Distance

Thomas Jacques Somerscales - British 1842-1927, Sail and Steam in Majesty, 84 x 145 cm

detail

The sailing ship is more distant than the steamer, and is therefore painted in less saturated tones and with less detail. The waves nearest to the horizon are also hazier. Adding too much detail to distant objects will bring them forward and look wrong. We can see rigging ropes on the ship but they are only very subtly suggested, perhaps lightly scratched into the paint with a sharp point.

Ships

Unknown












William Ritschel,
In the Trade Winds
48 x 58 inches







The pod of leaping porpoises is a nice touch.

After Willem van der Welde II

Edward Moran

Off Calais Pier

 As a general principle, diagonal lines that lean in towards the centre of the image are considered better compositionally. Outward leaning lines tend to lead the eye out of the frame of the image, lessening its visual gravity. 
The lines of the mast, horizon, boat's wake, and the edge of the sail of the rear boat, converge on a group of figures, creating a focus of interest.

Montague Dawson

Unknown

Thomas Buttersworth

Men o War Running Before a Storm

A familiar device in nautical painting is the contrasting of the dark lines of the masts with an area of bright sky behind.

John Whorf

Sailing
30 x 37 inches

Focussing on just the bow of the ship, cutting the waves, gives a sense of the drama of sailing, and the power of the sea. The lines of the ship and horizon converge on the group of figures, creating a centre of interest.

Christopher Blossom

Westward Ho

The tonal contrast between the black hull of the ship and the bright area of sky on the horizon, is magic.

Thomas Luny

Pink clouds and greenish waves go so well together.

William Edward Norton (1843-1916)

A barque under sail and running down Channel, 48 x 65 inches

William Edward Norton - American 1843-1916

On the Coast of Holland, 42 x 34 inches

Ships' masts provide vertical elements to counter the horizontality of the sea. The vertical element provided by the fisherman is extended by his reflection in the wet sand, and provides a visual link from the bottom of the painting through the boat to the top of the composition.  I've noticed that old master seascape painters often make an opening, or lighter area, in the clouds behind the top of a mast. The light tone contrasts with the dark tone of the mast, creating a focus of interest for the viewer's eye - a kind of full stop at the end of the sentence - and also can suggest an extension of the visual path into the infinite.

The intervals between sets of elements should be varied, to create more visual interest. Avoid painting regular spacings (like the posts in a fence) or the scene will appear unnatural. This rule could be broken if the intention is to create a surreal effect.

Anton Otto Fischer, German American

Man Overboard, 24 x 36 inches

Harpooning a Whale

Geoff Hunt

HMAS Victory

USS United States

Randolph against the Odds, 20 x 27 inches

Duncan Gleason, American 1881 - 1959

Crossing Paths, 25 x 30 inches

20 x 16 inches

Hans Gude - Norwegian 1825-1903

These two images show how greatly reproductions of paintings can vary. It's always best to study the real thing, hanging in a gallery. Not only are reproductions often misleading about colour and tone, they don't give a sense of the scale of a work, or the three dimensional nature of brushwork and paint layers. Visiting galleries is also instructive on how works are framed and displayed. In the past it was a part of an artist's training to visit galleries, set up an easel and make copies of masterpieces.

Dennis Miller Bunker - USA

Beached, c 1881-1882

Geoff Hunt (Geoffrey William Hunt) 1948 -

HMS Indefatigable


HMS Pickle

Frank Boggs - American

Le Port d'Isigny, 1855 (detail)

Ships

James Buttersworth
Yachts Racing 14 x 22


Inman (American)
Ships in the Harbor 14 x 24.25


William Bradford USA 19.75 x 29.75 inches


Antonio Jacobsen
The Yacht Race 9 x 14


Buttersworth
Atalanta Rounding Buoy


Charles Henry Gifford


Egidius Linnig, 23 x 31


Fitz Henry Lane, 24 x 38