Corel® Painter™ X Curriculum – Part 1
Seascape tutorial by Stephanie Reese
This tutorial contains five
lessons, each requiring approximately
45 minutes to complete.
Some of the steps can be finished in a
matter of seconds, others will require
several minutes to complete.
Lesson One
For the first lesson, students will learn to
• create a new Corel® Painter™ X document
• create a new layer and rename it
• choose a brush and adjust the brush settings
• choose a color by using the Colors palette
• sketch an outline of a seascape
Creating a new document
When you create a new Corel Painter X document, you can specify
the canvas size, resolution, and paper color.
To create a new document
1 Start Corel Painter X, and click Create new document in the
Welcome book.
The seascape requires a landscape orientation, so you’ll need to
resize the default document dimensions.
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 2 In the New dialog box, type 11 in the Width box, and choose
inches from the corresponding list box. Then type 8 in the
Resolution is the number of Height box, choose inches from the corresponding list box,
dots of color per inch in an image. The and click OK.
higher the resolution, the sharper the
image. If you are creating an image
that will be blown up and printed, you
need high enough resolution to
maintain the sharpness of your image.

Enlarging an image with low

resolution will not create more dots or
pixels per inch. Instead, it will make
the existing dots larger resulting in a
fuzzy, pixilated image. For print
medium, 300 ppi (pixels per inch) is
recommended. For this tutorial,
however, you’ll use the default 72 ppi. Creating a new layer and renaming it
Next, you’ll add a new layer on which to start your painting. The
Canvas layer is locked so it’s recommended that you always start
painting on a new layer, which can be changed and moved up
and down the layer stack as needed.

To create a new layer and rename it

1 Click Layers menu ` New Layer.
A new layer appears in the Layers palette on the right side of
your screen. The new layer is automatically named Layer 1.

This layer will become the outline sketch for the seascape.
2 On the Layers palette, double-click Layer 1.
3 In the Layer Attributes dialog box, type outline in the Name
box, and click OK.

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 The layer name is updated in the Layers palette.

Choosing a brush and adjusting brush settings

In Corel Painter X, the property bar changes dynamically to reflect
the selected tool. The property bar gives you quick access to tool
options and settings.

Located on the top right corner of the screen, the Brush Selector
bar lets you choose a brush. The first icon is the Brush Category
selector and the second is the Brush Variant selector. Every paint
brush category has its own selection of brush variants.

To choose a brush and adjust brush settings

1 In the toolbox, click the Brush tool.
With the property bar controls, you can choose between
freehand or straight-line strokes, adjust the size of the brush,
determine whether paint will appear transparent or opaque on
the canvas, and more.
2 On the Brush Selector bar, choose Art Pen Brushes from the
Brush Category selector and Soft Flat Oils from the Brush
Variant selector.
3 On the property bar, type 8 in the Size box.

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 Choosing a color and creating your sketch
The Colors palette gives you fine control over color selection. In
the Corel Painter X toolbox, icons let you switch between a main
color and an additional color.
On the Colors palette, the
color wheel lets you select different
hues or color. Simply click anywhere
on the wheel to change the current
color. The triangle provides
adjustment in saturation and value.
Click the triangle towards the right to
add more saturated or pure color.
Click the triangle towards the left to
add more black or white.

To change color, the icon inside the

triangle must not be on either pure
white or black. If the icon is on white The outline drawing for the seascape is a simple sketch. It should
or black, the color will not change no
provide placement on the page for the horizon line (where water
matter which color you choose.
meets sky), clouds, rocks, boats, trees, shoreline, etc.

To choose a color and create your sketch

1 In the toolbox, click the Main Color icon .
2 On the Colors palette, use the color wheel to choose a neutral
color. After you choose a color, the Main Color icon in the
toolbox will update automatically.
3 Sketch a seascape by using different brush types, sizes, and
colors.
Keep in mind that you can undone any unsatisfactory brush
strokes by clicking Edit menu ` Undo, or by using the keyboard
shortcut Command + Z (Mac®) or Ctrl + Z (Windows®).
To wrap up today’s lesson, save your work.
4 Click File menu ` Save.
5 In the Save (Mac) or Save Image As (Windows) dialog box, type
Lesson1 in the File name box, and click Save.

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Lesson 2
During the first lesson, you practiced using different brushes and
colors to sketch a seascape outline. For the purpose of this tutorial,
you will replace your seascape outline with an original sketch to
use as a guide.

For the second lesson, students will learn to

• replace previous work with an original sketch for use as a guide
• add base colors for the painting on a new layer
• create a horizon line

Replacing previous work with an original sketch

The first step is to retrieve your work from the first lesson. Then,
you’ll replace that image with an original sketch to use as a guide.

