4th Step In Painting a Breaking Ocean Wave In Oil Paint

Well I'm continuing my oil painting of an ocean wave breaking along a sandy beach. You can see below the different stages of the oil painting from my pencil sketch to where I am now. I have been working on the wave and the foreground water. Then I worked on more of the sand texture, This will take some time and I will be adding small shells and seaweed if I think it will help by leading the eye into the painting. I will be adding more foam in the foreground water too. The size of this original oil painting is 16" x 20". Check back to see how I finish up this seascape painting of a breaking ocean wave.

Starting A Seascape Painting - The First Step is a Value Sketch

My next painting project is a seascape in oil. I am going to work from photos I took near Beavertail Light in Rhode Island. The shore is very rocky there, it almost looks like the Maine coast. I have a few nice photos of waves breaking near the rocks. My rough sketch shown here I did in black and grey marker. I wanted to establish the basic values of the painting to see if the composition worked. The long breaking wave with the curl and spray will be the focal point. It has beautiful green color under the curl of the wave. I pay attention to the light source and the shadows. There are dark wet rocks in the foreground and foam from the breaker. My next step will be a color sketch done in oil but painted quickly. I will take the time to do this step to decide on the colors I will use for the painting. I will have the next step in a couple days.