When painting boats, I look for changes in reflected light along the hull. A hull that first appears to be one color may contain important differences in both value and color as it curves away.
Look at the light coming back from the water
The photograph in this lesson shows two pale hulls beside one another. I point to the lower areas where water reflects light back onto the boats. There are visible streaks of light, but I am especially interested in the broader changes beneath and around them.
Compare one area with another
I take a small digital sample from one part of a hull and move it along the surface. That makes a value and color difference much easier to see than it was in the full photograph. I repeat the comparison in the other direction and look at another area as well. Some samples differ more than others, which is why direct comparison is useful.
Follow the hull as it turns
The lesson is to observe what happens along the boat instead of filling the whole hull with a single assumed color. I am not giving a fixed recipe for every boat or lighting condition. I want you to notice the actual relationships in front of you. As you watch the samples move, compare the broader reflected-light passages as well as the smaller bright streaks on the surface.
For a related lesson, see using shadow shapes to understand form.
