I love this book! Kevin McPhearson is not only an inspiring painter, but a skilled teacher as well. I keep this open in my studio and refer to it often. How does he handle trees? How about those clouds? Even experienced painters will find themselves using this book in more than a cursory way. He also has many wonderful tips about pochade boxes and travelling with your painting gear.

I read Kevin's earlier book and mentioned it previously here on Amazon and yes, I thought it was great but THIS one...this one is...is...damn...words fail me. It's just simply the best book on plein-air painting I've ever read (and I must have 30 or more on this subject alone). Kevin has outdone himself with this one. He's taken all the valuable info contained in his previous book and just added to it and added to it. I'm looking and looking but I can't find ANYTHING that he may have left out or not talked enough about.

Years ago, before he established himself as The Man when it comes to teaching people how to paint outdoors, I took a couple of workshops with him and, during the first couple of days outdoors and trying to be somewhat easy in his suggestions to improve my picky little paintings, he finally got frustrated with what I'd continued to put on the canvas and, took his thumb and WHOOSH--smeared out a laborious passage I'd painstakingly put in there and wiped off his thumb and WHOOSH, did it a second time and I'll never forget how much BETTER the painting looked after those two swoops. My biggest mistake was in not stopping right there, putting it away and saving that thing for me to look at again and again. That same mentality permeates his book; you can't help but improve your paintings if you read this book and apply the principles therein.

Another note is the two back-pages by his wife, Wanda, who was only just beginning to paint when I knew them. She can really paint now but she
maintains that being really good (which she is) is not the point, but that just getting out there and not being afraid to fail and just enjoy yourself should be a reward in itself. I found her remarks to be in good juxtaposition to Kevin's solid, on-target prose about well, "Landscape Painting Inside and Out".

Buy it. Better yet, go to his website and see if you can get into a workshop with him. You won't be disappointed.

One of the most helpful art books I have in my collection - lots of step by step descriptions and painting challenges. I highly recommend this book not only for oil painters, but all media.

This is a great book with lots of useful suggestions about painting, managing a career, developing self discipline as an artist, etc. I expect to use a lot of these ideas even though my primary genres are figure and portraiture.

Kevin MacPherson has written a wonderful book. As an artist I am constantly trying to perfect my paintings, and this book is a great tool. If you are wondering "Should I purchase another art book?", the answer is YES to this one.

This book is very interesting; I have many art books, and this one gets you to thinking. It offers many ideas about how to go about creating better artwork (including using the computer, creating great value studies, use of color, etc.). A beginner or advanced artist would benefit from this book. This artist's work is beautiful. The book is well written, contains great content, and deserves "five stars." RMD

This guy knows his stuff and conveys his ideas superbly with great examples to support his recommendations. I respectfully disagree with his comment in the book "that while copying a picture may require great skill, it is not art. With the fabulous digital technology available today, we students of art can freeze that moment in time that we all wish to capture. Painting with passion comes from within and can be stimulated in various ways. An excellent book for any artist's library.

I love Kevin MacPherson's books and this one is no exception. They are clearly and concisely written and illustrated. I consider his books "Must Reads" for new artists.

This book will answer all your questions about painting outside and in. A real must have.

I own Macpherson's previous book and thought it was excellent. He has surpassed himself. His personal art work is first class and this book explains his approach to painting in a practical manner.

The great landscape painters use broad brush strokes of color to convey form and distance. The clouds and sky include touches of the foreground colors to harmonize the scene. Colorful shadows and minor gradations of color within a value range provide excitement and interest. Kevin shows you why this works and how to do it. I learned more from this book than from all the rest of the texts in my library.

My wife never thought much of my paintings before (and neither did I) but now brings people into my office to view them. Holy Shlamoly - I can paint! I'm not great but good enough to impress the guy down the block and I'm getting better. Thanks, Kevin. Readers, buy the book. It's not complicated but will require some practice on your part. It's well worth the money and your time to get past that amateur look so common to beginning painters.

I enjoyed Kevin's book because his explanations were easy to understand
and the demo pictures so helpful. I have gleaned alot from this book.

Very Good Book - landscape painting inside and out is quite inspirational, as are all of her books. I particularly enjoyed the reproductions. Barbara Barrick

Kevin has done a classic, and I am sure that is will be used by artists
for years to come.
Loads of useful information, great examples and good instructions.
I have been a professional painter for 30 years, and am always looking to
learn more, this one really hit home for me on many areas. Beautiful color
with strong draftmanship.

