9 Steps on a Custom Painting, Chapter 5

That’s a title change from the story of a large and important commissioned oil painting, but the saga continues as I build up the layers of paint and try to figure out how to make this worthy of “large and important” as a description..

Here are some thoughts and explanations as I bumble along. (The numbers don’t correspond to the photos.)

1. The first photo has bright morning sunlight at the bottom; I wish I knew how to duplicate this sort of contrast with paint.
2. As always, I started with the farthest items first – sky, then distant peaks, foothills next, citrus grove, etc.
3. The mountains are from a photo I took north of Ivanhoe, which isn’t too much different from the view seen from this place between Lemon Cove and Woodlake.
4. I moved the barn higher, which might have been a poor decision. The light and shadow on the roofs of the barn look pretty good.
5. I have some confusion as to how to arrange the trees, because I am working from photos of differing viewpoints plus envisioning whatever makes sense from my previous experiences painting citrus groves.
6. When I took the photos, there was a wildfire putting a dull haze of smoke over the colors. I am exaggerating the brightness because it makes for a more pleasing painting.

Now it needs to dry awhile. Next, I will correct things that are not believable, correct colors, tighten up details, and then wait for more drying so I can add more details, wait for more drying, add even more details. . .