How to choose a watercolor set

Sep. 28—Watercolors come in a wide variety of options with different attributes, but the decision doesn't have to be daunting. With a few terms out of the way and an idea of what you want out of your colors, you can find the paint you need to begin your masterpiece.

Finding a watercolor set that works for you is key for a beginner watercolorist to achieve the colors and look they desire. There is not one perfect set that works for every watercolorist, and a number of factors should be taken into consideration when choosing your first set.

Each watercolor paint has two main ingredients: finely ground pigment that provides the color and a binder. Along with pigment and binder, the paint will contain a wetting agent to facilitate flow and absorption and a moisturizer that protects the binding agent from becoming brittle.

When choosing a watercolor, an artist must consider a few things.

Quality of the paint

Watercolors, like other art supplies, can be found in different qualities to suit every artist's need. There are two main qualities most artists will use: artists' quality and students' quality.

Artists' watercolors contain a higher concentration of finely ground pigment and have high permanence ratings, while student's colors will contain more fillers and extenders and cheaper pigments. These differences impact the texture and consistency of the paint, how it renders on paper/canvas, how well it re-wets, and longevity once on paper/canvas.

Whether you choose artists' or students' paint will depend on your budget and what you want out of your paints. Artists' quality paints are more expensive, but they offer more permanence, intensity, and transparency.

Many artists begin with students' paints and then experiment with artists' paints as they find their bearings. If you find no tangible difference between painting with students' versus artists' paints, bear in mind that artists' colors can withstand generations of time, while students' paints cannot.

Pans or tubes

Watercolors primarily come in either pans or tubes.

Pans are trays that contain solid blocks of paint that can be re-wet with water. Pans come in sets, but can also be purchased individually.

Pans are the choice for portability, as they are easy to travel with and to use outdoors, usually measuring no more than four by six inches in size.

Pans are the most economical option, as they conserve pigment better, but are not as suited for large washes and mixing.

Tubes contain a paste-like watercolor and can be purchased individually or in sets.

They are less suited for travel and outdoor painting, due to needing to carry multiple tubes in your arsenal.

Tubed paint is often the victim of wasteful practices, due to it being easy to squeeze too much onto a palette. However, many artists' tubed paints can be made soluble again with water.

Tubed paints are more suited to large pieces and broad washes and are convenient if you use more paint.

Tubed paints and pans do not differ in terms of quality. Ultimately, whether you utilize tubed or pan paints depends on your work habits.

Pan sets are the best choice to experiment with due to them lending themselves to be less wasteful and more economical.

Color of the paint

Beginners will often find themselves overwhelmed by the number of color options when choosing their early paints.

Most colors can be produced by mixing primary colors, but mixed colors will always be dull and lifeless compared to single pigment colors. Single pigment colors are more vibrant and intense than mixed colors.

Most artists won't be able to afford to own every conceivable color they may want to use, which is why it is profitable to build a limited but versatile color palette.

Choosing colors is ultimately up to personal preference, and there's no right or wrong answer to what colors you have on your palette.

To begin, you only need a basic color palette with a warm and cool red, yellow, and blue, a gray, a green, and burnt umber and raw sienna. Simply buy an artists' quality or students' quality set from a reputable brand, and you'll have what you need to get started.

While some artists will use a single pigment black, most prefer to mix their own with primary colors.

Many watercolorists choose to leave white off their palette and instead use the white surface of the paper as their white.

You can accumulate more colors over time as you experiment and find your voice and style.

Be aware of discrepancies in naming conventions between brands. Different manufacturers may use the same color name for different pigments and hues. Instead of basing color off of name, use the name of the pigment.

Some pigments are more expensive than others and can only be found in artists' and professionals' lines. For students' paints, manufacturers will instead create hues by replacing the pigment with synthetic alternatives. The synthetic alternatives will often lack vibrancy and lightfastness.

Transparency

Watercolors are revered for their transparency and the way they allow light to pass through and reflect off the surface of the paper, creating an effect of luminescence.

As you experiment with watercolors, you will learn to exploit their transparent nature to enhance your paintings.

Watercolor painting requires a degree of planning to determine how to layer your paint. Transparent colors need to be layered before opaque colors or they won't be seen.

You will learn over time which pigments render transparent and which are opaque, but most manufacturers will notate transparency and opacity on the packaging.

To test transparency, draw a black line with a marker and then render the color over the line. When dry, transparent colors will have an effect of disappearing behind the line, while opaque colors will be visible on top of the line.

Permanence of the paint

Permanence is the ability of the paint to withstand exposure to light and humidity without succumbing to fading, darkening, or shifting color. Permanence is also referred to as lightfastness.

A paint's permanence will determine whether it will withstand the test of time.

While there are many factors to consider when choosing watercolors, do not let that deter you from experimenting with the medium.

To start off, the choice can be as simple as buying the bestselling set from a reputable brand.