Sometimes It Is Hard To See...

...the difference between the first layer of paint and the second, but I use far more shades of color in the second layer to create life-like tonality. 

In the first photo, you can see two shades of white replacing the singular tone of white in the first layer in the upper right corner. 

You can compare and contrast the level of detail between the first and second photo, and still see the bottom quarter incomplete. 

The third image completed that remaining area, and is fully covered by a second layer of paint. 

And finally, the last image shows the entire painting completed. The detailed section I just showed you is almost dead center in the painting.

Water Is Coming...

Ovals Are Coming...

The Progression...

...of my latest painting.

I've Restarted The Habit...

...of working on several paintings at once. This way, I always have something to work on while another is drying, or simply to change things up. 

Pictured here is a few nights work on the under painting for the waterfront fountain at night. 

It's nice that it is just a few steps from my studio, so I can wander down the street when I get stuck on a section.

I am starting in a monochrome of browns to build in the stark differences between light and dark inherent in the painting.

When A Day Starts...

...before sunrise and ends on a boat, it is usually a day of work, but it is hard to think of it that way. Thanks to generosity of a friend of the gallery in Ed Shehab, I spent a pleasant three days out on and around Kiawah Island photographing.

Here I am out on the beach in front of the Ocean Course clubhouse just after sunrise, with my trusty but awkward photo science bucket tripod contraption.

This a view of Kiawah and Seabrook Islands taken from the 16th hole at Cassique.

I'm not sure where this is, but it will most likely end up being a long skinny painting.

A view from a tree stand that is set up to show prospective owners the view from their future home, used here for art type purposes. 

And deep on the backside of Kiawah Island, a panoramic of a pond.  With luck, there are a few paintings in here to be had. Thanks again Ed!

When I Explain To People...

...that part of my process is sanding down my painting between layers of paint, I often get confused looks. I don't remove all the paint, just the bumps in the surface. 

In sanding by hand, I can control exactly how much I take off. This makes the surface smooth by removing the brush strokes, so when things change in the second layer, there is no trace (or "ghost") of the first layer of paint. 

In the bottom photo, you can see how much pigment was left after sanding. Where the paint was thin, the pink of the ground layer pokes through.

The First Image...

...is of the last of the marsh grass being painted in. The next image is the first layer completed. 

Now I will sand it, removing all of the surface texture and as little as possible of the pigment, to prepare it for the next layer of paint. 

I'm not sure I can do a better job with the grass, but the detail in the sky and water should greatly improve with another layer.

After The Water...

...gets painted, I move on to the spartina.

As I Mentioned In The Last Post...

...I use the razor to cut in details and shapes. Here, I am making space for clouds in the pretty gradient created by a low sun. 

I paint in the clouds, smoothing and blending them into the sky already painted.

Then once they have been painted in, I cut in the singular blades of grass. This way, when the grass is later painted in, the surface stays smooth and pictorially unified. 

In other words, it is one picture plane and not looking like they are pasted on top of what is painted behind them, in this case the sky.

I Forgot To Post...

...my final painting from the elements show. 

To capture the detail and not drag dark colors into the snow, I used my usual technique of painting and scraping away paint to create channels for the fence to fill. 

This way, the detail stays crisp, the snow stays clean, and the entire surface stays optically smooth. Hanging on the wall, I am very proud of how they turned out!

As This Painting...

...is about air, I used a glaze layer to wrap the mountain (right hand side valley) in the soft gauze of clouds.

The slightly blurry image above is the before, while this is the after:

As The Aspen Tree...

...gets painted, I am one step closer to completing this painting.

Slowly...

...creating a mountain, all to show off the air over and around it.

A Couple Of Detail Shots...

...from the "Air" painting for the upcoming group show.

And It Is...

...done! Plus a few detail shots so you can see some of the little things that make this piece so interesting.

There Are Only Six Words...

...that make me happier than having Megan tell me to rehang my work, take over a new wall, space it out, and make it look pretty. They are the ensuing thought, "now break out the laser level!" If only the photo could capture how pretty and clean it is...

So As It Turns Out...

...painting live trees is far more rewarding than painting burnt remnants of trees.

This Is How...

...I did it. One section at a time, step by step. First I painted in the background of snow. 

Then, using a straight razor, I cut out the shapes of the unburnt pines. 

Next, I painted them in and smoothed them over, gently blending the edges into the white to soften their outline. 

Then I did the same thing for the burnt spires of pine trunks before finally moving onto the next section. 

Unbelievably, this process took just under four hours for a section just over a square inch.