Tag Archives: Corel Painter 12. Karen Bonaker

Corel Master Painter, Karen Bonaker, Has Posted Fabulous New Brushes

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

My dear friend, Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker, has made and posted for free a new set of must have brushes.  Karen is a top-notch brush maker and you are going to love these.

Here is an image that she posted on her blog showing the variants at work.

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker's, Painted in Corel Painter 12.2

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker’s, Painted in Corel Painter 12.2

Do yourself a favor and follow the link.  Then you will want to sign up to follow her blog.  The link will bring you to the first post in  a series of 25 posts.  Each one will describe one of the brushes in the set via a video.  I love the brush described on the second day.

Ho Ho Ho! 25 Days of Christmas Tree Brushes for Painter 12.

You are going to love these brushes.  Check them out and enjoy painting with them.

Karen, thanks bunches for offering these wonderful brushes!

Enjoy everybody,

Skip

Watch Me Prepare for Holiday Open Studio

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hi Gang,

In my last post, I admitted that I am just starting to prepare for Holiday Open Studio.  To prepare, I do a number of sketches of my subject.  I use a variety of photo references.  After I feel like I know my subject, then I paint the final image without references.  I will record the final image and that recording along with other tips becomes the lesson.

Woohoo, this is scary.  I have never published something like this.

I start by sketching the subject with a custom variant called Skip’s sharp pencil.  I don’t think I have ever posted it for download.  I follow the pencil sketch with a painted sketch…at least that is what I call them.  Some are OK, others are not.  Here is the image that you will see painted.  Cut me some slack; it is my first try.

Poinsettia, First Try

Here is the video.  I hope you enjoy my struggles.

UPDATE:  There appears to be something wrong with the video. I have deleted it and will repair it and post in the morning.  Sorry for the bad video.

UPDATE 2, 10/26/2012.  This morning I have tried to repair the video with no success.  I’m going to re-process and see if that will fix it.  Give me a couple of hours and I should have something.  So sorry about this problem. 

UPDATE 3, 10/26/2012:  I give up.  I have done everything I know to fix the video, but I’ve had no success.  I will be doing more of these paintings and I’ll record the next one and post.  I honestly do not know why the video flickered so violently.  There seemed to be a black frame between two good frames.  Again, I am so very sorry for the mess up.

Now I have to run and do some more stuff, so I’ll be ready for class.  Hope you join us for some Holiday fun.

Skip

Corel Master Painter, Karen Bonaker shares recent work with Buttery Oils

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

Corel Master Painter, Karen Bonaker, my good friend and mentor,  just posted some recent work done with Buttery Oils.  I love Karen’s work no matter the medium.  These recent pieces are stunning.  Below is an excerpt from the post.  Please visit her blog to see more of her work and to read more about using Buttery Oils.

Karen Bonaker Art

Excerpt from Karen’s Post:

Recently Painter Master Skip Allen posted a new brush set called Buttery Oils. I have always been a fan of the Oil brushes in Painter but this set brings us closer and closer to the natural feel and viscosity of traditional opaque paints. To download these brushes visit Skip’s blog, SkipAllenPaints. Take the time to view a demonstration of the brushes by Tim Shelbourne who brings them to life.

I would like to share with you some of the paintings I have created recently using these brushes. Thank you again Skip for changing gears and creating this lovely set of opaque variants for Painter 12.

End of excerpt.

Dear Karen…thank you for your friendship and continued support.

Skip

Webinar, What’s new in Painter 12.1

Posted by Skip Allen on

Here is some great news.  Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker just announced at her blog a Webinar about what’s new in Painter 12.1.

Here are the basic details:

Join Skip Allen and I as we take you through the new additions to Painter 12.1. We will cover many of the new features and take questions as well. Hope to see you there! Reserve early as seats are limited.

Date: Monday January 16th, 9am Pacific Standard Time

Topics Covered:

  • Brush Management
  • Brush Categories
  • Exporting and Importing Variants, Categories, and Libraries
  • Enhanced Brush Preview
  • Workspaces
  • Mixer Pad
  • Plugins
  • Cloning with Crosshairs showing

Be sure to jump on over to Karen Bonaker Art to register.  Once again, register early due to limited seating.

“You didn’t say limited seating, did you?”

“Hi Kevin,” he startled me but I didn’t yelp.  “Yes, I did say that.  What of it?”

 Sanctimoniously he replied, “It is a virtual meeting dummy.  There are plenty of seats at the viewer’s residence or office.  You have a limited places for attendees.”

Sometimes I hate that virus, no matter that he claims he is a good virus.

“And, BTW, where is the new computer? I am ready to move into my new home.”

