Daniel Smith Watercolors - Are They As Great As People Say?
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- Опубліковано 8 вер 2024
- In today's video I'm going to be swatching out these Daniel Smith Watercolors that were sent to me by a very kind subscriber.
I've heard a lot of good things about Daniel Smith Watercolors so I was looking forward to trying them.
Materials used in this video:
Baohong Academy Watercolor Paper Cold Pressed 300gsm bit.ly/3iPHCcZ
Escoda Perla Round Size 10 bit.ly/2VOjP4t
Daniel Smith Watercolors: bit.ly/3qTTXAC
Lemon Yellow
Hansa Yellow Medium
Aussie Red Gold
Permanent Orange
Quinacridone Red
Ultramarine Red
Rise Of Ultramarine
Ultramarine Violet
Moonglow
Serpentine Genuine
Nickel Azo Yellow
Transparent Yellow Oxide
Raw Sienna
Lunar Earth
Quinacridone Burnt Orange
Transparent Brown Oxide
Hematite
Lunar Black
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*Correction to the pigments in the Aussie Red Gold. It's a 3 pigment mix of PY83, PR101 and PV19*
Love the Aussie red gold, it just glows in sunsets
@@chribourg2317 It is a beautiful paint
Thanks. I was scrambling to find my own tube because I was certain it was 3 pigments.
I mostly like single pigments but I do have this one and it's so lovely!!
Fun fact, if you hold a strong magnet under your paper where you have the hematite paint, and drag it, while the paint is still very wet, the magnet creates a really neat texture, kind of like fur.
Sounds like playing with magnets and iron filings at school.
Oooo fun! I really want to try this now.
I hv hematite violet gen. I would to try that. Thanks for the trick 👍👍😊
Unpopular opinion here - I've used DS for many years (and I have no problem tanking top $ in quality supplies, - so price is no issue) but I switched form about four years ago (I still buy some of their paints, but only few colors - some of them being Cad Orange Hue and Cerulean Blue Chromium) Because in all honesty after much testing side by side with other pro brands only some colors truly shine and behave better than others both freshly squeezed and dry in pans. What DS is truly best at is marketing and making fun granulating gimmicky colors. Not paint making. At least not for the higher price. They are good, but not best. They are worth it, but only in you live in US and they are not the most expensive thing in your store.
I like how you described Aussie Red Gold as a red-yellow rather than orange, it's more fitting for sure. I love Daniel Smith; their Primatek line is excellent. I highly recommend Green Apatite Genuine...the granulation is astonishing, as some parts settle out black and some neon green. I think there might be a swatching video of that somewhere on UA-cam if you're interested.
I love Daniel Smith, but as a US citizen I am sure that's influenced by their availability here and they tend to run cheaper here than abroad. Like most brands though, they do some things better than others. I do find their earth tones are probably the best in the game. I am very fond of their Trans Red and Brown Oxides, Van Dyke Brown and Bloodstone Genuine. I also find their Opera, Cerulean Blue Chromium, Goethite, Manganese Blue Hue to be paints I prefer in Daniel Smith to any other brand. And they have things like their Cobalt Teal Blue which is highly highly granulating and does great separation in mixes (although I also use this particular color from Schmincke and Winsor and Newton and I also like their brighter smoother versions ... they vary enough to merit having one of along with the Daniel Smith, IMO)
Thanks for all the recommendations 🙏 The Daniel Smith earth tones are definitely very nice.
I'm relatively new to watercolor and ds has a huge following and being new to watercolor I of course was like I should try them and obviously thought they were amazing bc I was only using student grade paints at the time. Once I began trying other brands I realized that ds in my opinion isn't as great as many people say but that's my opinion so any new paint I buy I try a new brand or a brand I currently like. I do like se of the unique colors ds has but that's about it now but I'll obviously use what I have left. Have a great day
Which other brands did you find better than ds? I am thinking of buying few ds shades.
My favorite green ist 'Apatite genuine' by Daniel Smith. The granulation is just out of this world. Have not tried to mix it with other colors yet. But putting it on paper and watch it do its thing is just beautiful!
