Tree and shadows

Over the Easter weekend, we went for a lovely walk around Blessington Lake. The sun was shining at last, it felt like summer, and we were so early that we nearly had the place to ourselves. We had our dog with us, so I had not planned to paint or draw. But I took lots of photos. And I painted this at home a few days later, working directly in watercolour with no drawing, and painting everything more or less in one go - I did darken the shaded side of the tree as a last step. I really wanted to capture the freshness of Spring, and I think I succeeded. This particular tree was still quite bare, but the trees in the background had these lovely soft colours that I tried to reproduce by mixing Monte Amiata Natural Sienna, Potters' Pink and Cobalt Blue. And Sap Green, which I've been avoiding for years, was the perfect recipe for fresh grass, mixed with a a little Carbazole Violet for the shadows.
There's no better place than Ireland when the sun is shining.