Watercolor Tip #7

Eye level vs Horizon line

Early Morning, Pittwater, NSW

When thinking of perspective one can think of eye level as the same as horizon line.

As you probably already know when you are at the beach objects "appear" to diminish in size as they approach the horizon. The same if you look down a long straight road, objects get smaller and converge at the horizon, e.g power poles, cars , fences, walls all appear smaller and smaller as the approach the distant horizon.  These objects appear to vanish at a distant point - called the Vanishing Point. The horizon however, is also at the eye level of the viewer. This is important to know because when you are painting a street scene or indoor scene your cannot see the horizon. So in this case rather than horizon, think of eye level and do your perspective drawing on that basis.

For this reason I tell my students to think more of eye level rather than vanishing point as it is always there!

Happy painting.

Joe Cartwright