How to check values in a painting with a squint

To check values with a squint in Easel by Zaweba, a free painting studio for Windows, turn on the squint view or the values view. Squint blurs the picture the way half-closing your eyes does, so detail drops away and the big light and dark shapes stand out; values shows the picture in greyscale. Both are view checks that exist only on screen and never affect the painting, so you can switch them on and off as often as you like.

Painters have squinted at their work for centuries. Value, how light or dark a colour is, does most of the work in making a picture read. A painting with good values looks right even in black and white, and one with muddled values looks flat however good its colours are. Squinting is the oldest way to check, because it removes detail and leaves the pattern of light and dark.

Why on-screen checks help

Your eyes adjust to a painting as you work on it. After an hour, you stop seeing it clearly. A quick change of view resets your eyes. Easel's checks are designed for that, and since they are only a view, there is no risk of changing the painting by accident.

Running a value check

Paint until you have the main shapes in. Checking early is more useful than checking at the end, because big value problems are easier to fix before detail goes on.

Turn on squint. Look at the picture as a set of large shapes. Ask whether the lightest light and darkest dark are where you meant them to be, and whether the main subject stands out from its background.

Turn on values. In greyscale, colour cannot hide value problems. Two colours that look different in colour but are the same value will merge in this view, which is often the cause of a flat area.

Switch back to normal and adjust. Darken, lighten or simplify the problem shapes, then check again.

Other checks that help

Check with flat light as well. Thick paint in Easel is lit by a movable light, and impasto ridges cast highlights and shade that can fool your eye. Flat light, L by default, turns the relief off so you are judging only the paint.

Use mirror too. The mirror view flips the picture on screen. It is another way to see your work fresh, and it shows drawing problems and lopsided compositions very clearly.

Step back. Easel's step back shows the picture from a distance, much like walking away from a real easel. Distance does some of the same work as squinting.

Plan values on the palette. Easel's physical palette lets you mix a few steps of the same colour from light to dark before you start, which makes keeping values under control much easier.

When to use each check

Squint is best for big shapes and composition. Values is best for spotting colours that merge. Mirror is best for drawing and balance. Step back is best for overall effect. Using two or three of them at different stages of a painting catches most problems while they are still easy to put right.

Learning value control

The values view is a good teacher. Try painting a small study in a limited palette, such as the Zorn palette that comes with the studio aids, and check it in greyscale often. It is a quick way to learn how much of a painting's strength comes from value rather than colour, and everything is saved in a .zeasel file if you want to return to it later.