This is the book for the serious landscape artist who has had questions about their own work that have never been answered until now. I found things I always wanted to know. The book never talked down. The author shared information about what he is doing artistically now and not the way he did it in the past. There is a wealth of ideas and information, much more that I ever expected. I will be continuing to read and refer to this book in the future. It was a big inspiration, and one of the best art books I have ever purchased.

This book gives practical, specific advice on improving your landscape painting technique. I especially like the illustrations. The paintings are beautiful and "fresh." Not your average landscapes. They inspired me.

Great book Good information but Kevin seems to lose his separation of the lights and shadows in some of his demos in the back of the book He talks about it but then shadows start getting to light in value and too much detail. This could be from the reproductions of his painting

Having read this author's previous book on putting color and light in your paintings, I was a little disappointed with this one---I expected more. The book was well organized, (had, once again, pages of stuff about selecting your brushes, etc.); the author set forth his view of a limited palette, and said that you needed to be excited about your painting---but I don't believe that he was excited when he wrote this. If he was, he didn't convey it well. Had a number of exercises, some reasonable, others only for the wealthy (use an entire tube of cadmium red light on your painting (That is, really thick!)

Anyway, having read through the book, I would not buy this book again --- that's the bottom line.

Kevin Macpherson gives thorough instructions in his book from colors used to composition. A beautiful book with many demonstrations. I would highly recommend to the beginning or advanced Plein-Air painter in oil.

If you are an oil painter or even if you are a want-to-be painter, Kevin MacPherson's book is a terrific reference. Personally, I'm a Plein Air painter and Kevin is a master at painting on location. He covers what supplies you'll need and techniques in painting. I've had this book for some time and still refer to it often.

This is a wonderful addition to any artist's library. Kevin Macpherson is a great painter and teacher who shares his style and technique in an easy-to-understand manner. The lush photographs and instructional text are all first-rate. I highly recommend this book.

The book is in excellent condition and the shipping time - just a couple of days.

The book is in excellent condition and the shipping time - just a couple of days.

This was a gift for my dad, who is a professional artist. He requested it, and he found it triggered many ideas that he uses in his work.

As usual, Kevin MacPherson is an outstanding artist. This book is even better than his first one. I would highly recommend it.

I certainly wasn't disappointed with this publication. Kevin's enthusiasm for his craft is contageous. Everytime I pick the book up I want to dive into a new painting project. His information is timeless and pertitent to the novice as well as the seasoned pro. I really like the layout that enables me to find the information I'm looking for easily
and the over all style and look of the book is great. The full color reproductions are true to his palette (I've viewed his work in person) and give the viewer visual insight into his color mixing. This is a real keeper and I can see myself going back to this book over and over again for inspiration, information and just to look at beautiful art. Thanks Kevin

It is rare that a great painter is also a great teacher, but this book is proof positive that it can be done. Kevin has presented the artist interested in outdoor painting or how to translate the outdoor experience into studio painting, a concise & complete way of thinking as well as notes on materials and techniques. This book goes on the shelf with the other 4-5 essential manuals on the painting process...quite simply a necessary volume, beautifully illustrated.....my students will be required to buy this one! Bravo Kevin!!

Because a 5-star rating might imply perfection, I hate to give 5 stars to any book. However, while this book is not perfect, its virtues are so great (especially in comparison to most other painting-technique books) that it deserves such a high rating.

Macpherson's first book, "Fill Your Oil Paintings With Light and Color," is also excellent. With this new book, and its beautiful paintings to illustrate the text, he expands on painting landscapes. Both books are very useful.

If I were to criticize, it is that, very occasionally, the book introduces a thought that could have been more fully elaborated. And potential buyers should understand that the book does not go into great detail on how to paint specific aspects of landscapes (e.g., clouds, water, trees, etc.); and that seems to be intentional. Rather than address brushstrokes, etc., this book goes right to the heart of things, to concepts that will more fundamentally improve how one paints. (I'm talking here about concrete, practical advice, not metaphysical fluff.) Such principles can indeed be found in some other books, but this book states them more clearly, and with better illustrations, than any other book I can think of. This book keeps one's focus on what is most important to a successful painting.

In short, this is a substantial book that makes many other art books seem rather superficial, or at least unclear, by comparison. This book will probably not obviate the use of specialty books (e.g., on painting clouds)--of which there are some excellent ones--rather, this book will give you the foundation on which to better apply the advice of those other books. As you can tell, I like this book. I suspect it will be regarded a classic.