My favorite of the those paints is the serpentine genuine. I love how it granulates with a green and brown. Great for landscape paintings. Lunar black is fun to mix wth non granulating paints, to get them to granulate. You have some beautiful colors to paint with.
Tfs.
You're very welcome 🙏 I like the Serpentine Genuine too and I agree it's good for landsdcapes.
It’s surprisingly also good for painting avocados.
I love Daniel Smith and done my first graphic novel with DS colors. I personally think their Moon black is the best black color that give a great granulation result.
I hope your graphic novel is a success 🙏☺️
DS and Holbein are my choices. Haven't tried anything else tho 😂
You might like Green Apatite Genuine. It's a favorite of mine.
Great review Jay. I have a few tubes, mostly earth colors and blacks. I really like its granulation, Lunar Black is incredibly transparent, you can mix it up and create some beautiful textures. In my country DS moves in the price range of W&N and Schminke. It depends on the series, some are cheaper than others. They are good pignents, but, in my opinion, there is too much marketing surrounding DS, they have managed to position themselves brutally in the market. That is not to say that they are charming paintings.
Thanks Jose 🙏 I agree with you about Daniel Smith's marketing but then again they are in the paint selling business and they do it very well.
I'm surprised other brands don't try to market in a similar way.
@@JayNathanWatercolor $$$$$$ 😂
Based in the US, DS paints are so readily available here, and most instructors start people out with their Essentials set, which is a really great mixed primary set. Their earth tones are unmatched by any other brands, and if you like granulating paints, IMHO they cannot be beat. That PBr11 is magic, as are the Hematite and Lunar Black. I also like Goethite, which is a weak tinter, but adds wonderful granulation to just about anything. Mix that with a little buff titanium and you have a sandy beach. They are easy to rewet too. I have an embarrassing amount of them, because, well,….because. In fact, I might have just picked up another half dozen tubes to beat the Feb 1 price increase.
Sorry, can I please ask what price increase?
@@LowKey_izildura I got an email from one of the smaller art stores I support. Historically DS has raised prices in January or February, has happened every year that I’ve noticed.
@@starr-starr oh.. I`m in Europe, I didn`t know that. Thank you so much!
Is an 'embarrassing amount' more or less than 100 tubes? 🤣
Daniel Smith definitely make great paints but if the price is going to be even higher then it's even less likely that I would ever buy them.
@@JayNathanWatercolor let’s say its closer to 100 than it is to 50
The Golden Quinacridone Gold is gorgeous and separates into value beautifully❤️🔥
Great video and review - thank you! Daniel Smith paints are the only real addiction I have. I’m partly based in the US, but live most of the year in Germany, so you can guess what’s in my suitcase when I travel back to Europe from a visit with my American family. Even by American standards, though, DS paints are not easy on the budget. My own favorites are the granulating colors. I don’t know that any other company has done such a good job of making those. I love the apatites in particular.
Haha. I can imagine a suitcase full of watercolor tubes 🤣
I enjoy Daniel Smith Watercolors but not every color I have personally tried out has been that great to be honest but moonglow is my all time favorite
I want that Quinacridone Red. It’s beautiful.
I’d say try Undersea Green, maybe.
Thanks for the recommendation 🙏
A couple of my favourites that you didn’t swatch out here is Lunar Blue and Piemontite Genuine. Daniel Smith makes lovely paints. My Moonglow however looks more black than purple. Thank you! 😊
Thank you. I'll have to look all those colours up 🙏☺️
I'm in the US and I adore Daniel Smith. There are other brands I like too, but I lean towards the Daniel Smith colors most often. My current palette is mainly Daniel Smith with 1 M Graham, 2 Da Vinci, and 2 Winsor Newton. The area I live in only has craft stores with a tiny selection of Winsor Newton so I end up ordering everything online.
I mostly order online too but I am lucky here that we have a few nice art stores in town. They only stock Rembrandt, Mijello, W&N, Holbein, Van Gogh and Cotman though.
Thank you, Jay. I enjoy your swatching videos very much.
Great video Jay , I really like the Serpentine genuine. I agree with you about the Nickel Azo yellow, the W&N version is much better
Thank you Tammy 🙏 The Serpentine is really nice. Perfect for landsdcapes ☺️
Expensive *within* the US as well 😄, but some tubes are certainly worth it for me!
