Easy Acrylic Tree Painting Tutorial for Beginners

Updated at: 24/05/2025

Unleash your inner artist with this easy acrylic tree painting tutorial, perfect for absolute beginners! No prior experience is needed to create a beautiful and vibrant tree landscape. We'll guide you through simple techniques, using readily available materials, to achieve professional-looking results. Forget the intimidation factor – painting trees can be surprisingly relaxing and rewarding, a fantastic creative outlet for all skill levels. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you can transform a blank canvas into a captivating piece of art.

This tutorial breaks down the process into manageable steps, focusing on fundamental techniques that build confidence and skill. Forget complex brushstrokes and frustrating details; we'll focus on creating a stylized yet realistic tree, emphasizing color blending and simple shapes. Ready to get started and bring your artistic vision to life? Let's dive into the step-by-step instructions below!

Preparation and Safety Guidelines

Tools Needed
  • Acrylic paints (SAP blue, green, olive, Granny Smith, cream, titanium white, burnt umber)
  • Paintbrushes (number 12, sailboat brush)
  • Q-tips
Safety Guidelines
  • Acrylic paints are water-based but can still irritate skin or eyes. Always work in a well-ventilated area and wear a protective apron or old clothes. Wash hands thoroughly after painting.
  • Use a drop cloth or newspaper to protect your work surface. Acrylic paint is difficult to remove once dried.
  • Clean your brushes immediately after use with soap and water. Dried acrylic paint can permanently damage brushes.

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Sketching

    • Rough sketch of tree branches and leaves.
    Rough sketch of tree branches and leaves.
    Sketching

  2. Painting Trunk and Branches

    • Paint the tree trunk and branches.
    Paint the tree trunk and branches.
    Painting Trunk and Branches

  3. Painting Leaves - Darkest Green

    • Paint leaves with darkest green using Q-tips, applying roughly.
    Paint leaves with darkest green using Q-tips, applying roughly.
    Painting Leaves - Darkest Green

  4. Painting Leaves - Medium Green

    • Add lighter green leaves using Q-tips, avoiding overcrowding.
    Add lighter green leaves using Q-tips, avoiding overcrowding.
    Painting Leaves - Medium Green

  5. Painting Leaves - Lightest Green

    • Add lightest green leaves using Q-tips, ensuring leaves are not overcrowded.
    Add lightest green leaves using Q-tips, ensuring leaves are not overcrowded.
    Painting Leaves - Lightest Green

  6. Adding Highlights

    • Mix white for natural highlights.
    Mix white for natural highlights.
    Adding Highlights

  7. Detailing the Trunk

    • Paint tree trunk details using a brush with a mix of white and burnt umber.
    Paint tree trunk details using a brush with a mix of white and burnt umber.
    Detailing the Trunk

  8. Adding Final Branches

    • Draw additional branches.
    Draw additional branches.
    Adding Final Branches

Read more: Reverse Silhouette Painting: Underwater Scene Masterclass

Tips

  • Don't overcrowd the painting to maintain a beautiful look.
  • Use a mix of dark and light greens for depth and realism.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Using too much water

Reason: Diluting the acrylic paint excessively leads to weak, muddy colors and makes it difficult to achieve a desired texture.
Solution: Use less water, or apply paint more thickly for bolder colors and better coverage.

2. Ignoring layering and underpainting

Reason: Jumping straight to details without establishing a base layer results in a flat, unrealistic-looking tree.
Solution: Start with a light wash of color for the background and then gradually build up layers of paint to create depth and dimension.

3. Lack of texture variation

Reason: Using the same brushstrokes and paint consistency throughout creates a monotonous look, lacking the natural variation found in trees.
Solution: Experiment with different brushes, techniques (e.g., dry brushing, stippling), and paint consistency to achieve varied textures in the bark, leaves, and branches.

FAQs

What type of acrylic paints should I use for this tutorial?
Student-grade acrylic paints are perfectly fine for this project. They're more affordable and still produce excellent results. You don't need professional-grade paints to create a beautiful tree painting.