“Keep it up Kevin, and I may change my mind about letting you stay.  If you must know, Dell/Alienware has delayed the order once again.  Currently, the delivery date is Jan 19.  As far as I know it is still in stage one of production.  I have order several computers from Dell and I have never gotten one delivered when promised.  I guess they over promise and under deliver.”

“Why do you keep buying from them?”

“I don’t know.  I am beginning to think misguided loyalty.  Receiving delay notifications takes all the fun out of getting a new computer.  Such a bad marketing technique,” I said with a sigh.

Don’t forget to register for the webinar…it is going to be fun.

Registration is Open for Corel Painter Classes at Digital Art Academy

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everybody,

Registration is open for the first session of 2012 at Digital Art Academy (DAA).  The first session begins on January 28 and ends on Feb 24.  DAA focuses on Corel Painter, specifically Painter 12, although we still have a few self-study courses for Painter 11 active. 

Start your New Year off right and join us and explore the wonderful world of Corel Painter. You will find out all you need to know about each class by visiting DAA, but I will give you an idea of the offerings in the first session.

Core Courses

An Image Created in Painter 12 by Elaina Moore-Kelly

If you are brand new to Painter 12 or are an experienced user that would like a refresher course, then Elaina Moore-Kelly has the classes for you.  Elaina teaches Introduction to Painter 12 – Part 1 and Introduction to Painter 12 – Part 2.  Elaina’s class is very detailed and covers all the important parts of Corel Painter 12.  Elaina uses PDFs for her lessons with a video or two mixed in.  I have worked with Elaina beta testing Corel Painter 11 and 12, but she started beta testing Corel Painter with version 7, I believe.  Elaina knows Painter 12 as well as the developers I will venture to say.  If you want detailed knowledge of Painter 12, take these classes.

Image from Week 4 Painter 12 A New Beginning

If you have a good working knowledge of Painter 11 or X and you want to know what is new in Painter 12, then my Painter 12 A New Beginning is the course for you.  I designed this course for a current Corel Painter user who is new to Painter 12.  There is a lot of new stuff in Painter 12; this course covers it all.  Discover all the mysteries of Corel Painter 12 in four short weeks.

So, you haven’t upgraded to Corel Painter 12 and want to discover all about Corel Painter 11.  Or maybe you are an experienced user of Corel Painter 11 and want a refresher course.  My three Corel Painter 11 Courses, Introduction to Corel Painter 11 the Basics, Introduction to Corel Painter 11 Beyond the Basics, and Corel Painter 11 Selections, Channels and Masks are available for self-study.

Painter Professional Courses

There is a new instructor at DAA.  If you are a fan of digital watercolor in Corel Painter, then I bet Joan Hamilton is no stranger to you.    I am so excited that Joan is joining us at DAA.  If you haven’t looked at her blog, then please do so.  You will love it.

Image from Joan's Watercolor Class

Joan’s first class is Learning to Paint Elements in the Watercolor Landscape with Corel Painter 12.  Joan works with both watercolor type variants in Painter 12, but steers clear of the new Real Watercolor variants because they are so memory hungry.  Trust me, you will not miss working with those variants; Joan has fine tuned her craft and shares her secretes with you.  If you love watercolor, this is a must take course.

Landscape developed from Splashes, The Basics of Watercolor in Painter 12

My watercolor class, The Basics of Watercolor in Corel Painter 12, offered again this session, focuses on Painter 12 and the new watercolor variants, Real Watercolor.  This class teaches to splash the paint around and develop landscapes from happy accidents.  Through practice, the students brush handling abilities strengthen.  As usual, I will have a few optional live classes as well, which are a lot of fun.  I plan to have Part 2 available for session 2.

Image made with variants created in The Basics of Brush Making in Painter 12

Available again this session is my Basics of Brush Making in Painter 12. This class takes the mystique out of brush making in Painter 12.  It is a basic course and doesn’t cover everything, but the student develops a firm foundation for brush making. There are optional live sessions planned as well; I know you will enjoy those.  I plan to have Part 2 available for session 2.  I wanted to have it ready for this session, but my new computer arrives this week and will occupy most of my free time. 

 

Art Rage

All Undone, Image from ArtRage Pro 3.5

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker’s class, ArtRage-Brush Course-Watercolor and What’s New in ArtRage 3.5, updated to include the new 3.5 version strikes my fancy.  If you love ArtRage and watercolors, don’t miss this course.  Karen is one of the best teachers around and is so very creative in all that she does.  The class includes weekly live sessions as well as videos.  How to paint, how to make watercolor brushes, and what’s new in ArtRage 3.5 are covered in the course. You need ArtRage Studio Pro version 3.5 to take this class. 