Beautiful paints! I love their textural colors and mixes, although I only own a few (I'm eu based). My fav color from the brand is Sodalite Genuine. A granulating black comparison video will be very interesting for sure :)
The granulating paints really are beautiful. I'll make a note to do a black comparison. ☺️
Sodalite Genuine is also my favourite, the granulation is amazing
One of my favourites too :)
I was going to suggest Sodalite too as the granulation is truly spectacular.
My fav color! I wanted to try sugilite genuine.anyone try this color bfore? I hv shadow violet, moonglow n amethyst gen. If sugilite i 95 percent these as these 3 colors i wont buy it.
God bless these generous subscribers)) Lovely chosen paints you got. I somehow love their undersea green - it`s a convenience mix and I think series 1 paint, not too much granulation but I love that dull green. I also love new gamboge, pyrrol scarlet and their earth colours. I think, in your comparison, you`ll see that the last two are the most granulating of all blacks. I have lunar black (and earth), bloodstone and sodalite - which are also very granulating darks.
The last two granulate so beautifully. I want to try them next to the Mijello cobalt black and Van Gogh oxide black that I have.
Bloodstone sounds interesting. I'll have to look into that one.
@@JayNathanWatercolor Having said that, I truly think most of Daniel Smith is overpriced marketing. Their granulating paints are appealing, but they are overplaying that card with so many paints, it makes me dizzy. Bloodstone has a hue of dull Schmincke`s neutral tint, but with granulation. Not so useful to me. When it comes to the effect, I should`ve picked Hematite instead, and use it with whatever other paint, I suppose. I wouldn`t know `cause I won`t buy it. Tried as much as I could and that`s it. I like a couple of their earths and greens, all from a regular range. I like dark blue sodalite, but I`ve made a very similar colour, from cheaper paints. That`s my two cents)) All the best, Jay
Your watercolor fairy hit this one out of the park. Several of those colors are on Kim Crick's pigment list. She also has a video telling how to make your own Moonglow without using a fugitive color. I think I'm the only person in the world that doesn't like Rose of Ultramarine. The Transparent yellow oxide is fantastic. Think I like it better than yellow ochre-may have to get it.
I'm not so sure if I like the rose of ultramarine or not. I just painted it out badly in this swatch so I want to take another look at it in the future.
You're right about the Transparent Yellow Oxide. It's really nice paint.
@@JayNathanWatercolor I think you did a great job painting it out. I've tried it many times-it just looks unnatural to me.
This is a beautiful color palette; your subscriber was very generous and has a good eye! My favorite Daniel Smith paints are Green Gold, Quinacridone Sienna (old formula w/ PO49), Carmine and Mayan Dark Blue. Also, Fuchsite, Red Fuchsite, Sugalite and Sodalite Genuine, are the Primateks that I love. I used to use the Hansa Yellow Medium PY97 as my primary middle yellow. I still love that color, but something about Da Vinci’s PY74 makes me reach for that shade more. They are so similar so I can’t fully explain why. I’ve always wanted to try the Rose of Ultramarine, but I think that I’m just going to keep mixing it for now; I have way too many paints.
Thank you for all the recommendations 🙏 I think I have the Da Vinci PY74 coming up in a Da Vinci swatching video soon. ☺️
@@JayNathanWatercolor Nice!! I'm looking forward to it!
I really like the Daniel Smith paint for the cool granulation effect of a lot of the colors but some of them don't granulate, you have to be mindful. I like how the finished work of a painting looks so much better with Daniel Smith paint versus a lot of other good paint manufacturers, not sure why. Where DS pays off to me is in large wet it wet washes because nothing blends like this stuff. I'm not a fan of any cauliflower effect so if you don't like that you have to watch and control the drying. DS does seem to dry lighter than other paint so I use more too. I actually didn't like the fact the Jean Haines set was about 2/3 on the granulating paints with the rest being almost like watered ink. The first painting I did with that set had a big learning curve and likely the reason some people don't like painting with this brand. DS is also really expensive so I do find myself overthinking not only what I'm going to paint - but every step in the process.
