Leah's sunset painting revisited

   Here is a cool shot of Leah's sunset paintings in process. Bottom left is one of her paintings that she'd like to carry the style over to her sunset paintings. The bottom right is her first painting of the subject. The latest version is on top.

Here it is on it's own. I think that Leah has done a great job on the sky. The color feels dynamic and the colors feel cleaner. If there is one thing I might do there it would be to clean up the open sky part at the top to have a cleaner sky with just a few softer secondary clouds. Thinning a darker color and scumbling it is not an optimal substitute here for mixing the right color and making a definitive mark as she has done with the lower clouds.

  Here is Leah's original reference photo. Notice in the latest version Leah has simplified the ground plane to indicate a field instead of suburban area with trees. It can work well either way.

I have just a few suggestions and for reference, shot I took on a walk on my road. Yes, think of you all outside of our sessions.

First looking at the photo I'll point out a few things and then bounce back to the marked up painting. In order of value from lightest to darkest is 1. The sky, then 2. the open field, then 3. the tree line and finally, 4. the silhouetted tree. Notice that the color of the grasses in the field are not nearly as intense as the field would be in light. There is a little variation in value within the field and the treeline but within the value range of each. The sky color is not as intense as Leah's beautiful shot.

So, the numbers I've put in the painting above just reiterate the points about value I've made below. The only additional thing I might consider would be to make the marks in the field smaller as it recedes. Maybe consider a horizontal mark or two in the field closer to the treeline.  The silhouetted tree should be the darkest thing in the painting. It doesn't need to be black but just darker than the other areas.   I think that this painting will really sing when Leah pushes and pulls a little more with her value to fully compliment the stunning sky she's painted.