I think that about covers it.  Do check out the details of course offerings at DAA.

Hope to see you in a class,

Skip

Gold in Painter 12 with Free Gold and Gold Leaf Plus Brushes

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

Are you ready for Gold Leaf variants in Painter?  Do you know how to turn objects and letters into gold?  Read on, you are in for a treat.

Edit: 12/21/2011  Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker posted about gold on Karen Bonaker Art, and she gave some beautiful examples of how the gold can work on images. Don’t delay and go visit her blog; it is wonderful. I love her work. I am especially taken with her sumi-e bamboo with added gold leaf. Then return here and enjoy my take on this technique that Karen developed. 

We just finished Holiday Open Studio at the Digital Art Academy, and it was a blast.  The first week Master Painter Karen Bonaker taught us useful techniques for making flower paintings.  She gave us some very fine brushes, too.  I taught the second week.  The subject was snow landscapes in watercolor; we used the new brush sets, Cool Spring and Drips and Runs.  Elaina Moore-Kelly showed wonderful Holiday Card techniques in the third week.  But the fourth week really caught my attention.

In the fourth week Master Painter Karen Bonaker came back to teach how to paint Holiday Wreaths.  A few days before, she showed me a technique she was going to use that she called adding gold leaf.  Her demo fascinated me.  She even used one of the Bristly Dab variants to create the brush that she used for gold leaf.  My mind filled with possibilities and I was off and running to make some Gold Brush Variants. 

They are surprisingly easy to make.  I quickly made a few and posted them for the participants in Holiday Open Studio.  My friend and brush mentor, Master Brush Maker David Gell, graciously took the brushes and made them backward compatible for Painter IX and above.  But that is not all; he added a number of gold variants of his own.  And they are so super!!!  Thank you David for all that you do for us.

David gave me permission to post his brushes along with mine for you to download.  I know you will have fun with them.

The variants use Window > Brush Control Panels > Color Variability Panel command “From Gradient,” but I am getting ahead of myself.  I have a video for you.  Enjoy!

Hope you enjoyed the video and like what you saw.  Since the brushes use “From Gradient,” I decided to do two videos about making gradients in Painter.  This first video shows you how to capture a gradient.  It is very easy.  Enjoy!

There is a second method for making gradients called “Edit Gradient.”  I demonstrated using the Two Point gradient, but you could edit any default gradient.  Enjoy!

The final video explains how to turn text into gold or any object for that matter.  To do it, you need a “Reflection Map.”  Don’t let that strange-sounding name throw you.  I’ll explain all about it in the video.  Oh, OK, it is just another term for clone. You’ll see.  Enjoy!

OK, that’s it for the videos.  I will provide a download link for the brushes and reflection maps at the end of this post.  But I promised Painter 11 and X users I would explain how to delete a gradient.  Here goes:

  1. Open the Gradient Palette, Window > Library Palettes > Gradients.
  2. Click on the Options Button or Fly Out Menu and select Gradient Mover.
  3. When the Grad Mover opens, you can select any gradient and hit delete. 

I think that is it for the tutorials; now for the download.  This link will give you the Gold and Gold Leaf Plus brushes and Reflection Maps.  I hope you enjoy them.

Gold Stuff Download

Just to give you an idea of how these brushes work and what you can do with them.  I took an old watercolor painting and added gold lettering and gold leaf.  It isn’t all that successful, but it does illustrate the point.  And it is my way of saying to each of you, have the Happiest of Holidays!!!

An Old Watercolor done in Painter 11 and embellished with Gold in Painter 12

 “Am I going to get a present?”

“Good grief Kevin.  You have been so quiet I almost forgot about you.”

“Yes, I am being so good, so I get a present, right?” he squealed in his high pitch computer virus voice.  The sound is so annoying.

“Why would viruses get a present…Santa Claus doesn’t like viruses.”

“But you are Santa Claus!  I’ve seen the picture!”

I was beginning to get miffed.  It doesn’t take much with Kevin.  “I am not Santa Claus, but I did get you a present.”

“Go on, you did, really?  Is it a really, really big present?  That is what I want a really, really big present.”

“I don’t know if you would describe a new home as a really big present, but that is what I got you.”

“You are sending me away?  Please don’t send me away.  I am a very good virus.”

“No Kevin, I am not sending you away.  I told you I was going to buy a new computer and I bought it yesterday.”

“But you said you were not going to let me live in the new computer.”