I'm an oil painter, but I'm watching this video with great, great pleasure. Short but very informative and enjoyable to watch and listen to. I would like to find on UA-cam a video review in the same style about Daniel Smith's oil paints. Thank you very much and good luck!
Thank you Karen ☺️🙏
@@JayNathanWatercolor 🎨
Thanks, Jay! I quite like the Aussie Red Gold, the PY97 and the PO48. May you please double check the pigments of Aussie Red Gold? I was under the impression that it was a three pigment mix. Don’t quote me on this, but I think Spectrum Art in Australia were the first to come up with this hue. Daniel Smith followed suite and I believe A. Gallo Colours have a similar hue or some mix made with the same pigments as the Spectrum Art paint.
Hi. You're absolutely right! It has PV19 in it too. I'll pin a comment at the top about it. Thanks for letting me know 🙏
@@JayNathanWatercolor cheers!
Also in America. I have tried a few DS but for some reason I love Holbein. What I did was get a few colors in different brands. I am only a hobby painter.
I like Holbein too. It's excellent paint 😊
You should get the dot card. I think the earth tones and other granulating colors are what stands out about Daniel Smith. I didn’t like the raw sienna( kinda brownish) or burnt sienna (too pinkish)- they just weren’t what I expected of those colors to be. Most DS colors rewet nicely- the ultramarine does not. It’s hard as a rock and falls out of the well. If they are crazy expensive where you live I’d get the dot card so you don’t have any fomo and look out for the crazy granulating ones that you fall in love with.
y de donde saco estas pinturas para hacer la muestra, las compro o le cayeron del cielo.
They do sometimes stand out in comparisons with other brands. It’s funny, that lemon yellow is not the most lemony, it’s more just yellow to me, I’d want to go lighter. The rose of ultramarine, I wonder how easily you can replicate it just with a mix of enough pv19, I haven’t thought to try it before. The red in moonglow being fugitive, what’s the point of that. We’ve got to keep a sharp eye on these brands, they pull cheeky stunts.
I took a twenty year break from watercolor painting. Last year I bought all new paints. I'm fortunate that I didn't need to worry about the cost. I just wanted the best brand that suited my style. I prefer painting many thin, translucent layers. I REALLY did my research. Generally, the DS paints worked the best for my style, but I added more opaque colors from other brands to my pallet that worked well for less money.
80% of my watercolor is DS. DS is a great brand for sure but I love M.Graham just as much. Recently I bought some da Vinci and they are so goood too. Therefore, I will just buy everything, hahaa. Just kidding. I am thinking about getting da vinci big tubes to be my main supply because they seem to be the most economical. I tend to stay away from WN because they are so hard to rewet and expensive. I also want to give lukas a try one day too.
Thanks for watching and commenting 🙏 Haha! We always end up buying everything. 😂
I've recently tried Da Vinci and really liked them too. There will be a swatching video coming up soon ☺️
I've always heard that W&N are hard to rewet but I've been using them recently and they rewet really well. Maybe the climate here in Thailand helps?
I like the Lukas I have but they have their own look and are much less transparent than you would expect. You might be disappointed coming from Daniel Smith and M. Graham.
thank you
THANK YOU!!!!!!!
yayy! i'm glad u like the trans yellow oxide too! XD i like everything from the quin red onwards 😆
Do you like the Daniel Smith's earth colors more than the Roman Szmal earths?
@@JayNathanWatercolor i think i definitely like DS more for the ones i've tried. RS trans ox yellow is a pain to rewet compared to DS. DS's granulation in their colours is more pronounced over all.
I’ve actually found my Daniel smith cures a lot slower than WN. The paints are still soft days later
Undersea green is divine ( Roman Zsmall's aquarius green is based on it ) , buff and gray titanium, perylene violet, lunar and mayan blue , bloodstone and green apatite geniune and . Their quin sienna is to die for alongside their aussie red gold ! moonglow is overated but nice and so is shadow violet. If you want, we can exchange dot cards :)
Thanks for the recommendations 🙏 I agree about Moonglow. It doesn't do much for me ☺️
Great review, thanks for sharing! I'm curious how you like them in a painting. I use a mix of Daniel Smith and Schmincke in my palette and the granulation of some DS paints are out of this world (Green apatite genuine, Sodalite genuine, Goethite... the list goes on); perfect for line and wash. But to me, in more traditional watercolor paintings Schmincke really stands out in its smoothness, whereas the granulation of DS can be a bit overwhelming in for instance sky area's etc.
