Watercolor help?

Question:

Watercolor help?

How do I use my watercolors like this? http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/4466...
or like http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/5898... or http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/5895... the way they shade and all.

Is there a certain thing I'm not doing or soemthing?

do they let the paint dry in between or what? I'm really confused with the watercolors. Help is appreciated greatly!!

Thanks

BTW, these were NOT drawn by me but by the amazing artist that drew them.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Watercolour is all about timing. Different papers react differently, too - you need to play a bit to get the timing right.

Generally, you can begin adding more paint to a wet area once the "shine" has left the paper. If you go in too soon, the colours will run, too late and they won't blend.

The first image looks like it was done on "Hot press" paper - very smooth surface, and the paint was applied in "glaze" fashion, layers added one at a time after the previous layer has dried.

The second uses a style, in most places, of painting around the wet areas without touching them.

The third painting is like the first, painted in layers over dry areas, except the sky - which is done by washing paint into wet paper, called wet-on-wet (note - wait til the shine has gone before adding paint).

Some beginners tend to use too much paint and not enough water at first - and this makes the colours lose their transparency. Try starting with thin watery layers - do your light colours first, and dark last. Don't scrub the brush too heavily over an already-painted area, and make sure the bottom layer is dry before adding another layer.

Play and experiment. Use a good quality paints and 100% cotton paper and your results will be much better. Above all - have fun!