Barrier Reef Study

This is a 4x6 study in oil from my sketchbook that I did before the final painting. I like it better because it is more simplified and less edgy with the rocks. When I went larger I got caught up in the detail. It's a habit I trying to break. Richard's demo for workshop4 really helped to reinforce how much beauty and life you can achieve in simplicity. You can feel what it was like when he painted his study because your senses pick up the movement of the water, the warm of the sun, the coolness of the rocks along with how windy it was to be there. It everything I love about painting outside. It was a great exercise for me to do and a reminder of what I need to focus on with the next one.