Thanks very much 🙏 I've not used them for a painting yet but hopefully I will soon.
I agree with you about Schmincke being great for more traditional watercolor. I'd say W&N are great for that too. Both brands are more to my taste than Daniel Smith. Thanks for watching and commenting 🙏😊
@@JayNathanWatercolor W&N uses a different formula for their tube watercolor vs watercolor in the tiny bricks. So their tube paints don’t rewet easily (unless you add glycerine). I confess that I learned watercolor in a Daniel Smith store, but most of my paints are either Daniel Smith or M Graham because both rewet super easily. I do have one ? Schminke blue for skies which has little if any granulation.
@@Scottlp2 Cobalt blue (either DS or Schmincke) works great for blue skies. Add a touch of burnt sienna, to tone it down to the sweet spot of a hazy, overcast day... butter.
I find this color pretty awesome, can you make a video on how to mix this watercolor. I'm looking for a video to learn how to draw from these fun colors. I find your watercolor paintings very beautiful. I will continue to follow you and wait for new videos from you.
Thank you very much 🙏 Hopefully I'll be painting something with these watercolors soon. Thank you for watching and commenting 😊
I love them. I have all daniel smith's paints in watercolor; although, I only use maybe 6-9 of them on a daily basis. When someone asks for commission work I like having what I need when I need it. I make my living painting commission work. So having them all is a must for me. Because some people want some really unusual and unique items. As for my favorites I'm pretty boring. I stick with the split primaries in my everyday painting for myself palette.
With that being said, India makes some pretty premo single pigment vibrant highly lightfast watercolors that cost less than America student grade. Which I've become a massive fan of. When my daniel smith's are gone that's what I'm switching to and I challenge any artist to tell the difference.
The sticks are a real great value in the basic colors. They really shrink up in my pans compared to DaVinci or M. Graham. I do use a few colors though.
My guess on Serpentine "genuine" is that it's a healthy dose of sap green + PY 129 + lunar earth!
You might be right about that. Daniel Smith will never tell 🤣
Wow, that Hematite is fabulous. I wonder if it's magnetic? That would be awesome to move the granulation around with a magnet.
Some of my favourites are Quinacridone Rose, Pyrrol Scarlet, Buff Titanium and Sap Green. French Ultramarine is in my favorites as well but it's quite hard to rewet. I don't think I tried the earth tones but some of the spectral colors and they are really pretty. Maybe Imperial Purple you would like better to replace Ultramarine Violet.
Thank you very much for the recommendations 🙏 😊
how is the quin rose diferent from quin pink? i have the pink and like it , but not spectacular!
@@CLOUDSINTHEKITCHEN I think it's more lightfast than Quin. Pink. If I would compare it to other quinacridones it would sit right in the middle of Permanent Rose (PV19) from Winsor & Newton and Quinacridone Magenta (PR122). I don't have any favorite Magenta so mine would be from Mission Gold or from Lukas... basically every PR122 that is available to me and I'm okay with that.
In the US, They're the cheaper of the premium brand paints and most accessible. We have a McDonalds-like art supply chain called Michaels and in many parts of the country, Michaels is the only art store you'll find. Those stores only sell Winsor and Newton and maybe a lucky bunch will sell Daniel Smith.
On the other hand, all the US online vendors I know of did not have DS' "McCracken Black" at the time I wanted it, so I ordered overseas from Jackson's Art in the UK and it was pretty reasonably-priced! At least close to what you'd find in the US!
While not something I use regularly, McCracken Black is a 7-pigment train wreck that stains your palettes red and I love it!
I like my Daniel Smiths, and I find they dry fast on paper and well in pans. I love the Rose of Ultramarine and Quin Burnt Orange, and I have a mixing set, Neutral Tint (which I find a bit warm), Ultramarine and about 10 more colors. I find the Daniel Smiths move better on paper than Holbein.