“I know, I know.  I guess it is the Holiday Spirit getting to me, but I decided you can stay.  The computer doesn’t arrive until Jan 6th, so you better stay good until then…or I’ll revoke my decision,” I sternly warned.  It isn’t good to let him think he is home free.

“Yippee!  I am the happiest of viruses!  What did you get?  Is it fast?  Will I be able to zip around and up and down?”

“I think you will like it.  I got an Alienware Aurora with ALX Chassis.  The basic specs are:

  • Processor: Intel Core i7-3960X (Six Core Extreme, 15MB Cashe) Overclocked up to 4.2Ghz
  • Memory: 16GB Quad Channel DDR3 at 16  MHz
  • Hard Drive: 2TB Raid 1+0 (4x 1TB SATA 3Gb/s) 7200 RPM
  • Video Card: Dual 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6950 – AMD CrossFireX Enabled

What do you think about that?”

He purred, “I think it is dreamy.  Are we going to play games?”

“I am, but you are not.  Don’t get pushy on me.  You are getting a bigger room and your own bathroom, so count your blessings.”

“I don’t see why you get to play and I don’t.”

“Oh good grief, Kevin.  Let’s call it a wrap.”

Happy Holidays,

Skip

Making Fractal Pattern Papers with Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker has posted her second post in her series about making paper.  This one is all about making a fractal pattern and then capturing as a paper.  These types of papers make great papers to show case the runny aspects of watercolor.  She has some beautiful examples of using them in a number of ways.  Here is one example:

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker's Example of a Special Paper Texture

I love that painting; great way to show rain.  Go visit Karen’s Blog right away.  Creating Fractal Pattern Paper Textures

Enjoy,

Skip

Making Paper in Corel Painter 12 with Karen Bonaker

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

Karen Bonaker at Karen Bonaker Art is providing a series of video tutorials about paper.  It will be comprehensive and free…sounds great right.  I’m sure it is.  She mentions that she will be demonstrating papers that will go with Cool Spring and Drips and Runs Categories.  So head on over to Karen Bonaker Art and check it out.  You will be glad that you did.

Enjoy,

Skip

Registration for Holiday Open Studio at DAA is Open; Join Us for a Fun Filled Month Working with Corel Painter

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

Corel Painter Master, Karen Bonaker, announced the opening of registration for Holiday Open Studio at Digital Art Academy (DAA) at Karen Bonaker Art, her wonderful blog. Do go by and take a look at the information  and syllabus for this 4 week course.  Holiday Open Studio is for anyone, beginner and expert a like.  Each week there is a new leader with a special topic.  Class begins 11/19/2011 and ends 12/16/2011.

The first week, Karen shows how to create and paint a perfectly balanced Holiday flower arrangement.  Take a look at this image, which can also be seen at her blog.

Lovely painting by Corel Master Painter, Karen Bonaker. Learn how she does it in Holiday Open Studio 2011

I have the second week.  Learning to leave white space in a watercolor is difficult.  I am focusing on snow scene landscapes with lots of white space.

Simple snow scene landscape done in Painter 12

Corel Painter Educator and Expert, Elaina Moore-Kelly, has the third week.  Elaina wows everyone with her beautiful Holiday Greeting Cards.  Discover her secrets for Corel Painter as she demos greeting cards.

Examples of Elaina Moore-Kelly Greeting Cards; Done in Painter 12

Karen returns for the fourth week.  Holiday Wreaths and winter scenes are the topic.  She has prepared a custom set of brushes for this workshop, which each student will receive.  I think Karen’s work is stunning.  What do you think?

Corel Master Painter, Karen Bonaker's Holiday Wreath.

That’s about it.  Do go by and check out Karen Bonaker Art and view her video from Holiday Open Studio 2010; you will be glad that you did.

Enjoy,

Skip

Karen Bonaker’s Nature Water Brushes – Fabulous

Posted by Skip Allen on

Corel Master Painter Karen Bonaker has just posted her new Nature Water Brushes to her Blog.  These are fabulous brushes.  They are not watercolor brushes; Karen made them with painting rivers, lakes, oceans and waterfalls in mind, but in reality, they are so much more useful.  In this image she used her Pure Water brush a lot.  It is an amazingly versatile brush.  Following is what she says on her blog:

“My Fall Open Studio is just coming to an end and I wanted to share with you the brushes that were used in this session and some of the wonderful paintings created by my students. Open Studio is always special and so much individual growth takes place with each artist, it is wonderful to see.

Nature water brushes are not Watercolor brushes, they are derived from a blender brush variant called Water Rake. Please view the videos to understand how to use them in your creative process.”

Do visit Karen’s blog and download her brushes!

Karen Bonaker’s Nature Water Brushes

Enjoy,

Skip