Tip: Save Something In Reserve

A common practice for many artists is to establish the darkest and lightest values in a painting early. This allows for better management of all the values throughout the painting process. When establishing this initial value range, remember to keep some of the extreme light and dark values in reserve. In some respects it is like money. It is always nice to keep some for later, just in case you need it.

The challenge with all aspects of color is to translate the seemingly limitless variations found in nature to the limited range of colors found on a palette. Nevertheless, if the artist is careful it is possible to render the illusion of almost any scene without exhausting our limited value scale. Just don't spend all your values too early.

Here is how Birge Harrison described it:

"Nature never exhausts her value-scale. Even in the most violent effects, she always holds plenty in reserve. And, so far as is possible with our limited scale, we should do the same... [this] means that we should always be able to go a little higher on the high note or a little lower on the low note if it is desirable to do so."