How to Paint a Waterfall with Acrylics (Step by Step)

1. 1

   Step 1: Dab In the Green Treeline

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   Load a flat brush with a dark and a mid green and tap a soft band of trees across the top third of the canvas. Bounce the bristles straight at the surface instead of stroking sideways. That broken, dabbed edge is what makes the foliage read as leaves rather than a flat green wall.

   Leave the middle of the treeline a little lower and lighter. That dip is where the sky peeks through and where the falls will sit later, so you want some breathing room there.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Use two greens, not one. A darker green in the shadows and a lighter yellow-green on top gives the trees instant depth before you add a single detail.

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   Used in this stepacrylic paint setflat acrylic brushcotton canvas board

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2. 2

   Step 2: Block In the Dark Rock Cliff

   Watch this step · 2:30

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   Mix black with a touch of blue to get a cool charcoal, then block in a solid band of rock right below the treeline. Drag the flat brush sideways so the band stays flat and dark. This is the cliff the water pours over, so it needs to be the darkest thing on the canvas.

   Keep the top edge of the rock uneven and a little ragged. Real stone is never a straight line, and a broken edge lets the green trees settle down into the rock instead of floating above it.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Paint this band good and dark now. If it dries too light, the white water later will barely show up against it and the falls lose their punch.

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   Used in this stepacrylic paint setflat acrylic brush

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3. 3

   Step 3: Pull Down the Falling Water

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   Switch to white on a thin round brush and pull straight vertical strokes down the dark cliff. Start each stream narrow at the top and let the strokes widen and soften as they drop. Two or three separate falls look more natural than one solid sheet of white.

   Keep your pressure light. You want the dark rock to still show through the water in places, because water is see-through and that broken white is what makes it look wet instead of painted on.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Flick the brush off the canvas at the bottom of each stroke. That little lift feathers the water so it fades into mist instead of stopping in a hard line.

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   Used in this stepround detail brushacrylic paint set

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4. 4

   Step 4: Fill the Teal Pool

   Watch this step · 5:50

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   Mix cerulean blue with a little black for a deep teal and fill the pool along the bottom of the canvas. Lay it in with flat horizontal strokes so the surface reads as still water lying flat, not a wall standing up.

   Where the falls meet the pool, drag a few lighter streaks straight down into the teal. That is the churn and the reflection of the white water, and it ties the falls to the pool so they feel connected.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Keep your horizontal strokes level and parallel. Water reflects the world flat, so any diagonal stroke here reads as a tilted pond and breaks the illusion.

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   Used in this stepacrylic paint setflat acrylic brushpalette

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5. 5

   Step 5: Brighten the Water and Add Spray

   Watch this step · 7:30

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   Take pure white on the tip of the round brush and go back over the water to lift it. Add the strongest highlights right where each fall runs fastest, then dab short broken flecks at the base of the falls for spray and mist rising off the pool.

   Drop a few small light-green leaf clusters right at the edges of the falls too. Those little touches of foliage overlapping the water pull the whole scene together and stop the white from looking like a cutout.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Load only a tiny bit of white for the spray and tap gently. Heavy blobs look like snow. You want a soft haze where the water hits, not solid dots.

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   Used in this stepround detail brushacrylic paint setpaper towel

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6. 6

   Step 6: Frame the Scene with an Overhanging Branch

   Watch this step · 8:45

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   Now frame the top. Drop a dark tree trunk down one side and sweep a curved branch across the upper canvas so it arches over the falls. Keep it dark, almost a silhouette, since it sits closest to you and catches the least light.

   Tap clusters of green leaves along the branch with the tip of a round brush. This overhanging frame is what gives the painting depth and that tucked-away, secret-spot feeling, like you are looking at the falls through the trees.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Let the branch run right off the edge of the canvas. A framing branch that stops short in mid-air looks odd. Carrying it off the edge makes the scene feel bigger than the frame.

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   Used in this stepround detail brushfan brushacrylic paint set

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7. 7

   Step 7: Add Foreground Rocks and Wildflowers

   Watch this step · 9:25

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   Finish the foreground. Set a couple of dark rocks at the water's edge, then run a few light ripples across the pool with a fine brush to catch the surface. These small marks give the near water some movement.

   Last, tap tiny white and pink dots along the front bank for wildflowers. It is a small thing, but that scatter of color at the bottom is what makes the painting feel warm and alive instead of a flat postcard. Step back and you are done.

   Tip:

   Watch this step Use the wrong end of your brush or a toothpick for the flower dots. A fine point keeps them tiny, and tiny is what reads as far-off wildflowers rather than blobs.

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   Used in this stepround detail brushacrylic paint setpalette knife

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Keep going

How to Paint Poppies in Acrylics (Step by Step)

8 steps · about 16 minutes

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Tools we recommend

• Liquitex

  Liquitex BASICS Acrylic Paint Set (24 tubes)

  Artist-grade pigment at student pricing, buttery enough to blend and thick enough to hold a stroke. The set most acrylic painters start on.

• Benicci

  Benicci 16-Piece Artist Brush Set

  Every shape you actually reach for (round, flat, filbert, liner, fan) in nylon that keeps its point and does not shed. Comes with a palette knife and case.

• FIXSMITH

  FIXSMITH 8" x 10" Stretched Canvas (12-pack)

  Pre-primed cotton canvases in a bulk pack so you can just start painting. The low-stakes surface for practicing before the big piece.

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