Stream Along Hwy 58

9 X 12 oil. Painted from a photo I took a year ago. This stream was along the highway in Oregon on Willamette Pass.

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Comment by Linda L. Kano on May 29, 2014 at 6:41: Yes I do Michael. I'll email it later today when we get home. So pleased!

Comment by Michael J. Severin on May 29, 2014 at 6:25: Hi Linda, Do you still have the reference photo of this, I cannot find it? ...I was going to do a step by step demo of your reference photo ....thanks.

Comment by Ann Turner on May 28, 2014 at 15:06: Wow great learning here ! Thanks for all the information and good luck painting Linda. I'll check while on vacation to see your posts.

Comment by Michael J. Severin on May 28, 2014 at 11:05: Ask away Linda ..it is okay!!! :)) BTW, this is only one of many approaches to starting a painting. As you know, I also use the transparent color block in for larger paintings. Another approach is too simply linear draw the 4 or 5 basic value shapes and block them in with the average value and color ..(That is what Bob Rohm does). There are many more strategies to begin a painting ...these are just a few that I am comfortable with.

Comment by Linda L. Kano on May 28, 2014 at 9:53: Michael...I saved your instruction in Word to study it thoroughly. Very helpful. Thank you! I never thought about massing in without any/or little linear....great idea. I liked the ideas about adding some trees on left, overlapping principle to create distance. I will work on better shaping of mountain and tree angles. Been studying AGAIN Bob Rohm's The Painterly Approach. Much of what you are saying about shapes/values are covered. I have to work harder on this. Thanks again. I appreciate that you took the time to cover this thoroughly. I'll try not to ask more questions for awhile :) Hope others find this helpful as well.

Comment by Michael J. Severin on May 28, 2014 at 9:29: What I do Linda is in the "drawing" phase of the painting, I will not draw, but MASS in my elements using very thin burnt sienna or burnt umber or Trans. oxide Red....something dark and warm. The close elements, I will mass in a little darker, the further elements, I will mass in lighter my applying less paint ..no white though. This is the "drawing" of the masses on the canvas ...I try not to draw linear ..but draw as a mass ..try that sometime, I think you will really enjoy the process ..the "drawing" comes out much better ..and it keeps you from painting "between the lines." the next thing I do is wipe out selected lights. The next thing is to block in all of my dark values ..maybe assign 3 values to your darks ..so the No. 3 value block in would be distant darks such as background trees. I then paint my darkest dark and lightest light ..preferably next to each other. From there, all my other values will lie in between those extremes. What I do to get my distant "greens" is to mix a cool yellow into the lightest dark value ..a little white might be necessary... sometimes I will do this with a gray mixture from my palette of colors. This value and color will go on the side of the trees facing the sun. Warmer greens would prevail in the foreground trees. Your tree greens in light should be darker then your ground plane lights ..simply because the tree is an upright plane ..and upright planes are the darkest ..even in the light. Now, my suggestion for a shaft of light: I will usually use white and lemon yellow ..a big glob of paint ..one stroke ..let chance take its course. There are a couple of things on this painting that I would really suggest you alter. First, your mountain: Don't let it nosedive like that ...exit the picture with the mountain shape going up on each side ..like a smile :) ..I always try and make my mountains do this ..always up!!! make the mountain smile!! Okay, another thing: Try to avoid nose diving triangles like you have in your background trees ...break that nose diving line into interesting ins and outs shapes. Have some trees on the left come in at the opposite angle and overlap those background trees ...that pushes those trees back further due to OVERLAPPING and gives you more interest with the opposite angular movement. Those trees will be a darker value then your background trees, but a lighter value then your foreground trees ...always think VALUE before COLOR ..always. Last thing: take some sky color and whittle away some of those tree tops at the upper right corner ..make the shape start going at the opposite angular movement BEHIND the foreground trees. Putting purple was not "wrong" ..anything is worth a try if it succeeds . BTW, the mountain "smile" goes for the right side of the mountain also. Okay, I hope that helps Linda.? :)

Comment by Linda L. Kano on May 28, 2014 at 5:56: Michael, I'm trying to learn what you originally stated about the background trees being cooler and lighter. My goal had been to do just that. I think I used lemon yellow . Should I have just used more white in the color mixture or what. BTW I tried very hard not to use white in other colors in this painting, except of course the yellow hue. My actual painting doesn't look as saturated as this photo. You suggested my background trees to be first blocked in with burnt sienna. I added purple to the mixture because it was it the shade. Was that wrong? The "shaft of light hitting the water between the darkest dark and lightest light"...would that be pure white or almost white? Hope I'm not asking too many questions but I'm trying to learn!

Comment by Linda L. Kano on May 27, 2014 at 8:29: Thanks Ann! After reading your response I was reminded of a quote from George Burns. "I'd rather be a failure doing something I love, than being a success at something I hate!" The joy of painting... It's creative, therapeutic, and I like the challenge. If it was easy then everybody would be doing it! Only wish I would have started years ago! Michael, no need to apologize...even if you were a little heavy handed :) It is all valuable learning. I understand the transparent wash block in now. Thank you. How kind of you Cristina. I enjoy looking at all the paintings you all continue to post! Keep them coming!

Comment by Cristina Mihailescu on May 27, 2014 at 5:58: Lovely use of colors dear Linda!

Comment by Michael J. Severin on May 27, 2014 at 2:25: Hi Linda, not a glaze ....paint a transparent wash block in. By the time you finish the rest of your block in and begin painting, the transparent wash should be dry enough ...but it does not need to be dry. Now when I say transparent wash ..that means color thinned out ..no white.