Battenkill @ Center Falls

68  F  sunny, bright and awesome!

It was an absolutely gorgeous day, how couldn't I paint it?

#306 Battenkill @ Center Falls

14 x 16

Price on request

It was one of those days when you're driving around in the country side, sun, shinning, windows open, radio playing and you look at the world and everything is alive and growing, I don't think heaven could be any better.

 I knew I wanted to come to the Center Falls area, but wasn't exactly sure where. I checked out a few spots I had pained before, but wanted this bridge, (it's the Center Falls rd, bridge).

I managed st set up with the panel in the shade, but this wouldn't last.

The tone, what can I say, I like the contrast, but sometimes all I think about is covering it up!

It's all so sketchy at this point, I'm just trying to get the right values/colors, in the right spots, but there is a lot of missing pieces!

I'm kind putting it together like a jigsaw puzzle, well not really......

The foliage stayed within a limited range, mostly because it was composed of one large mass, and all mid-ground.

I had a different brand of paint, Chevarin, I really liked the quality of the titanium, but the ultramarine wasn't as dark as Utrect's and I needed to get my darks darker.

The sun started to get on my panel, and it made it hard to see. I've got about 2 1/2 hours on it, and I'm wanting to put this together, I'm trying to gather the darks in the trees, and make sense in the water.....

I'm also trying to get rig of the tone.

Closer........

Closer.....

As you can see, the light is on the panel, but it's OK because I was far along enough.

Here is the scene.

There was enough room on the shore to paint here, that cable is holding "Warning Falls Ahead" buoys.

 The path down to the water.

About 100 yards downstream from my spot. This is nice too.

Back in the saddle, out back, no less.

83  F  sunny by days end

I needed a little shot at something, so even late in the day I got this, it's at least the 3rd time in this spot and it's right out back.

# 305 Cambridge creek, out back.

8 x 10

available.

Here is my spot, the sun through the foliage is as good as it gets, and there were these real dark shadows too!

The thing with this is how to get the light! impossible you say and your right, so I'll pretend and fake it and pull every trick I know.
I'm getting at it from the brightest, and the darkest and hoping the middle tones will figure themselves out!

By now it feels like I'm in the game!

The scene.

Hope and her friend in the pond.

Ollie.  The beauty of painting here is nobody's missing!

This is from April.

This is from December.

Of peaks and valleys

60  F  clouds with a few drops,  windy!

Here is my toned panel, Ollie and the view from Rocky Mt. There is no finished pictures because I didn't finish anything today.

I got up early, at least for me, and wanted to do Rocky, I've painted each of the last two years, and even though huge views like this aren't my specialty, a big view once in a while is good.

Here's Ollie, coming down wondering why I'm taking so long....

It took 25 minutes to hike up, not a big hike, but my first true "hike in" of the season. there were clouds and a few drops of rain, and I though I'd like the atmospheric perspective, soon after I set up, the winds came...

I spent an hour hanging onto my easel, maybe five minutes getting some paint on, before I gave up!

This was a scrape off!

The Beaver pond, Inlet NY.

70  F  mostly sunny, some clouds.

This was done at the Beaver (actually called Hess) Pond, behind the cabin on 6th Lake in Inlet, NY, so begind the summer season

#304 Beaver Pond

9 x 12

available

This is my first time blogging from the road ( in front of the Inlet public library) and I'm not sure how much battery power I will have...

The scene was in constant change with the clouds alternatley lightening and darkening various parts.

I found this spot, there are tons of good ones up here....

The sky was of interest to me today, the clouds were moving and changing quickly

I worked the sky and clouds....

It was hard to nail down what was going to be light and what was dark....

I had a warmer tone to start, and it kept asserting itself, and wasn't sure I liked that.

 Getting there......

This is where I ended up.

Sight size shot.

My scene, I especially likes the light falling on the far shore and rock, but there wasn't enough water in my view.

I'm essentially on a bog, and with my hike in easel, I have to sit on my backpack/seat which is very low and uncomfortable,  but it's a beautiful spot that I've painted many times and can get to without driving, it feels very remote, but as the crow flies is not that far from the village ( where I am blogging this! and You can hear some village sounds.

Yesterday......Paradise, lost.

70  F  sunny

This was yesterday.

#303 Battenkill @ Eagleville

12 x 16

available.

I got myself into a funk over this painting.  It was a grand day, but I've had a lot of non-painting stuff to do, and it was going to rain........

I thought I wanted a bridge, and this is a bridge! but my first instinct was to do the other part of the river here, and I did this scene, because I'm........

The sun was on the canvas, and the shadow changed, these two factors, (and my disposition). And  while there are things I like about it, as a whole it's just wrong.

I had forgotten my camera so these were taken on my cell.

The thing is when you go out to paint, you can't fake it,  I know it comes down to hours and hours of hard work, and I know I have to push through them, and through the ugly ones too, and see where your vulnerabilities are this was just such a day!

So what's the lesson in this? I ask myself what do I learn?  Every day is not magic, indeed there is drudgery, and some results show it. You can be in paradise and not, and tomorrow, I paint my masterpiece! (maybe the day after that.....)

Plains Road, nothing plane about it!

70  F  sunny, beautiful day!

Here is where I ended up today, I went out late to try and catch some of that delicious evening light.

#302 Plains Rd.

8 x 10

Available.

Here is tonight's scene, as it looked at the end of the 1 hr. session,the shadows had grown quite a bit.

This is Plains rd. I've never painted here, the beauty is that in the plain, you can see the hills.

I broke two rules, well bent one and the other should be a rule, too much real estate for the size and never have an unbroken line across the horizon, but I defer to my disclaimer about breaking any rules anytime I want.

I'm also on a purist kick and wish it would end, I feel like I reverted to my first start back self, but compulsion reveals itself in it's own time.

 The thing with this composition is that it's a sandwich, I love sandwiches, but.....

Just about it for this painting, i thought the foreground with all that green would be a challenge to make recede and I was right.

Here's the sight-size shot, the money shot was not view-able.

I started to mark my spot by sticking a brush into the ground.

Why haven't I painted from this spot?

 Spa Fine Art, in Saratoga Springs, NY. sold this painting today! #199 Hudson River @ Stillwater, from October, 2013.