Ludwig Dittweiler began his training as a decorative painter at the Karlsruhe court theater and later continued with Josef Mühldorfer at the Nationaltheater Mannheim. In 1857 he was a student with Johann Wilhelm Schirmer at the Kunstakademie Karlsruhe. He then worked as a theatermaler at the Karlsruhe court theater.

Influenced by the Baden painter Ferdinand Keller, he created elaborate stages for performances such as Carmen, Der Freischütz, Der Ring des Nibelungen und Tannhäuser. His decorations for Sleeping Beauty showed a view of the inner courtyard of the Heidelberg Castle. Similar architectural motifs are also found in his paintings and watercolors, which Dittweiler showed with success from 1870 on exhibitions.