. It's great practice. If it's helpful to you, feel free to print it out and trace.