[Lunatique]

As great as the surge of published learning materials are in the recent years are, I think it also created unjustified expectations that they can help you improve by leaps and bounds in a short amount of time.

For the longest time, I kept getting emails from people asking me why they followed my tutorials but can't achieve the same results, and finally I had to put a disclaimer on my site that basically said you can't expect a few tutorials to replace years of hard work.

I think there's something inherent in our nature that makes us believe that if we lived vicariously through others' achievements--particularly if they explained to us how they did it, we become endowed with this superficial confidence that we can do it too. It's like watching a great bank heist film and afterwards feeling that maybe you could pull it off too.

I remember sitting through the Richard Schmid DVD's absolutely fascinated, as he made it look so easy. I'd throw up a canvas all inspired and pumped up, and after an afternoon of painting, would realize that the same brushstroke from my inexperienced hands looked NOTHING like the same brushstroke from his experienced hands (not to mention his raw talent), regardless of how well he explained every one of his choices in color, composition, edges, values, tools, inspiration, motivation...etc.

Absorbing knowledge is certainly very helpful, but there has be a process of digesting of that knowledge, assimilating it into your own methods, and finally after A LOT OF PRACTICE, having it pay off once you've learned to wield that knowledge with confidence. [/i]