This one I'm working on is a good example. Deb took a photo of the farm shed beside our AirBnB, and what attracted her was the beautiful shadow play on the the white wall, which I hadn't even noticed.
Rather than plunging right in, I'm trying to decide on a composition and colour scheme. Colours are easy, I think. But what I really need to do is decide on a title first, which will help me with what to highlight and what to subdue. This is a good idea Deb told me about - it might have been something an instructor said at a workshop, but I really can't remember! Basically, by giving your piece a title before you start painting, you will remember what the focus should be, rather than try to paint everything everything.
My problem is that I can't decide what title to give it! What should it be?
- Shadow on the barn
- Lavender sky
- Country road
- Distant mountains
- Dark tree against white barn
What I should really do is paint all of these versions, as an exercise in choosing a focus. But paint the same scene 5 times is hard! Unless, maybe, I try to apply different techniques for each of them. e.g.:
- Shadow on the barn - giving a sense of calm by using a few colours
- Lavender sky - increasing the drama by using strong colours
- Country road - a sense of peace by limiting the value contrast, or increasing the distance by increasing the value contrast
- Distant mountains - a sense of space using shape contrast (more intricate shapes closer to me, simpler shapes in the distance)
- Dark tree against white barn - strong value contrast to bring the attention to that spot - darkest dark against lightest light.
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