Landscape Demo - part 02

Step 01

I like to begin boldly and freely....

there is lots of time to get down to detail.

Although I've used the body 

(or main) colour of rocks and trees, 

you'll notice very dark greens 

and bright orange of the background. 

This is the underneath colour 

which will only be hints in the final.

This broad approach gives me an idea 

how the eye will travel through the picture.

I make adjustments 

to get a comfortable flow throughout. 

Step 02

I've got my darks and lights 

so now I can begin to pull those two together 

with some middle values. 

Here I use my all time favourite Rembrandt violet 536.3

It's a great shadow colour for the greens and grays.

If you can't see it that's good! 

I'm also working on the shapes of the trees and rocks 

but most importantly edges.

 I want some lost and found edges,

pushing (softening the away edges)

and pulling  (sharpening the forward edges). 

This is what gives the picture a sense of space

 or 3 dimensionality.

Step 03

Here I'm adding some highlights and details

 to the trees, rocks and water. 

Everyone loves this bit  

but it is a good thing

I was photographing the process

 as it quickly became clear 

that less is more!

Landscape Demo - part 01

This demo is as much for you as it for me!

Hidden Cottages  -  Leslie Snider

In order to explain my process first I must

 be clear about what it is I want to say.

That takes some analysis of how an idea develops.

This is an important step for me 

as I like to work intuitively 

and only resort to analysis 

when things go awry!

This landscape began 

while having a boat ride

on one of the many lakes 

in southern Ontario.

A quick black and white sketch

pinned down the main elements.

This is not the exact location

but you can see some of the main elements, 

rocks, blue green pines, blue green water,

 hints of reddish brown earth

and that elusive cottage.

Rocky Shoreline Series part 02

Rocky Shoreline 03

I could have called this series

 "experimenting with pastel paper" 

or "how ideas develop"

This example is on my favourite paper, 

a 1000 grit automotive sandpaper.

But back to the process......

Wandering around the shoreline 

I began to notice little quiet areas 

where the water gently swirled 

and you could see patterns

 through the clear water. 

I stood in the water

(up to my ankles)

and took many more photos,

(mostly guess work) 

as I couldn't really see

 through the tiny camera lens.

Back in the studio

I studied these, found

a few with interesting possibilities

and this is the result!

I surprised myself with the 

abstractness of the design 

and think it's an idea 

worth developing.

 

Rocky Shoreline Series part 01

In August you'll find most people 

enjoying sandy beaches 

 but I'm drawn to the shorelines

where water and rock meet dramatically.

This visit prompted 

(what inadvertently became)

a series of pastels 

looking more closely 

at that fascinating landscape.

This first example is a sketch on

 " Brown Recycled Rough Sketch Paper "

(Michaels Craft Store).

It doesn't lend itself to fussing around

but really grabs the pastel

so it's great for quick ideas. 

Rocky Shoreline 01

With a bird's eye view

I concentrated 

on the bold contrast

 of black rock

and foamy surf. 

On closer inspection

I needed my camera to capture

the interesting patterns of surf and rock.

(Couldn't do this without a digital camera)

as you can be free 

to snap and snap and snap again,

until you capture the moment!

Rocky Shoreline 02

This pastel was on a finer grained,

 toned pastel paper (smooth).

"Strathmore".

There is a subtle difference.

More opportunity 

to tune into the nuance

 of colour and tonal contrasts.

Monthly Challenge

Something different this week

working from someone elses's photo.

This is an interesting challenge...

it might take you out of you comfort zone

but I also find it easier to be objective.

Don's view of Lake Ontario

A secondary challenge 

comes from the medium itself.

Paints such as acrylics 

are very consistent in smoothness

whereas pastel can very widely.

Although I work with a variety of brands

I find the darks and deep blues 

to be quite gritty and hard.

It's much more difficult 

to get those luscious textures 

one usually associates with pastel.

Don's photo of Lake Ontario

 

 

Summer Skies

There is rarely a day that goes by this summer 

without rain in the forecast.....

this makes for lush greens

 and ever changing skies.

Two new pastel studies... 

a new discovery "Hoople Island"

 and an old haunt 

"Marsh along the K&P trail."

Hoople Island - pastel - Leslie Snider

K&P Marsh - pastel  - Leslie Snider

 

Pastel Demo Recap

In this last post of the series
 I'm comparing
 the original photo to my finished work.

It's an opportunity to assess my design choices.

I softened the transition from deep shadow
to sunlit trees as I found it too abrupt.

Although I like the tallest pine on the right

I chose to interrupt it's reflection 

as I found it was too dominant. 

The sharp eyed might notice
 I've re-cropped the final  pastel.

As I compared it with the photo 

I realized the design 
had become to evenly balanced.
Being slightly off center 
creates a more interesting balance
between the tall pine on the right 
and the bright trees on the left.
 

So doing a demo has proved helpful to me as well!