Have you tried da Vinci watercolors? They've been growing on me. Sort of a workhorse paint that's also very nice. I've been using it a lot lately.
Daniel Smith definitely moves better than Holbein. I don't think Holbein contains any dispersing agents so they're actually designed to not move much on the paper. I'm sure I read that somewhere (Or maybe I imagined it? 🤔🤣)
I have tried Da Vinci thanks to the lovely subscriber who sent me some to try. I've only swatched them out so far but found them pretty good. Video should be coming up in the next few weeks ☺️
@@JayNathanWatercolor I'm sure you're right about Helbein, and I often use it when I need less motion on wet paper.
How do subscribers send you paints? I have some sample sets you might be able to use.
@@patticake5311 You can DM me on Instagram 😊
I enjoy my Daniel Smith paints but the price went up again (in Canada) and they have a controversy surrounding the primatek. I’ve decided for various reasons to go for m.graham instead more but I will still get very unique colours from them except I refuse the primatek line now due to their lies and scummy behaviour. I lived them until the Primatek controversy I;m finally getting back to feeling happy using them but won’t support Primatek line paints. I’ve also been getting the Van Gogh as they are fantastic and great prices. I do use non lightfast (fugitive) pigments but desire transparency and clear labeling as well as doing my own window tests. This way I know which supplies to use for a wall hanging/ for sale art vs
I am in the US and was able to get quite a few tubes at big discounts with a coupon from our box stores But when COVID came they did away with the coupons. Everything seems to be going up in price. I just looked at Jackson’s and the shipping is as much as the order so sadly I can’t shop there.
Overall very good paints but a couple of the tubes I have are too much packed with binder so it has grease consistency (italian Venetian Red or Minnesota Pipestone, also Manganese Blue). They should work on the quality.
I've gotten most of the colors I like from Daniel Smith. They're ok paints but not the greatest in the world. Other brands I really like are Holbein, Sennelier, M Graham, and Schmincke. But I will say I love the Hematite Violet Genuine something fierce. And the Quin Coral. Both are lovely colors to mix and have fun with.
They easily dry up in the tube, and the caps are smaller than most other brands, leading to stuck on caps.
Short answer: Yes.
I live in Iceland, and the retail price of DS paints is ridiculous here, as in several hundred per cent more expensive than other artist grade watercolor brands.
So that's a hard pass for me.
They are expensive everywhere!!!
Hello! Where does one learn about pigment colors and how they are organized? For example does PY175 like what does that mean? Not sure if my question makes sense
Hi. PY175 means Pigment Yellow 175. A code like PY175 helps you identify what pigment is being used in the paint. The P = Pigment.
The letters following the P stand for the color of the pigment. In this case Y = Yellow but you also get B = Blue, R = Red, O = Orange, G = Green, V = Violet, Br = Brown, Bk = Black and W = White.
The 175 just means, in this case, that it is the 175th yellow in the color index.
For example PY3 means Pigment Yellow number 3, PB29 means Pigment Blue number 29, PBk11 means Pigment Black number 11.
I hope that makes sense? Maybe someone else will be along soon to explain it better 🤣
The reason it's good to know about these codes is because paint brands can name their watercolors whatever they like so, without looking at the code on the tube, you don't always know what you're getting. For example PB15:3 is Phthalo Blue Green Shade but in some brands it's called Winsor Blue Green Shade or Helio Cerulean or Cyan (Primary) or, in Mijello's case, Cerulean Blue 😂
It's a bit confusing but is good to research or you end up the the same color from different companies. I have enough red paint for the rest of my life. Different name, same color.
Is it almost as good as schminke?
What size brush is that?
Yes Daniel Smith is just as good as Schmincke. I think all the well known artist grade paints are excellent. They just have different properties so, depending on what you want from your paints, you might prefer certain brands over others.
The brush is a size 10 Escoda Perla. There is a link in the description.
👍🌸🌸
No blue on your palette? May I ask why??
These were the paints I was sent to try
These were gifted from a viewer.
What a wonderful gift.