This is the long-awaited book from popular TV artist and author, Alwyn Crawshaw, encapsulating 50 years' worth of painting and teaching in one volume. This is a comprehensive, practical course on all aspects of painting in watercolour, oils and acrylics, with more than 20 step-by-step demonstrations. This new book brings together Alwyn's wealth of experience in teaching beginners to paint. He begins with the absolute basics - making a start, keeping things simple, and learning to judge when a painting is finished. He shows how to choose the best medium for different subjects, explaining how the different surfaces affect your work and which brushes and colours to use, and teaches the fundamentals of simple perspective, colour mixing, composition and tonal values. Alwyn then takes you by the hand and starts you off with simple three-colour exercises. He also shows how to work from photographs, and includes a helpful section on painting outdoors and working from a sketch. This is followed by a number of half-hour exercises, which are a particularly useful learning tool. The rest of the book contains more than 20 step-by-step demonstrations in watercolour, acrylics and oils, featuring landscapes, seascapes and figures. Contents include: Where to start? Advice on building confidence and finding inspiration; Your tools - understanding the basic materials required for each medium, from pencils and brushes to paper and paints; The way forward - practical guidelines on perspective, colour mixing and tonal values; Working outdoors - how to work from sketches and photographs; Step-by-step demonstrations - more than 20 in watercolour, oils and acrylics. This is the definitive practical guide for beginners to painting in all the most popular media - watercolour, oils and acrylics - written by the master of art instruction, Alwyn Crawshaw.