To replace your work with the original sketch

1 Click File menu ` Open, navigate to the folder in which you
saved yesterday’s sketch, select Lesson1.RIF, and click Open.
2 Insert the Corel Painter X Curriculum CD in your CD drive.
3 Click File menu ` Open, navigate to the Part 1 – Seascape
tutorial ` Sample files folder, and choose seascape1.TIF.
The original outline sketch appears.

4 Click Select menu ` All to select the seascape.TIF file.

5 Click Edit menu ` Copy, and close the seascape.TIF file.

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 6 Click Edit menu ` Paste.
The seascape outline is pasted over your outline sketch on a
new layer.
7 On the Layers palette, select the outline layer that you created
previously, right-click and choose Delete from the pop-up
menu.
8 Double-click the new layer, and rename it outline guide.
9 Click File menu ` Save As, type Lesson2 in the File name box,
and click Save.

Adding color on a new layer

Next, you’ll create a new layer on which to add base colors to the
painting. These are just starter colors. Before the seascape is
finished, you’ll add layers of additional color and eventually more
surface detail.

You’ll use the Colors palette to choose colors for painting base
items in the seascape.

To create the new layer for painting

1 Click Layers menu ` New.
2 On the Layers palette, ensure that the new layer is selected.
3 On the Brush Selector bar, choose Oils from the Brush Category
selector and Bristle Oils 20 from the Brush Variant selector.

It is important to note that the

lightness of color you start with on a 4 To provide a color base for your image, use the Colors palette to
painting will be determined by the choose different colors and then paint blocks of color over your
medium used. If you are using oils, outline.
you can start with darker colors and 5 Using different blues for water and sky, browns for rocks, etc.,
layer lighter colors on top. If you are color in your image by following the outline sketch as a guide.
painting with watercolors, however,
you must start with the lightest color
and work your way to the darker
colors. You can not easily lighten a
dark watercolor.

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 As you can see, it doesn’t look like a finished painting just yet.

Creating the horizon

Next, you’ll create the horizon for your painting. Keep in mind
that you do not want the horizon line to divide the page in half.
The horizon should lie either above or below the midline to make
it more visually appealing.

In addition, you’ll use the Layers palette to keep the outline guide
on top of your painting.
With the Layers palette, you
can manage the layers of your To create the horizon
painting. You can change layer
hierarchy by moving layers up and 1 On the Layers palette, drag the outline guide layer up on top
down. You can also collapse or group of the new drawing layer (Layer 1).
layers. The outline will appear over the new layer so you can continue
to use it as a guide.
The eye icon beside each layer
name lets you turn layers on and off.
During this tutorial, you will use this
icon to turn the outline guide
layer on and off as you paint.

When the eye icon is open, so is the

layer it represents. Conversely, when
the eye icon is closed, so is the layer it
represents.

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2 On the Layers palette, select Layer 1.
You can now continue to add color without painting over the
outline guide. On the Layers palette, click the eye icon
beside the outline guide layer to turn it on or off as you paint.
3 Use varying brush sizes to add some darker colors to the rocks
and water.
4 In the toolbox, choose the Rectangular Selection tool.
5 Click and drag a rectangular selection at the top of your picture
where you want to place the sky.
6 On the Colors palette, choose a pale blue.
7 In the toolbox, click the Paint Bucket tool, and click in the
selection to fill it.
8 In the Commit dialog box, click Commit.

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 This gives you a straight line for your horizon.

9 Save your work.

Lesson 3
During lesson two, you used an original sketch as a guideline to
add base colors to your seascape.

For lesson three, students will learn to

• add more color to the painting
• add shadows to the painting
• add light and highlights to the painting

Adding more color

Now, it’s time to refine the colors in your painting to create the
appearance of shadows. You’ll use RealBristle brushes to add color,
and an Impasto brush to manipulate color already on the canvas.

To add more color

1 Open Lesson2.RIF.
2 On the Brush Selector bar, choose RealBristle Brushes from
the Brush Category selector and Real Round Bristle from the
Brush Variant selector.

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3 Next, start painting with some additional colors to form
shadows under rocks, in crevices, etc. Remember to paint with
brush strokes that follow the direction of the rocks, water, etc.
4 Add some color to the water and rocks. Use varying colors of
blue and green in the water. Use varying colors of red, yellow,
gray, and even some blue on the rocks.
After you have several colors in your image, you can start to
move them around by using an Impasto brush.
5 On the Brush Selector bar, choose Impasto from the Brush
Category selector and Impasto Distorto from the Brush
Variant selector.

Notice that the Distorto brush variant does not use its own
color. Instead, it can only move around the colors that are
already on the canvas.
Experiment with moving the colors around until you are
satisfied with their appearance.

Adding light and water highlights

The next step is to add some light and highlights in the water.
You’ll use an Eraser tool to achieve the effect of reflective water.

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 To add light and water highlights
1 On the Brush Selector bar, choose Erasers from the Brush
Category selector and Gentle Bleach 7 from the Brush Variant
selector.

