Create a 6 inch by 6 inch grid on a piece of white paper. The squares will be one inch. See Sample d . Choose a fruit or vegetable, with colors that you would love to paint. If possible paint during daylight and place your vegetable in a place where the light will illuminate part of its surface.
Artificial light is fine too.
You will still need an underlying structure of shapes for your painting. Draw a simple shape in light pencil representing the still life. Be sensitive to the way you place the subject within the square. The negative shapes you create between the figure and the edges of your paper are critical to your composition. Squeeze out a sample of each color onto the palette.