The image in this tutorial was created using Painter 7 and only ONE tool - the "Smeary Round Brush". I hope this demonstration shows how much you can do with just one tool (for my more finished pictures I use a number of brushes, some of which I have customized to my tastes).

If you have Painter 7 (I don't know that it will work with older or newer versions) you can download and watch a script of the paining being created: Ryn_Castle_Painting.ssd
Just save the script to your computer and load it using the Scripts window/menu in Painter.

Basic Colors/Idea
First of all my Wacom tablet is set on "Med" Pressure. I also change my brush size a number of times (but always using the Smeary Round Brush). I begin to build an idea and mood with colors (in this case I have no specific picture planned to start with). I think it will be a yellow green to blue green painting so I start with those colors and with the idea of a grassy overhang near the front of the painting. I tend to start out light and then darken and define more using smaller and smaller brushes.

The Mountains
Next I decided to add mountains. Of course I had not planned ahead so adding them in behind the already sketched overhang could present a problem. To do this I added a new layer and set it to "multiply". I used a pretty large brush and set the opacity low and also the layer opacity low. once the mountains looked correct to me I "dropped" the layer and added in some additional lighting and details.

Clouds & Lighting
Next I added in clouds. I started with a yellowish color not too bright... and then built on top of it with a brighter color and smaller brush. The key to clouds is in the movement of your brush and the pressure applied. It takes some practice, but it's not very hard to do. I then added lighting to the mountains to match some of the color of the clouds.

Castle & Details
Now, to add some interest, I start adding in a castle. Again working first light with a larger brush and then adding detail, highlights and shadows, with a smaller brush. I also add more detail to my overhang, painting in some mushrooms etc.

The Tree
To frame the painting a bit more I paint in a tree to the right side. Starting with a dark blocked in base and adding more details and moss, and also some grass.

Finished picture
This is the finished picture (click for actual 500 x 500 size). Full painting time was about 15 minutes. For more detailed pictures I work larger a longer (1000 to 4000 pixels and 1 to 10 hours normally). And there you have it! For more details on my working process I recommend watching the script and/or reading the other digital tutorials (even if you are working in Painter many of the techniques I mention in the Photoshop tutorials apply).