2 Brush over any areas in the water where you want to add white
reflections.
Experiment with changing the brush size to achieve the effect
you want.
3 On the Brush Selector bar, choose Impasto from the Brush
Category selector and Distorto Impasto from the Brush
Variant selector.

4 Use the Distorto brush to give the appearance of additional

movement to the reflections.
5 Save your work as Lesson3.RIF.

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Lesson 4
During lesson three, you added shadows, highlights, and
additional colors.

For lesson four, students will learn to

• add more layers of color
• use a gradient fill to color the sky
• add texture to give the painting more depth

Adding more color to the sky

You'll now add more color to the sky by using a gradient fill.

To add more color to the horizon

1 Open Lesson3.RIF.
2 In the toolbox, click the Rectangular Selection tool
3 Make a selection over the horizon area that you created in
lesson two.
4 In the toolbox, click the Paint Bucket tool.
5 On the property bar, choose Gradient from the Fill list box.
6 On the property bar, click the Select Fill icon and choose
Summer Sunset from the drop-down list.

7 Click in your selection to fill the sky with the selected gradient.
You may need to click several times to achieve the desired
result.

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 You now have a sunset sky.

Adding more texture

Next, you’ll add more texture by sampling colors from the sky and
using them on the landscape. With an Impasto brush, you’ll add
the appearance of clouds to the horizon. You’ll also use an
Airbrush to create the appearance of water splashing against the
rocks.

To add more texture to the painting

1 In the toolbox, click the Eyedropper tool.
With the Eyedropper tool, you can sample some of the colors
from the sunset and then brush on additional color to the rocks.

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 Accent with darker and more saturated colors for greater effect.

2 Use both the RealBristle brushes and the Impasto brushes to

add texture to the painting.
RealBristle brush strokes give an authentic look to the painting.
3 Use the Distorto brush to move the color around in the sky
until it looks more like clouds and less linear than the gradient
used.
4 Use variants of the Airbrushes brush category to create white
spray from the water over the rocks.

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If you want effects added to
single layers of a painting only, use
the Layers palette to select the layer to
which you want an effect applied.
However, if you want an effect such
as lighting applied to an entire image,
all layers must be dropped to a single
layer.
Experiment with the Pixel Spray variant and Soft Airbrush
variants to give a soft water effect.
5 Save your work as Lesson4.RIF.
Lesson 5
During lesson four, you added color and texture to refine your
painting. There are a couple of Corel Painter X effects for lighting
and texture that you’ll use to finish your painting.
For lesson five, students will learn to
• use the Apply Lighting effect to add light to the painting
• use the Apply Surface Texture effect to add texture to the
painting
Working with lighting effects
The Apply Lighting effect lets you shine one or more light sources
on an image. You can choose different lighting effects from the
Corel Painter library, or you can create your own effects by
defining brightness, distance, color, and other characteristics. For
this tutorial, you’ll use an effect from the Corel Painter library.
To create a lighting effect
1 Open Lesson4.RIF.
2 Click Layers menu ` Drop All.
The Layers palette now shows a single image layer (Canvas).
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By default, the Apply Surface
Texture effect uses the currently
selected paper texture.
To experiment with different paper
textures, click the Paper Selector
in the Toolbox and choose a paper
texture from the drop-down list.
You can see the effect of your choice
in the Preview area of the Apply
Surface Texture dialog box.
3 Click Effects menu ` Surface Control ` Apply Lighting.
4 In the Apply Lighting dialog box, click the Warm Globe preset
thumbnail, and click OK.
The lighting changes to darken the edges and highlight the
middle of the painting.
If you wish to experiment with other lighting selections, simply
click Edit menu ` Undo to reverse the previous change.
Working with surface texture effects
Now, you’ll add more texture to your painting by using a Corel
Painter effect. The Apply Surface Texture effect lets you add a
three-dimensional (3D) surface texture to your image. Surface
texture is created either by applying a paper texture or by using
information from a clone source to determine depth and height.
For the purpose of this tutorial, you’ll use the Image Luminance
method. This effect uses the current image’s luminance, or
lightness, to determine where surface texture is added. Light parts
of the image create dents; darker parts create raised areas. The
overall effect gives an embossed look to the edges of the image.
To apply surface texture effects
1 Click Effects menu ` Surface Control ` Apply Surface
Texture.
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2 In the Apply Surface Texture dialog box, choose Image
Luminance from the Using list box.

The texture in the Preview window changes to reflect the brush

strokes in your painting.
3 Click OK.
4 When you are happy with the results, save your work as
seascapefinal.RIF.

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 For this tutorial, you have been experimenting with using an
original sketch as a guideline. For the rest of this lesson, you will
create your own painting from scratch.

Have fun and remember to experiment by using the various

brushes, paints, textures, and effects.

About the author

Stephanie Reese is an accredited high school art teacher who holds
a BA in Curriculum Development and a Master’s in Education.

Portions copyright © 2007 Corel Corporation. All rights reserved.

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